Leica C-LUX 1 6MP Digital Camera with 3.6x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom (Silver)

A great camera for my highly cafinated hands!
Highly Intuitive menuing system allows you to use EVERY feature!
Couldn't possibly be happier with this purchase!
Highest Marks!
Purchase and delivery was as promised and hastle free!

When my Canon Sureshot developed problems on a recent trip to Morocco, I purchased the Leica D-LUX 1 in the Amsterdam Airport Duty Free area. Despite the fact that the box contained four owners manuals, all in languages that weren't English, the camera was quickly familiar to me, extremely intuitive, and a fantastic thing to have stumbled upon. I purchased it for the brand name, and because I'd never seen a Leica digital camera, so I can't take credit for careful research before purchase, but boy does it take beautiful pictures. I love the wider angle lens, the crisp, rich images, the long-lasting battery, and its fantastic compactness. It easily slips in a shirt pocket if necessary, and although I used it constantly while working in rugged terrain in the Atlas Mountains ( film shoot) it functioned perfectly, and became the envy of the set as well. Let's face it, in addition to everything else, it's just downright beautiful.

I looked at a lot of options to replace a great Canon digicam. Having started my love of photography as an analog SLR user, I have grown to enjoy the spontaneous photos I get with a point and shoot digital camera. In the end I decided against a "bigger" camera and chose the Leica for the wider lense, the image stabilization and, yes, the prestige of the brand.

Like any camera this size, or any size for that matter, the brighter the conditions, the better the shot. The Leica C Lux takes fantastic shots in sunlight and I haven't been displeased with shots captured with the flash or in lower light. It's a great looking little camera, and I've really enjoyed being able to slip it in my pocket. My ultimate decision was that I could have a larger camera that takes amazing pictures, but I'd never get the chance without the camera with me, or a great little camera that get very good shots, but gets them everytime because it is always with me.

For brand snobs, this is certainly the camera to get. It is quite a head turner among folks who know the brand and I am often presented with the question of "what kind of camera is that" when I whip it out. That's either a turn on or a turnoff. I'd recommend choosing the camera for its wide lense, motion control and native ability to shoot in 16:9.

The Leica C-LUX 1 is a little pricey, but you get an excellent, solid camera, easy to use right out of the box. I'm 70 years old and was dead set against getting a digital camera ("you can't teach an old dog to do new tricks" school of thought) But this camera sold itself. I use a photoelectric (no cord) slave flash if I need more flash, although the on-camera flash seems adequate for a small room. The manual is easy to follow for starting to take pictures, And there is further instruction for the great variety of applications this camera is able to perform. I have the black one, although there is a silver body available. I bought the "kit" which included an extra rechargable battery and a very nice leather case for under $70.00. Picture quality is outstanding due to the incredible quality of the Leica lens and good programmed exposure and distance controls. At my age, I think this is probably a "lifetime" purchase, but who needs more for the next 50 years?

I bought this camera to augment my Nikon D-200, (which I love), although it is too big to tote around casually. But the Leica c lux is almost too small! It is smaller than it looks in the pictures, about the sixe of my cell phone, but packs a punch. The shutter is slower and takes some getting used to, but it catches inages with superb clarity and is very easy to use and carry. I passed on the $70 Leica case and opted for one by SONY for $22, and I carry it on my belt like a phone. I wore it while playing golf this morning and came back with sixty images. The battery lasts a long time, maybe 4 hours, and the camera quickly darts back and forth between modes. As for whether the Panasonic is just as good, sorry. The build quality of the Leica is far above the Panasonic version, and it is a real gem to look at and handle. It has re-energized my love of photography, and I will continue to carry it at all times to capture the kinds of pictures that i used to miss.