Photograph: Leica Camera AG
M11-P Safari
A rangefinder asks for a slower kind of attention, and the M11-P Safari is built entirely around that idea. Focusing is manual, through a bright-line rangefinder window. There is no red dot and no name on the front, only a small silver screw where the red logo would usually sit. What remains is a camera that recedes while it is being used, so the photograph, rather than the machine, holds the attention. The photographs are better for that patience.
The Safari finish gives that restraint a character of its own. Leica Safari editions have stood out for their olive-green colour scheme since the 1970s, and this one carries the tradition with evident care. The top plate is solid brass under a durable matte olive-green paint finish, the leatherette covering matches it and is made to give a secure grip, and the controls and dials on the top plate and front are finished in silver, with black controls at the back. The engraved Leica script and the company and Wetzlar lettering on the top plate complete a design that is quiet, coherent and very handsome.
Under the finish sits the full M11-P platform, unchanged and none the worse for it. A BSI CMOS full-frame sensor and Triple Resolution Technology offer a choice of 60, 36 or 18 megapixels, worked by a Maestro III processor, and the M bayonet takes the long line of M lenses. The rear LCD panel is sapphire glass, scratch-resistant and anti-reflective, and 256 GB of internal memory, alongside an SD card slot, means a day of DNG and JPG files is comfortably held. Film habits, in other words, with digital patience rewarded.
| Sensor | BSI CMOS full-frame, 60.3 MP (9528 x 6328 pixels), Triple Resolution Technology at 60, 36 or 18 MP |
| Processor | Leica Maestro III |
| Lens mount | Leica M bayonet, with additional sensor for 6-bit encoding |
| Storage | 256 GB internal memory; UHS-II SD card slot |
| Display | 2.95 in LCD panel, sapphire glass, 2,332,800 dots, touch control |
| Finish | Solid brass top plate in matte olive-green paint; olive-green leatherette; silver controls, no red logo |
| Authentication | Leica Content Credentials, to the CAI and C2PA standard |
The most forward-looking part of the camera is also its most generous. The M11-P was the first camera to integrate Content Credentials, and the Safari carries the same technology: each image can be signed with tamper-proof metadata recording the camera model, copyright information and creation and editing dates. In a period when photographs are easily doubted, a camera that can vouch for its own pictures is a genuine advance, and a fitting one for a rangefinder with this heritage. Connectivity through Bluetooth, Wi-Fi or cable to the Leica FOTOS app keeps the transfer of those pictures simple. It is an admirable object in every respect: considered, durable and made to be used for a long time.