M11 Monochromvs BF
Leica
M11 Monochrom (2023)
Starting from £8300 new
Best for Black & White Photography
View M11 Monochrom
Sigma
BF (2025)
Starting from £1799 new
Best for Photographers who want to strip back every distraction
View BF
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.
Photographers Who Want To Strip Back Every Distraction — BF (2025): The most radical camera in years — no dials, no buttons, just a flat aluminium body and total creative minimalism.
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
BF (2025)
- Photographers who find camera menus and dials a distraction from the creative process
- L-mount system users who want the lightest, most minimal full-frame body available
- Design enthusiasts who value the object quality and philosophy as much as the output
- Sigma fp/fp L users ready for a more radical step toward minimal photography
Quick take: The m11 monochrom has the highest resolution at 60mp; the bf is the most affordable; only the bf is weather sealed. Scroll down for the full spec breakdown.
Full specifications
| Specification | M11 Monochrom (2023) | BF (2025) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £8,300 | £1,799 |
| Sensor | 60.3MP Full-Frame Monochrome BSI CMOS (no colour filter array) | 24MP full-frame BSI CMOS |
| Resolution | 60.3MP | 24.0MP |
| Video | — | 4K/30p, 1080p/60p |
| Autofocus | Manual focus rangefinder (no autofocus) | Phase-detect AF — face and eye detection |
| Stabilisation | — | 5-axis IBIS — 7 stops |
| Burst Rate | 5fps | 9fps electronic |
| Battery Life | ~700 shots (CIPA) | ~400 shots (CIPA) |
| Weight | 530g (body only) | 427g body only |
| Dimensions | 138.6 × 80.0 × 38.5mm | 127.0 × 75.0 × 45.0mm |
| Weather Sealed | No | Yes |
| Viewfinder | Optical rangefinder, 0.73× magnification | EVF 0.75× 3.68M-dot |
| Screen | 2.3" touchscreen LCD, 2.33M dots | 3.15" fully articulating touchscreen — primary interface |
| Mount | Leica M-mount | L-mount (Leica/Panasonic/Sigma) |
| Memory Cards | Single SD UHS-II slot + 64GB internal storage | Single UHS-II SD slot |
| Connectivity | USB-C, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth | USB-C, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth |
Suitability by genre
| Genre | M11 Monochrom | BF |
|---|---|---|
| Street | ||
| Portrait | ||
| Landscape | ||
| Astrophotography | — | |
| Travel | ||
| Casual | — | |
| Sports & Action | — | |
| Vlogging & Video | ||
| Sports | — |
GearScore™ suitability scores are based on aggregated purchaser reviews weighted by photography genre. See how scores are calculated →
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Camera family history