Leica 18450 - Manual

The CE identification of our products documents adherence to the fundamental requirements of the valid EU guidelines. wArNINg mESSAgES • Modern electronic components react sensitively to electrostatic dis - charge. As people can easily pick up charges of tens of thousands of volts, by walking on syn...

TAbLE oF CoNTENTS FCC Note ....................................................... 82Foreword ....................................................... 84Scope of delivery .............................................. 84CE Notice ....................................................... 85Warning messa...

dESIgNATIoN oF pArTS FroNT vIEw (optional Hand Grip attached, flash retracted) 1.1 Eyelets for carrying strap 1.2 Self timer LED / AF assist light 1.3 Lens1.4 Hand Grip with a. Fastening screw Top vIEw 1.5 Flash 1.6 Attachment thread protection ring 1.7 Main Switch with detent positions for - OFF (c...

89 1.21 Door over USB and HDMI sockets1.22 Setting ring for - scrolling in menu and submenu item lists - setting an exposure compensation, exposure bracketing, flash expo - sure bracketing value - scrolling through picture memory - enlarging/reducing the pictures viewed 1.23 Direction button for - c...

dISpLAyS 2.1 IN rECord modE Note: The displays listed here and mentioned throughout these instructions all appear either in the monitor or the optionally available external electronic viewfinder, depending on whether the latter is switched on or off with its own respective button. None the less, the...

91 2.1.5 Battery charge level a. : Sufficient capacity b. : Falling capacity c. : Insufficient capacity d. : Replacement or recharging necessary 2.1.6 Frame counter (Number of remaining pictures) (If memory capacity is low, 0 flashes as a warning) 2.1.7 Indication that internal memory is used to sto...

dISpLAyS 2.1 IN rECordINg modE 2.1.26 INFO -screen with settings for – Resolution – File format/Compression rate (see 2.1.4) – White balance (Symbols with additional *– if white balance fine tuning is set) a. No display: automatic setting b. : For tungsten lighting c. : For daylight d. : For electro...

mENU ITEmS 94 menu items Explanation page 3.1 Resolution File size 116 3.2 Compression File format / Compression rate 116 3.3 AUTO ISO Settings 118 3.4 Metering Mode Exposure metering 126 3.5 Continuous Series exposure frequency 104 3.6 AF Assist Lamp Low light AF function 121 3.7 MF Assist Monitor ...

qUICk gUIdE You will need the following items: • Camera• Battery (A)• Battery charger with appropriate power plug (C)• Memory card (not included in scope of delivery) prESETS 1. Attach the appropriate power plug to the charger (see p. 99).2. Place the battery (A) in the battery charger (C) to charge...

96 dETAILEd INSTrUCTIoNS prEpArATIoNS ATTAChINg ThE CArryINg STrAp ChArgINg ThE bATTEry The Leica X2 is supplied with the required power by a lithium ion battery (A). Caution: • Only the type of battery specifi ed and described in these instructions should be used. The use of other batteries not app...

98 Notes: • The battery can only be charged outside the camera.• Batteries should be charged before the camera is used for the first time.• The battery must have a temperature of 0°–35°C/32°–95°F to be charged (otherwise the charger will not switch on, or will switch off again). • Lithium ion batter...

To remove the battery, follow these instructions in reverse order. The light grey sprung locking catch at the battery compartment must be pushed aside to unlock the battery. Important: Removing the battery while the camera is switched on (see p. 104) can result in the settings you made in the menus ...

102 Inserting and removing the memory card The Leica X2 takes SD, SDHC, or SDXC memory cards. These cards have a write-protection switch that can be used to prevent unintentional storage and deletion of pictures. This switch takes the form of a slider on the non-beveled side of the card; in the lowe...

103 Notes: • With a memory card inserted, image data will be saved to the card. If no card is inserted, image data will be saved to the camera’s internal memory. • If you cannot insert the memory card, check that it is aligned correctly.• The range of SD/SDHC/SDXC cards available is too extensive fo...

104 ThE moST ImporTANT SETTINgS / CoNTroLS SwITChINg ThE CAmErA oN / oFF / SELECTINg ThE EXpoSUrE FrEqUENCy The Leica X2 is turned on and off using the main switch (1.7). This is done by turning it from OFF to the desired mode, i.e. to S (single shot), or C (continu- ous shooting). • The image (2.1)...

