I headed to the swanky new Leica store in Mayfair, London, yesterday, for a look at the prestigious company’s latest camera launches, due to hit the UK stores in the coming months.

Among the cameras I had the chance to handle (and attempt not to drool over) was the neat little D-Lux 4 (RRP £595) – developed in partnership with Panasonic – which is light, compact, handles beautifully and takes incredibly detailed photos, just as you’d expect from a Leica branded product! With a sturdy metal casing it also feels built to last.

Next up was the Leica D-Lux 4 Safari – a limited edition model that comes with a smart carry-case, and a larger price-tag: £765. Pricey it may be but again, it’s beautifully built and delivers excellent picture quality.

I also had the chance to handle Leica’s latest innovation: the X1 (proposed RRP £1,320 – subject to change). Designed to fill the gap between the D-Lux and their (also new) M9, the X1 shoehorns a DSLR-sized CMOS sensor into a compact body, and as such will compete against the latest flurry of Micro Four Thirds launches and the like of the Sigma DP2 for example. As you’d expect form Leica, it has a robust, all-metal finish and has an uncomplicated interface, making it easy to simply pick it up and get shooting right away. The model we tried was a pre-production version and so we can’t comment on the image quality just yet, but suffice it to say I have high expectations for the X1, which is due to launch in January.

The successor to Leica’s popular digital rangefinder – the M8 – comes in the form of the full-frame M9. The latest model incorporates a 24×36mm full-frame 18mp sensor into a ‘true Leica M’ body with the same dimensions as the M8. Once again, it’s solidly built, simple to operate and – although we couldn’t take images away to scrutinise properly – those displayed on the rear LCD looked superbly detailed, with well-controlled noise at higher ISOs. With an RRP of £4,850, it’s a pretty big an investment, but a reliable one.

Finally…

Once the crowds had died down, I had the opportunity to get acquainted with the long-awaited Leica S2 (RRP ££15,996 body only – Dec’09). As it was being handed to me, I prepared myself to receive what I expected to feel akin to a ton of bricks, but was pleasantly surprised at just how light the S2 is – it’s more compact than the high-end, full-frame offerings from Nikon and Canon and – incredibly – weighs less too. This fact is all the more suprising when you take into account the fact that this camera’s sensor is almost 60% larger than that of a traditional 35mm camera – 30 x 45mm.

The interface is very simple, reminiscent of the four-button layout used on Phase One digital backs, and enables you to quicly set up the camera, then get on with the business of shooting. I particularly liked the scroll wheel on the back fo the camera – falling neatly under your thumb, you use it to scroll through options and then simply press it inwards to make a selection, rather than having to move your thumb to an additional ‘Ok/Set’ button elsewhere on the body.

Additional points of note include the S2’s dual memory card slot, which enables you to shoot to SD and CompactFlash, and the fact that the S2 doesn’t use a proprietary Raw file format – rather, it produces DNG files, so you’re not lumbered with only being able to process them with one piece of software. I processed mine using the latest version of Capture One (5 PRO) and – althouhg the S2’s Raw files are huge (approx 75MB per image) the software handled them beautifully, and gave me a chance to marvel at the stunning quality of the images I was able to capture while using it.

Which brings me onto the shooting experience this camera provides: shooting with it tethered, I photographed the lovely model that Leica had hired for the day, then viewed the set on the big screen set up to one side. Zooming in, you can make out every single pore, hair, every flake of mascara even – it’s really quite incredible. I’ve processed a few of my shots from yesterday for you all to take a look at*, but obviously an image resized for the web is never going to do the camera full justice – you’ll have to wait for my full review in the magazine (including full size test shots on the free CD) to see what I mean!

* Bear in mind the S2 I was using is awaiting one final firmware update before it goes on sale, so image quality may differ in the final model

Specifications:

More info on the S2 here: http://www.s.leica-camera.com/leica-s-system

D-Lux 4 Technical Data_en

X1 Technical data_en

M9 Technical data_en