Earlier today in my article on film photography I mentioned that I had been baffled by strange behaviour when importing RWL files from the new Leica D-Lux 7. As the import progressed, the images briefly flashed in colour and then settled into monochrome. I could find no reason for this and, because I had switched off JPGs, I had to use monochrome images in the article.
Now our German correspondent, Claus Sassenberg, has weighed in with his own experiences. When his D-Lux 7 arrived, he immediately noticed the monochrome phenomenon. Sensibly, he phone Leica only to hear that this is indeed a bug — something which Leica has only just discovered. It seems that the current Adobe colour list does not support these particular RWL files. We are not sure about of the Panasonic LX100 Mk.II in this respect.
It could be that this is Lightroom specific and that you could be ok in other processing software, including Apple Photos. I haven’t checked but any relevant information would be useful to readers.
It looks like we will have to wait for an Adobe Camera-RAW update. In the meantime, I recommend that D-Lux 7 owners should copy their RWL files to a folder for later processing once the problem has been sorted. And, of course, turn on JPG processing or you’ll have no colour material to work with.
I just dumped in some of the RWL files with the Dlux 7. Went straight to monochrome life for everyone else, (on newest Lightroom classic update, 8.0) If you go to camera profiles several options will turn the image to color. Not sure if this is the true raw format but does work from my initial tests.
Neither the original RWL nor the DNG-files created by the converter can be used in DXO software. An error occurs already when trying to open
Thanks for the update Joachim
I’m using the Panasonic DC LX-100M2 for a couple of weeks now and I did not experience any difficulties importing RAW files (RW2 or dng) with Adobe Lightroom Classic CC (version 8.0, Camera Raw 11.0). I’m running Lightroom on an iMac with the current macOS 10.14.1 software. The pics I imported were in cloud and stayed that way without any monochrome output. Nevertheless the b/w photos from the German capital are quite charming. Well, the currywurst lacked a bit of color to be honest.
The new Leica D-Lux 7 certainly does look better (and more expensive) than its Lumix counterpart but I still prefer the small handgrip on the Lumix version which makes it a bit safer to handle.
If you use the Camera Matching Profiles in Lightroom, you can work with color
A D Lux 7 Mono and that is without the extra cash you have to spend when you want the M Mono.
How could someone be unhappy with that 🙂
How unusual Mike, all the Leica’s I have used to date (a whole two) produce Dng’s as their raw option. I assume that this is not the case across their entire line.
However as others have pointed out your new D-Lux 7 Monochrome is producing some nice results, even if unintended.
Dave S
Nevertheless the monochromes look quite good! Looking forward to your review – I have a D-Lux7 on loan and will love to compare result.
Not good from a company that likes to issue new cameras with matching coloured cases and straps from the ‘get go’. I am sure that it will be fixed soon, though. What you can do now in the meantime is to download the latest version of Adobe Camera Raw which will convert Lumix LX 100 II images to DNG which is digestible for Lightroom. Link here.
https://supportdownloads.adobe.com/detail.jsp?ftpID=6450
William
I should have said Adobe DNG Convertor 11.0.
William
Dear William,
I had the same bright idea and should have mentioned that this "workaround" does not work. It was the first thing I tried when I came upon the issue. The RWL-Files are apparently quite different from Lumix output.
Adobe Camera Raw, Lightroom and DNG-Converter are working with the same color list. The resulting DNG’s turn into black and white as well.
Claus
Good to know that Claus. It sounds like an even bigger cock up than I had thought at first. The D-Lux will be a low volume seller compared to the Lumix original, but the manufacturer, in this case Leica, should ensure that this is fixed as soon as possible and that Adobe give this priority. I have never had Lightroom problems with my Lumix LX100 (first version) and it has worked perfectly from the beginning.
Someone in Wetzlar needs to be put on the ‘naughty step’ over this one. I suspect that the new LX100/D-Lux was a bit ‘touch and go’ anyway with the advancement in the quality of photos from smartphones.
William
I experienced this too. However, the D-Lux 7 RAW files work perfectly with the latest version of Iridient Developer.
It does seem astonishing that the project manager of the D Lux 7 camera could release a new camera knowing that it would not work as designed. Is not performance a priority requirement?
This a raw processing issue – not Leicas fault. Talk to Adobe-oh, I forgot that Adobe is deaf.