105 SELECTINg ThE rECord ANd rEvIEw modES Normally, when the Leica X2 is switched on (see previous section), or when it is reactivated (from stand-by mode, see p. 113) by pressing the shutter release button (1.8, see p. 107), it is to record mode (see p. 120).To review the pictures, you can choose b...

AUTomATIC rEvIEw oF ThE LAST pICTUrE If Auto Review is turned on, every picture is shown on the screen immedi- ately after it has been taken. This provides a quick and easy way for you to check whether the picture was taken successfully or you need to repeat it.The function allows selection of the l...

ShUTTEr rELEASE bUTToN 1.7 The shutter release button (1.7) works in two stages. Pressing it lightly (to the fi rst pressure point) activates automatic focusing if set, exposure metering, and exposure control and also saves the respective settings/ values (see p. 126). If the camera was previously i...

mENU CoNTroL Most settings on the Leica X2 are performed in the menu. Navigating in the menu is done with the setting ring (1.22) and the 4 direction buttons (1.23/.24/.26/.27). The setting wheel (1.20) can be used as an alternative for quick scrolling in the menu item list. Note: Menu control opera...

CALLINg Up A mENU ITEm’S SUbmENU Press the right direction button (1.24). • The submenu list appears, it is boxed, i.e. outlined in red. The active item is indicated by white characters on a black background. SELECTINg A SETTINg / A vALUE IN A SUbmENU Rotate the setting ring (1.22) or press the uppe...

110 EXITINg ThE mENU Press either - the MENU/SET button (1.25), • The menu screen returns to record mode (see p. 120). - or the shutter release button (1.8), • The menu screen returns to record mode (see p. 120). - or the PLAY button (1.16). • The menu screen returns to review mode (see p. 125). Not...

111 • A number of other functions are also controlled in principally the same way, after being accessed by pressing the respective buttons: - ISO (1.13) for Sensitivity - WB (1.14) for White balance - DELETE/FOCUS (1.15) for deleting image files/selecting focus meter - ing modes (only in review /rec...

112 prESETS bASIC CAmErA SETTINgS mENU LANgUAgE The following languages can be selected:German, Japanese, English, French, Spanish, Italian or traditional Chinese, sim-plified Chinese, Russian and Korean.In the menu, select Language (3.31), and in the submenu the desired setting. dATE The date can b...

113 AUTomATIC STANd-by modE If active, this function switches the camera to stand-by mode after the selected time to save power.In the menu, select Auto Power Off (3.24), and in the submenu the desired setting. Note: Even if the camera is in stand-by mode, it can be turned on again at any time by pr...

SwITChINg ThE moNITor oFF When using the optional external optical viewfinder (see p. 152) the monitor image may be distracting. To prevent this, you can switch the monitor off altogether during record mode.In the menu, select Opt. Viewfinder (3.13), and in the submenu On to switch the monitor off, ...

bASIC pICTUrE SETTINgS JpEg rESoLUTIoN When one of the JPG formats is selected (see next section) image recording is possible with 4 different resolutions (numbers of pixels). This allows you to adjust the pictures precisely to the intended use or to the available memory card capacity.In the menu, s...

manual setting by metering Press the WB button (1.14), and in the menu appearing on the screen, select or . Aim the yellow frame appearing in the center of the screen at an object with a uniformly white or grey surface that completely fills the frame and press the MENU / SET button (1.23) as indicat...

ISo SENSITIvITy The ISO setting determines the possible shutter speed/aperture combinations for a given illumination level. Higher sensitivities allow faster shutter speeds and/or smaller apertures (for “freezing” fast action or creating a larger depth of field, respectively) at the expense of incre...

CoLor rENdITIoN In addition to the adjustments concerning sharpness, saturation, and contrast (see previous section) you can also select basic color rendition options. You can choose between Standard , Vivid - for highly saturated colors, and Natu- ral - for slightly less saturated colors and slight...

rECord modE FoCUSINg The Leica X2 offers both automatic and manual focusing modes, both cover a distance range of 30cm to infinity. Selecting the mode Press the lower direction button ( AF/MF , 1.26), and in the appearing menu, select AF or MF . Confirm the setting by pressing either the shutter rel...

AUTomATIC dISTANCE SETTINg / AUToFoCUS With the AF mode set, focusing is performed automatically when the shutter release button is pressed to the first pressure point (1.8), i.e. the distance is measured, set, and locked (see also p. 147). • To indicate a correct and locked AF setting, - the frame ...

