MP 0.72vs Nikon Z8
Leica
MP 0.72 (2003)
Starting from £4850 new
Best for Street, Documentary & Reportage Film Photography
View MP 0.72
Nikon
Nikon Z8 (2023)
Starting from £3999 new
Best for Sports, wildlife & hybrid professionals
View Nikon Z8
GearScore™ Verdict — Which should you buy?
Street, Documentary & Reportage Film Photography — MP 0.72 (2003): The purist's Leica — a fully mechanical 35mm rangefinder with no electronics bar the meter. Still built by hand in Wetzlar. The most honest camera ever made.
Sports, Wildlife & Hybrid Professionals — Nikon Z8 (2023): Z9 performance in a compact body — 45MP, 8K/60p RAW, and 20fps burst without the bulk or price of the flagship.
Who should buy what
MP 0.72 (2003)
- Serious film photographers who want the finest rangefinder ever made
- Street and documentary photographers who shoot Kodak Tri-X or HP5
- Leica M-mount collectors and long-term lens owners
- Photographers who value mechanical precision over electronic convenience
Nikon Z8 (2023)
- Professional photographers who want Z9 capability in a smaller body
- Wildlife and sports shooters who want 8K RAW and 120fps burst
- Z6 III or Z7 II owners upgrading to pro-grade performance
- Hybrid professionals who need the best Nikon video and stills in one body
Quick take: The nikon z8 is the most affordable; only the nikon z8 is weather sealed. Scroll down for the full spec breakdown.
Full specifications
| Specification | MP 0.72 (2003) | Nikon Z8 (2023) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £4,850 | £3,999 |
| Sensor | 35mm film | 45.7MP full-frame BSI stacked CMOS |
| Resolution | — | 45.7MP |
| Video | — | 8K/60p RAW, 4K/120p, ProRes RAW |
| Autofocus | Manual focus rangefinder — coupled 0.72× viewfinder | Subject detection AF, 493-point phase-detect |
| Stabilisation | — | 6-stop IBIS |
| Burst Rate | ~1fps (manual film advance) | 20fps RAW / 120fps JPEG |
| Battery Life | Effectively unlimited — battery powers meter only | 330 shots (CIPA) |
| Weight | 600g (body only) | 910g body only |
| Dimensions | 138 × 77 × 38mm | 144.0 × 118.5 × 83.0mm |
| Weather Sealed | No | Yes |
| Viewfinder | Optical rangefinder, 0.72× magnification, 28–135mm framelines | 0.5" Quad-VGA OLED EVF, 3.69M dots, 120fps |
| Screen | None | 3.2" tilting touchscreen |
| Mount | Leica M-mount | Nikon Z-mount |
| Memory Cards | 35mm film (ISO 25–3200 recommended) | Dual CFexpress Type B / XQD |
| Connectivity | None | USB-C 3.2, HDMI full-size, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth |
Suitability by genre
| Genre | MP 0.72 | Nikon Z8 |
|---|---|---|
| Street | — | |
| Travel | ||
| Portrait | ||
| Landscape | ||
| Sports & Action | — | |
| Wildlife | — | |
| Vlogging & Video | — |
GearScore™ suitability scores are based on aggregated purchaser reviews weighted by photography genre. See how scores are calculated →
More comparisons with MP 0.72
Camera family history