There isn't a day that goes by that I don't use my Leica. Its solid, dependable and utterly reliable. A bit like a really good friend. I was one of those individuals who bought the early example of the Q and at the time I couldn't wait to shoot with it. Ive been shooting with ever since and to this date I believe its the best digi camera Ive ever had.
A few weeks back, I started to notice this small mark in the lower right area of some of my images, (see the image example below) It looked a bit like a bird in flight and blurred in its appearance. I thought nothing of it at the time and just put it down to a maybe a dirty mark on the lens. It then began to appear more or more when I was shooting wide open. I checked and cleaned the lens again. There was no scratches or marks so I continued to shot. A few more images down the line and same results kept coming back. A little worrying if Im honest. So, I did a little digging around on line and found some evidence on forum posts relating to a "dust on the sensor" issue.
Now, If I ever have an issue, query or need some technical help/support on the Leica front, I'll always call the guys at the Leica store in Manchester as thats where I bought both my Leica's from. Those guys are so switched on and know it all relating to such issues. One of the guys, Stewart, confirmed what Id read and mentioned that he too had experienced the same issue with his Q.
Further advice
His advice, call David at Leica in Mayfair. Apparently, he is able to do some repairs in house and the Q fell under that remit. I managed to get hold of one of his colleagues, Jimmy, and spoke to him direct. His instructions were to parcel it up and send it down to them. As I understand it, David has repaired quite a few of the early Q's so that put my mind at rest
The turnaround
Now, bear in mind, I use my Q daily on a professional basis. I cant do without it. Here was me thinking that its going to be a 4 - 6 week lead time. That simply wasn't the case. Leica received last Thursday morning. David must of worked on it as soon came in on the Monday morning. Tuesday evening I got an email from him saying it was repaired and will be with me on Wednesday via UPS. Amazing....
Outstanding service
When you buy into a quality brand such as Leica, you expect a certain level of service. My expectations of that service are nothing other than first class. There are other premium brands out there that could learn so much from Leica, they really could.
A big thank you to Stewart in the Manchester store, to Jimmy at Leica in Mayfair and to David for repairing my Q. Many many thanks guys.....