122 AF mETErINg modES The Leica X2 offers a choice of four AF metering modes. This allows you to adapt the AF system to cope best with different subjects, situations, and compositional ideas.Press the DELETE/FOCUS button (1.15), and in the appearing menu, select the desired setting. It is confirmed ...

123 11 ArEA modE Focusing is based on the areas indicated by the 11 AF frames. They are grouped so as to cover a major part of the image, thus ensuring maximum focusing security for snapshot type photography. Sharpness is registered in all 11 areas, but focusing is automatically determined by the cl...

124 FACE dETECTIoN modE In this mode the Leica X2 automatically recognizes faces in the image and bases the focus on the closest ones registered. If no faces are detected, the 11 point mode is used. mANUAL FoCUSINg For certain subjects and situations, it can be beneficial to set the focus your- self...

125 Notes: • A manually set focus position can be locked by pressing the DELETE/FOCUS button (1.15) for more than one second. This can prove to be very useful to prevent unintentional miss-setting, especially in the case of several consecu-tive shots of the same subject. • A manually set focus posit...

EXpoSUrE mETErINg ANd CoNTroL EXpoSUrE mETErINg modES The Leica X2 offers you a choice of three exposure metering modes. They allow adjustment to the prevailing light conditions, the situation and your style of work and your creative ideas.In the menu, select Metering Mode (3.4), and in the submenu ...

ThE hISTogrAm The histogram (2.1.13/2.2.8) shows the distribution of brightness in the pho - tograph. In this connection, the horizontal axis corresponds to the tones from black (left) through gray to white (right). The vertical axis corresponds to the number of pixels in each brightness. This form ...

128 progrAmmEd AUTomATIC EXpoSUrE For fast, fully automatic photography. In this mode, exposure is controlled by automatic setting of shutter speed and aperture.To set this mode, turn both dials to their A positions. • The mode is indicated by P (2.1.1). To take a picture with this mode1. Press the ...

129 SpEEd prIorITy modE The speed priority mode automatically controls the exposure based on the manually set shutter speed. It is therefore particularly well suited for taking pictures of moving subjects, where the sharpness of the movement portrayed – which is determined by the shutter speed used ...

mANUAL modE If, for example, you want to achieve a particular effect, which is only possible with a quite specific exposure, or if you want to ensure that several pictures with different trimming have an absolutely identical exposure, then you can manually set both shutter speed and aperture.To set ...

EXpoSUrE CompENSATIoN Exposure meters are calibrated to a normal, i.e. average photographic subject. If the relevant subject detail does not meet these requirements, for example large areas of snow or, in the opposite case, a black steam locomotive filling the frame, and if you wish to bias the expo...

AUTomATIC EXpoSUrE brACkETINg Many attractive subjects are very rich in contrast, i.e. they have both very bright and very dark areas. The resulting effect can be quite different, depend- ing on which sections you base your exposure on. In such cases, you can use automatic exposure bracketing to pro...

FLASh phoTogrAphy TAkINg phoTogrAphS wITh ThE bUILT-IN FLASh UNIT The Leica X2 is equipped with a built-in flash unit (1.5) that rests hidden in the camera body when not in use. For flash photography, it must be extended. To do so, push the release slider 1.17 towards the camera center. The spring-l...

AUTomATIC FLASh ANd prE-FLASh ACTIvATIoN – (to reduce „red eye” effect) „Red eye“ effect is caused by light from the flash reflecting off the cornea straight back to the camera and can occur when taking portrait and group pho-tos. It is therefore best if the people being photographed do not look str...

STUdIo modE – This mode is intended exclusively to trigger other flash units, e.g. studio flash units equipped with a slave function (triggered optically by the camera flash), i.e. it cannot be used for normal flash photography. Note: To prevent blurred pictures with the slower shutter speeds in the...

Note: When using faster shutter speeds, in terms of the image there is hardly any dif-ference, or only for rapid movements between the two firing moments. FLASh EXpoSUrE CompENSATIoN This function can be used to selectively reduce or strengthen the flash expo - sure regardless of the exposure of the...

AddITIoNAL FUNCTIoNS SELF-TImEr The self timer allows you to take a picture with a delay of either 2 or 12s. This is particularly useful for group photographs, where you want to appear in the picture yourself or if you want to avoid the picture being out of focus due to camera shake when releasing t...

FormATTINg ThE mEmory CArd Normally, it is not necessary to format (initialize) a memory card that has already been used. However, if a card that has yet to be formatted is inserted for the first time, it must be formatted. In such cases the Format sub-menu appears automatically.Nonetheless, we reco...

