I’ve been asked this question many times over the past couple of months, regarding my switch entirely back to the Canon system of cameras and lenses - for both work and for play. It’s not a very complex answer, but I’ll try to enlighten anyone that might be interested. The short answer is that, creatively, I was ready for a big change. The longer answer is…
I got my professional start on Canon, specifically with the Canon 5D Mark II and two lenses. A 50mm 1.4 and a 24-70 2.8. This is when I really started to see the world in 50mm, and I shot that system for a very long time. That’s also when I started to dabble in video. The 5D Mark II at that time was a true workhorse, and I think that many of us have fond memories of those days with that system.
In the grand scheme of things, I’ve been shooting nothing but Leica for the last 25% of my entire photography journey. In that time i’ve used everything by Fuji, Nikon, Canon, Sony and finally Leica. While Leica was by far the system that inspired me the most to go out and make images, I always felt what I would describe as limitations with the M system. In particular the (lack of) close focus capabilities. You’ve probably noticed that a lot of what I share is still life type scenes. The small details of things that often go overlooked - and I never felt that the M would focus close enough for me. I eventually learned to work around it, but the limitation was always there. That limitation always kept the M from being my one and only camera for every day documentation, though at times I really wanted it to be. That lead me into the Leica SL system with the SL2-S and later the SL3. Those cameras met all of my needs creatively and professionally, until I started to have a few little hiccups with the lenses. For the most part they were small issues - a weird sound in the focus mechanism here or there or some dust in the viewfinder. Simple things that happen with any system, but this wasn’t just any system, and most of these simple repairs had to be shipped to Germany, for even (what I considered) the simplest thing.
My Leica 24-90mm lens needed a general service, so it was sent to Leica New Jersey, who sent it off the Germany. They had my lens for 9 months. When I received it back, the aperture on the lens wasn’t functioning properly anymore. They fixed the other issue I was having with it, but somehow sent it back with a much larger issue. I had no choice but to send it back to Leica New Jersey, who sent it back to Germany, where it was gone for another 7 months. It was during that second repair time that I started to seriously consider other options.
In that repair time, I kept using my SL2-S / SL3 for paid work, but I was starting to worry about any future repairs any part of my Leica system might need. Would I need to purchase a second Leica SL3 body just as a backup? I started to get curious and play around with other systems. I tried the Nikon ZF, Fuji X100VI, Canon R5, and with everything else that I tried, I was finding things to love about *other* systems. The sensor on the ZF was great, the size of the X100VI was great. The lens options readily available of the Canon RF system were great. Locking myself into only one system for everything was starting to feel a little bit like creatively living with one hand tied behind my back. The simple fact is there are a lot of incredible camera systems being made today, and I was ignoring every single one of them, for really no good reason.
When I really had my eyes set on actually changing up my entire work system, naturally I started to look more and more into the new (to me) Canon RF system of cameras and lenses. I shot Canon so long professionally that I never really felt that I had “left” Canon, but more so that I was on pause while I experimented with other creative tools - and that’s exactly how I felt when I tested the R5 with the little 50mm 1.8 lens. It felt familiar to me, and most surprisingly, the sensor and color science felt familiar to me. I found it incredibly easy to achieve the color tonality that I desired out of these cutting edge sensors. I ended up going with a Canon R3 for my paid work, and the R6 Mark II for my every day carry type of work. I don’t like large megapixels sensors - that’s the only reason I opted for the R6II over the R5 or R5 Mark II. I had no other issues at all with my time testing the R5.
I’m not here to promote any one brand, or sell any brand to anyone. I’m simply telling you my experience and the story of why I switched out of the entire Leica ecosystem and went back to Canon. And the honest truth is that I have absolutely no regrets whatsoever. I’m incredibly happy with Canon and their lenses. My personal opinion is that many of the RF system lenses are some the best lenses that I’ve ever used, hands down. When I really leaned into the tech in these new cameras (things I was outright ignoring for years) I never found that I missed the simple, less technical aspects of a system like the Leica M. I took my Canon R6II and the RF 24-70 2.8 lens with me on a recent trip to California and I came home with some of my personal favorite images that I’ve ever captured. Could I have gotten them and loved them as much with Leica? Of course. But I see the bigger point here being that I just don’t care all that much which camera I’m using…I just want to get the shot.
My creative journey now continues on with Canon. I can only tell you my own thoughts and experiences - but I’d have to tell you here that I don’t miss Leica or the lenses at all. Will I ever? I don’t know. Will I never own a Leica camera again? I’d be surprised if that were the case. But whatever is in the foreseeable future for me, it’s going to be with the Canon RF cameras and lenses. I’m incredibly happy with my decision to make a big change…I just want to get the shot.
