Weekly Portrait Set: BTS Shoot With The Leica SL2 and Stephanie:
For this week’s portrait post, I have photos from my new Leica SL2. These are just the warm up pics or the behind the scenes photos from a long shoot I did with Stephanie but I kind of liked a couple of these, so I decided to post them as a set. I’ll be posting more from this shoot at another time as we did a number of different things. I just haven’t had much time lately with the Christmas season here, and I wanted to post some quick edits from the SL2, since I haven’t posted really anything from it.
So, this was the first time I shot with Stephanie (Instagram), and I had mentioned to her that the camera was new, and I just wanted to spend the time experimenting, and testing it. Up until this point, I just didn’t have much time to do any real shooting with the SL2. This was actually my first real shoot with the new camera. She was totally down for it, and what was originally suppose to be a casual, and experimental shoot turned out to be one where I got some of my favorite shots, which I will post in the near future. I have one of my favorites on my Instagram already. This will definitely not be the last time I shoot with Stephanie. She’s such a great model, and super friendly too. Book her if any of you are ever in NYC.
As for the photos, and the lens used, if you’re a frequent visitor of my site, you probably already guessed what I used lol: the Summilux-SL 50mm f1.4 ASPH. I don’t have much free time this month, so I did the edits pretty quickly. These were taken right on a fire escape in early morning, and as you can see in some of the photos, the lighting changed pretty fast. I thought the light and shadow play here was kind of cool, and I needed a little warm up time with the SL2. Yes, I shot with the SL a ton but it still took me a bit to get acquainted with the SL2. I had to change the settings a bit, and just get used to how this camera shoots. Stephanie, of course, was super patient.
Speaking of the Leica SL2, this camera is incredible. It’s more than I ever thought it would be. Yes, the image quality is much better than the SL’s but besides that, the electronics are I feel just on another level. The ergonomics are a lot better too. I’m going to get this out right now: this is by far my favorite Leica ever, and that includes the film ones :). But I’m going to get more into it when I review it.
Right now, I want to work on some of these edits, and reviews waiting for me, so I hope you enjoy the photos. As always, thanks for stopping by, and Happy Holidays!
Hi Patrick, I recently came across this site looking for info on using Sigma glass on the Leica SL2. A fantastic resource and great shots (I’m deeply jealous that you have NYC as a backdrop!!)
I’ve been a Fuji X series shooter for the last 6 years covering both architecture/interiors and fashion/portrait work. I currently have a rare opportunity to buy into a second system for higher-resolution work. I love the idea of medium format, so the Fuji GFX 50R would fit the bill. As a Hasselblad XPan shooter in the film days, I love the option of framing in that format with that camera too. But, I can’t get the SL2 out of my head! I don’t have the budget for Leica glass so I’d be using Sigma, but I just love the design and feel of that camera. The Fuji medium format option makes sense as a second system to compliment what I have already, but there would be big compromises in shooting style with slower aperture lenses compared to faster glass with the Leica combined with IBIS.
I appreciate you’ve not covered GFX cameras here, but any thoughts would be much appreciated. I guess I’m wondering if an SL2/Sigma set-up would be enough of a leap in quality from my usual Fuji X system? Thanks and keep up the good work!
Hi Chris,
Happy to hear from you, and yes, NYC can be pretty cool to shoot around :).
I think the SL2 with the Sigma setup would be a huge leap forward. Pound for pound, the SL2 is my favorite camera by far, and those Sigma lenses are simply phenomenal! They are every bit what you would expect from top quality glass, and the SL2 can definitely handle them. I reviewed a few Sigma lenses already, and I even have one right now that I just received: the 70mm f2.8 Macro. I did a few shots with it on a shoot yesterday, and I’m blown away. The prices on these lenses are actually decent to for what you’re getting.
Plus, if you choose to, you can also use M mount lenses, which will work with your Fuji system and the SL2. Voigtlander makes some killer glass now. Also, there are some great Panasonic L mount lenses. I reviewed my first one…the 16-35mm f4. That was a fantastic lens as well.
Overall, there are quite a lot of options to consider in terms of lenses for the SL2, and at least from all the ones I’ve used so far, they are all top quality glass. Something you might also want to consider: the SL2 has the new Multishot feature, which can produce a 187 MP image. That might come in handy for some of your architectural work.
I hope this helps. As you can see, I am a huge fan of the SL2, and the L mount system :). It has treated me really well. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. Thanks for stopping by!
Best,
Patrick