M11 Monochromvs Leica SL3
Leica
M11 Monochrom (2023)
Starting from £8300 new
Best for Black & White Photography
View M11 Monochrom
Leica
Leica SL3 (2024)
Starting from £6499 new
Best for Professional & luxury hybrid shooters
View Leica SL3
GearScore™ Verdict — Which should you buy?
Black & White Photography — M11 Monochrom (2023): The M11 Monochrom is the finest black-and-white camera in the world. A 60MP sensor with no colour filter array produces sharpness and tonal depth no colour camera can match — combined with extended high-ISO performance. Manual focus, no video, and an extraordinary price make it a specialist instrument, but for dedicated B&W photographers it is unmatched.
Professional & Luxury Hybrid Shooters — Leica SL3 (2024): Leica's most capable mirrorless — 60MP, 30fps burst, 8K ProRes, and 7.5-stop IBIS with L-mount's growing lens ecosystem.
Who should buy what
M11 Monochrom (2023)
- Dedicated black-and-white photographers who demand the finest possible monochrome files
- Fine art and documentary photographers who work exclusively in B&W
- Leica M system users who want maximum monochrome image quality
- Astrophotographers — monochrome sensors excel at capturing fine star detail
Leica SL3 (2024)
- Leica photographers who want autofocus full-frame in the L-mount system
- SL2 owners upgrading to 60MP and improved autofocus performance
- Professionals who want Leica build quality with L-mount lens versatility
- Photographers who want to share lenses across Leica, Sigma, and Lumix bodies
Quick take: The m11 monochrom has the highest resolution at 60mp; the leica sl3 is the most affordable; only the leica sl3 is weather sealed. Scroll down for the full spec breakdown.
Full specifications
| Specification | M11 Monochrom (2023) | Leica SL3 (2024) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £8,300 | £6,499 |
| Sensor | 60.3MP Full-Frame Monochrome BSI CMOS (no colour filter array) | 60MP full-frame BSI CMOS |
| Resolution | 60.3MP | 60.0MP |
| Video | — | 8K/30p, 4K/60p, Apple ProRes |
| Autofocus | Manual focus rangefinder (no autofocus) | Phase-detect AF with subject/face/eye detection |
| Stabilisation | — | 7.5-stop IBIS |
| Burst Rate | 5fps | 30fps electronic |
| Battery Life | ~700 shots (CIPA) | 410 shots (CIPA) |
| Weight | 530g (body only) | 875g body only |
| Dimensions | 138.6 × 80.0 × 38.5mm | 146.0 × 104.0 × 42.0mm |
| Weather Sealed | No | Yes |
| Viewfinder | Optical rangefinder, 0.73× magnification | 0.78" OLED EVF, 5.76M dots |
| Screen | 2.3" touchscreen LCD, 2.33M dots | 3.2" fixed touchscreen |
| Mount | Leica M-mount | Leica L-mount |
| Memory Cards | Single SD UHS-II slot + 64GB internal storage | Dual SD UHS-II |
| Connectivity | USB-C, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth | USB-C 3.1, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth |
Suitability by genre
| Genre | M11 Monochrom | Leica SL3 |
|---|---|---|
| Street | — | |
| Portrait | ||
| Landscape | ||
| Astrophotography | — | |
| Travel | ||
| Casual | — | |
| Sports & Action | ||
| Vlogging & Video | ||
| Wedding & Events | — |
GearScore™ suitability scores are based on aggregated purchaser reviews weighted by photography genre. See how scores are calculated →
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