Leica announces M11 Monochrom, a 60-megapixel camera built for black and white photography
posted Thursday, April 13, 2023 at 10:45 AM EDT
It's a glorious time for black-and-white photography enthusiasts. Hot on the heels of Ricoh announcing the Pentax K-3 Mark III Monochrome, Leica has announced a new monochrome camera, the Leica M11 Monochrom.
The M11 Monochrom is a digital rangefinder sporting a 60-megapixel full-frame backside-illuminated monochromatic image sensor. This is the same resolution as the standard color Leica M11 camera, and the M11 Monochrom also features the same multi-resolution functionality, allowing users to swap between 18, 36, and 60-megapixel resolution, complete with varying crop factors (sort of like swapping between different prime lenses).
The M11 Monochrom looks a lot like the standard Leica M11 camera but includes numerous improvements to its design. The all-metal camera features sapphire glass on its display, an aluminum top plate, and a scratch-resistant finish. The M11 Monochrom is the first Leica camera with sapphire glass since the M Monochrom (Typ 246).
Similar to what Pentax did with its K-3 III Monochrome, Leica has removed all color from the M11 Monochrom's body. The M11 Monochrom is sleek and stealthy.
The move to more aluminum has resulted in a 20% reduction in total weight, which amounts to 110g.
Compared to the standard M11, the most obvious difference in imaging is obviously the removal of the color filter in front of the image sensor. Alongside this change, the M11 Monochrom also has an expanded ISO range of 125 to 200,000, compared to the M11's range of 64-50,000.
Leica has also increased the camera's internal storage to 256GB, four times the M11's storage.
The M11 Monochrom is compatible with the Visoflex 2 electronic viewfinder Leica launched alongside the standard M11 model. The 3.68-megapixel OLED EVF promises a premium feel and high-end performance for users looking for an upgrade over the built-in viewfinder.
The Leica M11 Monochrom is available for preorder now, and will cost $9,195 (body only). For full specifications and details, visit Leica Store Miami.