This is quite out of Leica M question in general. In 2012 Leica introduced 1080p at 30fps video in Leica M240 model. With no stabilization in the camera nor the lenses this was easily overlooked feature. Plus most bloggers will use auto focus for video which made the Leica M240 out of the equation. Most Leica users hated the video button, Leica even came with firmware update to block the video button completely by giving the user the option of No Video. My experience was limited too for the most part with it. Shooting still videos from the tripod or handheld home videos. But recently I got a project for which I was torn- shall I use the Leica D-Lux 109 with its 1080p 60fps and video stabilization, good auto focus, closer focusing distance, and 4K 30fps or shall I use the well equipped Leica M240 with its beautiful sensor and astonishing lenses. Keep in mind for most photographers it might be an easy choice but when you look for cinematic look and picture quality to set you apart that might not be that easy. Leica has a long history in cinema lenses. Their top rated and award winning cinematic motion picture lenses are no coincidence. Don’t forget that Leica also makes motion picture lenses based on Leica M lenses and they called M 0.8 cine lenses. Going even further back Leica made Leica cine R lenses and before that as far as my information is correct it did the very famous Panavision lenses.

If you are following me closely you would already know that I shoot only with Leica equipment and my collection of M and R lenses is quite precisely picked. My Leica R lenses are long and macro, and my Leica M lenses are from ultra wide to medium long (90mm). So going back to the above disadvantages for most people of the Leica M240 for video, actually you will find out that in motion picture setups the lenses are manual focus, manual aperture, all manual with some differences in the mechanics but all this made me stop, adjust my thinking and realize my Leica M240 just needed a gimbal to become the tool for the job. I went to a local dealer with whom I have a good business to business relation and asked for the Moza AirCross gimbal to test it out in their backyard (I will do a separate article for the gimbal). Mounting the Leica M240 on the Moza AirCross gimbal was easy. Since the camera is small and the lenses are small it was no brainer that it will balance well. I already knew that I would be shooting the video for the project with the Leica Super Elmer 18 mm ASPH, 100 degrees field of view lens. This lens would produce the very cinematic look when cropped to 21:9 ratio. The lens is also a beast when it comes to straight lines on a super wide angle view. Sharpness is mind blowing and details that it puts in a single image with its 100 degrees view angel is unbelievable. So after 10 minutes with of testing the Leica with the Moza gimbal I was sold. I did some extensive testing of Leica M on the Moza gimbal. Video quality compared to the Leica D-Lux 109 when shooting from the same gimbal was quite obvious. D-Lux 109 with 1080p 60 fps was producing some very very smooth videos but Leica M with the 18 mm Super Elmer was producing more quality picture. Details from the Leica M shots was also outstanding. Colors were better and the bit rate was almost double. Leica M produces 50 Mbit/s while the Leica D-Lux 109 when shooting with 60 fps produced about 30 Mbit/s. Keep in mind the Leica M was set to 1080p @ 24 fps. The D-Lux’s 4K outputs 100 Mbit/s file which is outstanding in quality but for this project this was not an advantage. With its all automation Lica D-Lux was making me uncertain. On the M I would preset everything that I would need to take the cuts for the project and then focus only on the motion of the gimbal.