MP 0.72vs A1
Leica
MP 0.72 (2003)
Starting from £4850 new
Best for Street, Documentary & Reportage Film Photography
View MP 0.72
Sony
A1 (2021)
Starting from £5999 new
Best for Professional sport, wildlife, portrait & hybrid shooting
View A1
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.
Professional Sport, Wildlife, Portrait & Hybrid Shooting — A1 (2021): 50MP, 30fps, 8K — the Sony A1 is the most complete professional camera ever made.
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
A1 (2021)
- Professional photographers who need resolution and speed without compromise
- Sports and wildlife photographers demanding the absolute fastest Sony
- Studio and fashion photographers who also shoot sport or events
- A9 III or A7R V owners who want a single body that does everything
Quick take: The mp 0.72 is the most affordable; only the a1 is weather sealed. Scroll down for the full spec breakdown.
Full specifications
| Specification | MP 0.72 (2003) | A1 (2021) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £4,850 | £5,999 |
| Sensor | 35mm film | 50.1MP Full-Frame Stacked BSI CMOS Exmor RS |
| Resolution | — | 50.1MP |
| Video | — | 8K/30p, 4K/120p, 1080p/240p |
| Autofocus | Manual focus rangefinder — coupled 0.72× viewfinder | Real-time Tracking, AI subject recognition — 759 phase-detect points |
| Stabilisation | — | IBIS — up to 5.5 stops |
| Burst Rate | ~1fps (manual film advance) | 30fps electronic with full AF/AE |
| Battery Life | Effectively unlimited — battery powers meter only | ~430 shots (CIPA) |
| Weight | 600g (body only) | 737g (with battery) |
| Dimensions | 138 × 77 × 38mm | 128.9 × 96.9 × 80.8mm |
| Weather Sealed | No | Yes |
| Viewfinder | Optical rangefinder, 0.72× magnification, 28–135mm framelines | EVF, 9.44M dots, 0.90× magnification, 240fps |
| Screen | None | 3.0" fully tilting touchscreen |
| Mount | Leica M-mount | Sony FE mount (full-frame E-mount) |
| Memory Cards | 35mm film (ISO 25–3200 recommended) | Dual CFexpress Type A / SD UHS-II |
| Connectivity | None | USB-C, Wi-Fi 5GHz, Bluetooth, Ethernet, HDMI |
Suitability by genre
| Genre | MP 0.72 | A1 |
|---|---|---|
| Street | — | |
| Travel | — | |
| Portrait | ||
| Landscape | ||
| Sports | — | |
| Wildlife | — | |
| Vlogging & Video | — | |
| Wedding | — |
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