Seeing double?

I hadn't been back to Hong Kong for close to 6 years. It was the longest I had ever been away and was feeling nostalgic when my brother and I decided to visit in January. Of course, we wanted to do all the usual things: visit our school, go to our old homes, and we couldn't forget to pay a visit to Andy, our friend and trusted camera dealer since I was 5 years old.

Delon Photo is, and has always been, located in the bustling shopping mecca that is Ocean Centre. The store has made minor moves within the mall, and downsized considerably, but has never been a disappointment in terms of being a reliable resource for all the needs of a professional and amateur photographer alike.

I wasn't looking to make a purchase. I just wanted to visit an old friend. Andy has seen my love of photography blossom from the early years and when I mentioned I was considering a basic point-and-shoot camera, he presented me with two: the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX2K and the Leica D-Lux 3.

I was a little confused. I thought he was playing some sort of optical trick on me. Upon handling, they appeared to be the same camera. All of the features, buttons and screen size were identical. Besides the obvious superficial differences on the body, it was truly the same camera: the same aperture range, identical lens, 24-bit color depth, a manual (yes manual) focusing option with a joystick toggle (takes some getting used to), same iso sensitivity range, fully versatile exposure settings much like an SLR, 4:3 and 16:9 aspect ratios for video recording, multiple light metering options, RAW image capture possibilities, identical effective resolution of 10.2 megapixels...

I could go on, but I think you get the point (tee-hee... photo pun). And just look at it! It is adorably reminiscent of charming manual cameras of days gone by. What more can a 'serious' photographer hope for in a little toy to stick in your purse. Bottom line, the Leica is a little steep at $600, but the Lumix can be purchased for as little as $373.88 on amazon.com!

Best part is, Leica accessories are compatible so you needn't sacrifice this stylish leather pouch at the expense of saving a buck.


Like everything in life, there is one major downside to this camera Leica and Lumix alike: there is no underwater housing for it. Being an avid scuba diver, this is something I'm looking for in my dream pocket camera. Perhaps it will be released at the Photoplus Expo this fall. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.