Comments made on the future of the M8 by ex-Leica Camera CEO Steven K Lee during a controversial meeting with Amateur Photographer magazine during the PMA show were ?premature?, according to a statement issued to AP by the German company. Lee, who was removed from the Leica Camera AG management board last Friday (22 February) after just 18 months in power, had ?hinted strongly? that Leica would announce a full-frame sensor upgrade for its M8 rangefinder at September?s photokina show in Cologne.
In a statement aimed at clearing the confusion these remarks have created, the company acknowledges that it is considering a full-frame sensor, but makes clear that no decisions have been made yet regarding the type of body it may be fitted into. Crucially, the statement claims, ?In any case the M8 will continue to be our flagship camera into 2009.?
Read the full story in Amateur Photographer 8 March issue (on sale Tuesday 4 March).
Statement from Leica Camera AG – 26/02/08
?Already, in the working hours since the departure of Steven Lee, the Leica product development team has begun to review the M system strategy. It is too early to say what changes will be made; however it is likely that the path may differ from the one set by Steven Lee. In any case, the M8 will continue to be our flagship camera into 2009. We can confirm that comments made during PMA regarding the possibility of an M8 upgrade to full frame were premature and we apologise if one of them gave a too optimistic outlook.
It is true that it is the desire of Leica to consider full frame within the M system. However, the final decision regarding the appropriate camera body configuration has yet to be made.?
