Rocking in Rotterdam with the Leica M9-P and 50 Summilux ASPH

ROCKING IN ROTTERDAM WITH THE LEICA M9-P

Hello to all! Happy Monday morning! I am now back home in Phoenix AZ after spending the last 4 weeks on the summer Seal tour. The tour is still rolling on, so be sure to check the tour schedule if you want to go check it out but I had to get home early for some other obligations like my Son, my bills, and my upcoming workshop in Seattle (which I am soooo excited about)! The last show I shot was the Jazz Festival in Rotterdam Holland and what a cool show!

When I arrived to the front of the stage for showtime there were about 40 photographers all lined up and there was NO WAY I was going to be able to squeeze in so I let them shoot the 1st three songs and then I jumped in to shoot the rest. It’s always cool having an “All Access” pass πŸ™‚

The stage was quite far from me though so there was no real way of getting any cool angles or perspectives but I shot away with my new black M9-P (ahhh, so gorgeous!) and 50 Summilux ASPH which may as well be glued on my camera! I also had a 2nd body with the 24 Summilux attached so a few shots were taken with that AMAZING lens. I have to say that if you want a superb 24mm, the Summilux has a way of rendering images that is just magical, especially when used at 1.4. I fell in love with that lens pretty quick.

After the show I had a few hours before catching a car to the Amsterdam airport for my flight home so I had to pack up, go through some shots and be on my way. Made it back home after 16 hours of flying and just woke up bright an early to make this post!

It will be a REALLY busy next couple of days for me but I plan on doing some new reviews really soon, so keep an eye out! Here are some of the shots from the Rotterdam, Holland show. Enjoy and as always, click the image for a closer look!

If you are looking for an M9-P you can check the usual suspects…B&H Photo, Dale Photo and Ken Hansen! Also, don’t forget you can rent anything Leica at lensrentals.com!

and a portrait backstage after the show, natural overhead light, 50 Lux ASPH

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36 Comments

  1. Hi Steve

    The M9-P with the 50 Summilux looks a magical combination. Maybe Leica has tweaked something in the new camera’s hardware.

    I write as I thought you had transferred your affection to the Zeiss 50 Sonnar and the way it draws. Am I mistaken?

    Best wishes

    Stephen

  2. In the past I have been very tempted to comment something to the effect of, “Okay, we get it.. you’re down with SEAL… -we should all be so lucky…” The Rio photos seemed (to me) a little self – indulgent… HOWEVER, Steve, these photos are extraordinary.

    SEAL looks completely rock-star insane! (in a good way). And the lighting effects that you were able to capture with your cameras is stunning. Very true to the ethos of your site the random photos create a real sense of flavor for the event and in you really see the value/power of the Leica cameras.

    Very impressive shots and I’ll keep my lemon-y comments to myself.

    • Uumm, I have been wanting to say something like this for awhile now but I thought it was rude. Since you opened the door, I just can’t resist… I acknowledge that this is Steve’s website and he can do as he wishes. In fact it is almost like a blog. Yes, we get it, but the only difference between my thoughts and the above comment is that I do not think any more photos of Seal (my hat’s off to him) is showing us anything we haven’t seen before. I find the photos technically interesting but utterly boring, and not because of Seal or Steve, but because it is simply the nature of the genre. Like car chases in films, how many more times do we have to see photos of rock concerts? I do think it is possible to reinvent these kinds of photos but I have yet to see it or even imagine what they would look like.

      • Thanks for the thoughts…BUT, this IS A BLOG, and it is MY blog. I was away working for a month, and did not have a load of cameras to review while working. I either posted my photos from where I was at, or posted nothing. I chose to post SOMETHING and did not post shots from every show as I know it can get boring. Believe me, I know this. That is why I put the images into articles…like “know your camera” and the Fuji vs Leica article.

        Cant please everyone all of the time. At the end of the day I would choose to post something over nothing. There were also guest articles posted during those 4 weeks. πŸ™‚

  3. Sexy shots… you really delivered in Europe:)
    Difficult to judge but I have the feeling this new Summilux on the new M9-P looks even better (esp. the color shots) compared to your earlier Noctilux shots, have you noticed anything yourself?!!

    Thanks for a platonic addiction to the M9…

    • Thank you and it is funny you should mention the Lux shots looking better because I was thinking the same thing! Shooting the Lux at the shows made me appreciate it even more. As many have noted, it is probably the ONE best lens for your M9 that you can get.

  4. Hi Steve,

    None of your usual suspects have a m9-p in stock. Any other suggestions (where you get a commission)?

    thanks
    Guy

  5. Awesome images as usual. Seal is an amazing artist, and your images are fantastic!

  6. I am amazed that Seal can give that many concerts. Must be draining or really good exercise. Great images. I like the first a lot. D!RK

  7. Just at the seal show in Nice and was trying to find you in the crowd. Got back to the house and just saw this post that you are stateside again. Too bad I wanted to try and buy one of your artisan straps off you. Not that you would sell it but….

  8. Hi Steve,

    Glad to have you back. I am naturally biased towards B&W so I really like this set, not to mention your composition, which is spot on, despite what I assume would have been less than ideal lighting. These Leica lenses are insanely good, hopefully, some day I will get a chance to play with them πŸ™‚

    It would be interesting to see how these images look with a little bit of grain..

  9. Saw Seal’s picture in a newspaper this morning (from the Rotterdam show), and I immediately thought: hmm, might Steve have his pictures up already? And you do! Great shots as always, a thousand times, no, wait, ten thousand times as good as the one in the paper! Seal’s got a great friend and tour photographer!

  10. Couldn’t agree more with Sanjay, please a black and white conversion or/and a processing tutorial will be fantastic, I really love the way your images are pp.

  11. Nice shots, no outside shots from Rotterdam. A tour de la cite with a Leica M9 or an X100. Well maybe one of these days I do it myself then. With a GX680 for instance, that would be fun :-).

    Greetings, Ed

  12. Outstanding work, Steve, & welcome back home. Hopefully there’s not too much clean up for you from the dust storm. Love the one of Seal with drums in the background….

    I am getting together with Roger Paperno tonight to solidify final plans and may give you a call if there are any urgent matters (doubt it).

    Best,
    Ashwin

  13. Great photos! What ISO you use when shooting in these low-light, action conditions?
    thanks,
    Bogdan

  14. Great pix as ever, but glad your home safely. One question Steve, could you do this full time or is it just to hectic and tiring ? Congrats again on the new cam…..

  15. I tried to meet you there, but it was impossible (saw you making pictures on the large video screens though)! I made some shots there with the Sigma DP2 which I’m really starting to love, even though it’s so quirky but that’s also why I like it, kind of a similar personality as me: easily underestimated, whiney, doesn’t always listen, but sometimes the results blow you away (but not always).

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