Leica M9

Leica M9 is Leica's Pro Mirrorless digital camera first announced on September of 2009. The camera includes a 18MP, CCD Full frame sized sensor and has a peak resolution of 5212 x 3472.

Leica brought out the updated Leica M9-P (Read Full Comparison) in order to upgrade this model.

The M9 is scored #68 out of 70 in Pro Mirrorless cameras and all round #448 out of 1465 for cameras in our collection. You can check out our Advanced camera filter to find camera results based on your custom requirements.

Here is a chart of various criteria used in the scoring system.

The Leica M9 comes with a history of related cameras. Listed below, you can view all earlier and new models as well as important features.

You can see the M9 from several angles in the gallery underneath.

Below is a list of benefits and drawbacks of the Leica M9 based on things which are often seen as useful in a digital camera.

The measurement of the sensor in the Leica M9 is 36mm x 24mm (Full frame). The 864 mm² sensor can resolve 5212 x 3472 pixels at aspect ratios of 3:2.

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The CCD sensor boasts 18 megapixels and features a standard ISO range of 80 - 2500. RAW format is supported therefore the user has wider room to maneuver in post.

Leica chose to skip the low pass filter in the Leica M9. This will result in more sharp images but may cause moire in certain situations.

The picture underneath shows the M9's sensor dimensions compared to other popular sizes. The M9 sensor comes with a crop factor of 1 and is presented in green.

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To get an idea of specific aspect ratios, you should refer to the graphic below.

Leica M9 has a weight of 1.29 lbs (585 gr / 20.64 ounces) and features outside proportions of 139mm x 80mm x 37mm (5.5" x 3.1" x 1.5"). The weight of general Pro Mirrorless camera is 722 gr so the Leica M9 is lighter compared with various rivals.

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Here is a shot of the Leica M9 next to a soft drink to help you to have a sense of its scale.

The top view under will show the button design on the M9.

The M9 uses the Leica M mount and has 62 lenses that you can purchase. Below is some of the lenses we have in our collection which will work with the M9.

ModelVisualizeFocal LengthApertureStabilizedWeight

Leica Summaron-M 28mm F5.628mmf/5.6165g

Leica Elmarit-M 24mm f2.8 ASPH24mmf/2.8 290g

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Voigtlander 15mm F4.5 Super Wide Heliar15mmf/4.5 156g

Carl Zeiss Distagon T 418 ZM18mmf/4.0 350g

Voigtlander 50mm F1.5 Nokton50mmf/1.5 293g

Leica Noctilux-M 50mm f0.95 ASPH50mmf/0.95 700g

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Leica APO-Summicron-M 50mm f2 ASPH50mmf/2.0 300g

The M9 has the following connectivity:

• USB Yes

Cameras that consist of NFC and Bluetooth compatibility can easily be controlled wirelessly by smartphones. You will be able to copy files and at times adjust camera settings without the hassle of connecting straight to the camera.

Certain applications even provide a Liveview and press the shutter whenever you aren't near the camera. If the camera provides a HDMI out, it could be connected to an external screen. Nearly all cameras enable you to recharge the battery through the USB port.

Leica M9 does not record video. In case you are shopping for a digital camera to take only pictures, this might not be a problem.

Leica M9 doesn't include weather sealing so damp conditions may ruin the camera.

The Leica M9 includes a 2.5 inch fixed screen boasting a resolution of 230 thousand dots.

Please note that the screen offers no touch support.

Photography Glossary

The ViewFinder details regarding Leica M9 are as follows:

• ViewFinder Optical (rangefinder)
• ViewFinder Magnification 0.68x

Viewfinders can be very helpful during sunny outdoor conditions which may make the camera screen washed out and very difficult to view.

Leica M9 continuous shooting rate is 2.0 frames/s. The maximum shutter speed is 1/4000 seconds.

Leica M9 has got external flash ability but is lacking inbuilt flash. The maximum flash sync is 1/180 seconds.

Leica M9 has not got Auto focus. Phase Detection focusing is a lot more faster & precise compared with Contrast Detect focusing.

Leica M9 boasts manual focus when needed during low light situations or you need to have more exact focus control.

The battery power in the Leica M9 is made to last for 350 images according to the CIPA requirements making it lesser as compared with its rivals. The typical Pro Mirrorless camera battery life is 460. Olympus E-M1X has got the highest (870) battery life within this type of cameras.

Listed below is a number of Pro Mirrorless cameras with the highest battery life:

ModelVisualizeBattery LifeRAWNFCBluetooth

Olympus E-M1X
M9 vs E-M1X870 yesnoyes

Fujifilm GFX 100
M9 vs Fujifilm GFX 100800 yesnoyes

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Canon R3
M9 vs R3760 yesnoyes

Nikon Z9
M9 vs Z9740 yesnoyes

Leica M11
M9 vs M11700 yesnono

The following bar chart presents a analysis of the Leica M9 for various kinds of photography. To read more, go to the specific paragraph underneath.

The Leica M9 gets a points tally of 69 which is very good, meaning that it is a very decent fit for portraits. Taking portrait photos leans heavily to sensor specs, RAW support together with the option to use off-camera lighting.

Coming in at a nice points total of 65, the Leica M9 is a respectable pick for street photography. A decent street photography camera has a perfect balance of image quality plus portability.

A dreadful sports photography rating of 44 indicates the Leica M9 is not really suitable for photographing sports. A camera needs fantastic tracking plus continuous shooting for sports photography.

Portability is very important when buying a travel camera. Over-all, the Leica M9 gets a modest 54 as a travel camera which is reasonably suited to take on your travels.

If you are planning to purchase a digital camera for landscape photography, the most essential factor is going to be image quality. The Leica M9 with it's moderate score of 60 as a landscape camera is fairly suitable among it's competition.

A vlogging camera ought to offer a moving display, mic input and ideally image stabilization. Considering all the details, the Leica M9 is not really suitable for vlogging as it gets a dreadful rating of 9.

If you are looking for alternatives to the M9, below is a number of the top placed cameras that fall in to the category of Pro Mirrorless.

The chart below will give you a summary of the M9 versus it's highest ranking rivals suggested previously.

These are some more cameras you may view as alternatives. To review a comprehensive comparison, click the "compare" link.