LEICA M8 Six years in the making, the M8 is the perfect camera for digital photographers with a traditionalist’s taste for quality (and any Leica devotees ready to accept progress). It combines modern image-making technology with the M Series’s purist-pleasing formnot unlike powering a ’57 Chevy with hydrogen fuel cells. In hand, the M8 is nearly indistinguishable from its predecessors: a sturdy, compact body, elegantly simple controls, and precise German engineering. Inside, a 10.3-megapixel sensor has been customized for Leica’s signature rangefinder system, which means you get high-end digital performance without losing the classic M Series attributes: fast, quiet operation (unlike with SLRs, rangefinders have no mirror to move), a bright and clear viewfinder (since you’re not looking through the lens), and obligatory manual focusing (autofocus is a crutch!). A lot of pros will need the M8; the rest of us will simply want it. $4,795 (body only, compatible with most M Series lenses);