140 workINg CoLor SpACE The requirements in terms of color reproduction differ considerably for the vari-ous possible uses of digital picture files. Different color spaces have therefore been developed, such as the standard RGB (red/green/blue) that is perfectly adequate for simple printing. For mor...

141 USEr proFILE With the Leica X2, any combination of all menu settings can be permanently stored, e.g. so that they can be retrieved quickly and easily at any time for recurring situations / subjects. A total of three memory slots are available for such combinations. You can also reset all the men...

SELECTINg pICTUrES You can select the other saved pictures using either – the left and right direction buttons (1.24/1.27), or – the setting wheel (1.20). Pressing/turning left takes you to the pictures with lower numbers, pressing/turning right to those with higher numbers. Keeping the buttons pres...

Notes: • The more the picture is enlarged, the more the quality of reproduction in the monitor is reduced, due to the proportionally lower resolution. • It may not be possible to enlarge pictures created on other cameras.• If an enlarged section is being shown, using the setting wheel to view other ...

dELETINg pICTUrES Pictures on the memory card and the internal memory can be deleted at any time. This can be useful, e.g. if you have already saved the pictures to other media, if you no longer need them or if you need to free up more memory space on the card.The Leica X2 also off ers you the optio...

deleting all pictures 1. Select All and press the MENU/SET button (1.25). • A submenu appears. 2. Confi rm or reject the process and press the MENU/SET button again. • The message No valid image to play or the originally shown picture ap- pears again, if it has not been deleted after all. However, i...

148 rEvIEw oF porTrAIT-FormAT pICTUrES Normally, the pictures on the monitor are shown how they were taken, i.e. if the camera was held horizontally, the picture will be shown that way too. In the case of portrait format pictures though, i.e. if the camera was held vertically for the shot, this may ...

149 mISCELLANEoUS TrANSFErrINg dATA To A CompUTEr The Leica X2 is compatible with the following operating systems:Microsoft ® : Windows ® XP / Vista ® / 7 ® Apple ® Macintosh ® : Mac ® OS X (10.4) and higher The Leica X2 is equipped with a USB 2.0 High Speed interface for transferring data to a comp...

150 CoNNECTINg ANd TrANSFErrINg dATA USINg CArd rEAdErS The picture files can also be transferred to other computers using a standard card reader for SD/SDHC/SDXC memory cards (including UHS I standard types). Card readers with a USB interface are available for computers with a USB interface. Note: ...

151 System requirements Like every software, every version of Adobe ® Lightroom ® calls for different versions of the employed operating system (Windows/Mac). Therefore, please check your operating system’s compatibility before downloading Adobe ® Lightroom ® . On some Windows versions, it is possib...

153 handgrip X The handgrip for the Leica X2 allows the camera to be held safely and com-fortably. It is attached to the camera’s tripod thread by means of the knurled screw on the bottom of the handgrip. (Order no. 18712) Notes: • This handgrip is designed exclusively for the Leica X2 and the Leica...

154 prECAUTIoNS ANd CArE INSTrUCTIoNS gENErAL prECAUTIoNS Do not use the Leica X2 in the immediate vicinity of devices with powerful magnetic, electrostatic or electromagnetic fields (e.g. induction ovens, micro-wave ovens, television sets or computer monitors, video game consoles, cell phones, radi...

156 • Always ensure that the battery contacts are clean and freely accessible. While lithium ion batteries are proof against short circuits, they should still be protected against contact with metal objects such as paper clips or jew-elry. A short-circuited battery can get very hot and cause severe ...

157 STorAgE • If you are not using the Leica X2 for an extended period of time, we recom - mend that you: a. switch it off (see p. 104), b. remove the memory card (see p. 102), and c. remove the battery (see p. 100) (after a maximum of 3 days, the time and date will be lost, see p. 102). • A lens wo...

158 TEChNICAL dATA Sensor APS-C-size CMOS Sensor (23.6x15.7mm) with 16.5/16.2 Megapix - els (in total/effective), aspect ratio 3:2 resolution Selectable for JPEG format: 4928 x 3264 pixels ( 16.2M ), 4288 x 2856 pixels ( 12.2M ), 3264 x 2160 pixels ( 7M ), 2144 x 1424 pixels ( 3.1M ), 1632 x 1080 pi...

160 Leica Akademie As well as outstanding high performance products for photography and view-ing, for many years we have also been offering the special services of the Leica Akademie. These include practical seminars and training courses, which are intended to share our knowledge about the world of ...