Gear Review : Tim Isaac's Thumbs Up for the Leica Q
I dont mind declaring my very extensive experience in the art and practice of on line purchasing and the many varied fulfilment processes that follow after hitting the "buy" button on any particular site.
And given my many online transactions over the years, I can still show on a single hand the number of online purchasing processes that have blown me away with their consideration, customer focus and attention to detail - and that these experiences also match the product being sold.
Buying a Thumbs Up from Tim Isaac and the team at matchTechnical is one such experience.
But lets start from the start.
What is a Thumbs Up for Leica Q? Well its basically a highly engineered and designed stabilising accessory for your camera - it allows the right palm of the hand to push backwards towards the user, whilst the thumb on the same hand rests in to a perfectly placed curvature to push back against the hand, thus making the camera extremely stable, able to be used at ease with only one hand if needed or to be held even more securely with two - and with all functions and buttons accessible at all times.
The only aspect of the camera the accessory "takes over" is the hot shoe slot - it needs something to fasten in to and act as a leverage point - and it does this firmly, snugly, and perfectly matched to the camera at hand, in this case the new Leica Q.
Thumbs Up by matchTechnical, model number EP-SQ, in black
More about this little - and pricey (as all premium accessories are) - gem later, but what about the buying process?
Well on this occasion I got in touch with Tim directly via his site when I read that you could pre-order the Thumbs Up for the Q, given its a new release camera. Whilst there was no mention of this capability on the website that I could find, Tim responded promptly overnight (I am in Australia and he is in Seattle, United States) with an enthusiastic yes, that I could pre order, that he would send me a bespoke Paypal request to fulfil and confirm purchase, and that delivery would start from a certain date in the future. Awesome!
After completing all of that almost in real time with him over email, my order was all set. Love it when on line time zones align.
Within a few days of his first suggested date I got the delivery tracking information and my new Thumbs Up for Leica Q was on its way.
Receiving a product from matchTechnical is a little like seeing the end product of those experienced shopping centre people after they wrap your gifts for you at christmas time. The packaging of a Thumbs Up would give an Apple dispatch person some envy I would suggest.
Once the enjoyment of getting the little gem out of its box is over, placing the Thumbs Up on to the Leica Q gives equal satisfaction due to its well engineered features and snug fit in to both the shoe box and the original thumb rest curvature of the Q on the right had side of the camera.
Protective rubber at all touch points of the Thumbs Up to the camera ensure no Leica Q gets harmed in the process if attaching and using.
Then using this accessory simply enhances the feel and usability of the Leica Q in my opinion. It allows for an aggressive thumb and hand action to hold the camera steady when doing low light/slow exposure work, and makes it very comfortable to hold when not shooting and simply walking around at the ready for a shot.
A follow up email back to Tim to let him know the goods had arrived all well and good prompted him to respond with an insight in to his and the teams design philosophy, why the Thumbs Up came about, and his on going passion for the accessory and what he and the team do. It was great to read and know in a small way we were helping each other out in varying ways.
The Thumbs Up from Tim and matchTechnical is an absolute winner accessory which is well worth the outlay. Over time I have purchased one for a Fuji x100s, a Leica M-P and now the Q and all products came with the same considered design, engineering, functionality and customer service.
And it helps with the overall function of your camera. Every time.