Blog post
A Comprehensive Look at the Monochrome Camera Market
James Warner - April 13th, 2023
Monochrome Cameras
With the recent announcement of both the Pentax K-3 III Monochrome and the Leica M11 Monochrome, it seems the popularity of monochrome photography may be increasing. If anything, the amount of monochrome cameras on the market has now doubled. But you don't necessarily need to spend thousands of dollars to get one.
I will share all the ways you can currently get your hands on a monochrome camera, including all known monochrome camera models old and new. Plus, some cheaper alternatives at the end.
What is a Monochrome Camera?
Image taken on my custom monochrome converted Pentax K-5 II
You can skip this section if you already know, but I felt like it would be helpful to briefly talk about.
Simply put, a monochrome camera is a digital camera that can ONLY shoot in black and white.
This is a physical change on the sensor, not just a digital filter. Of course, most cameras have black and white image filters and any image can be post-processed as black and white. This is different. The image IS monochrome from the instant it's captured into digital signal.
Actually, this is how (almost) ALL digital sensors work.
Luminance levels are recorded into digital signal. In order to determine color, a color filter array (CFA) is placed in front of the sensor. These are the red, blue and green pixels you may have seen in diagrams before, with each pixel getting one of those colors in a specific pattern (bayer pattern being the most popular). A software process called demosaicing determines the color of each pixel based on it's own values and the values of those around it. It's a really clever solution, and way more math than I will ever understand.
A monochrome sensor does not have a CFA on top, and does not run demosaicing.
Without a CFA, a monochrome sensor will capture more light (approximately +1.3ev in my experiments).
Without having to run demosaicing, a monochrome sensor output will contain more detail (sharper).
Image tone and curve will be different.
For example, the following images were taken with the same exposure values of the same subject under the same controlled lighting.
Histogram of normal Pentax K-5 IIs with CFA
Histogram of monochrome converted Pentax K-5 II
New Monochrome Cameras Available
The only three production monochrome cameras currently available are:
(the following are affiliate links. Purchases made through them will provide me compensation)
That's it.
You can see why these two new models are kinda a big deal.
The Leica M11 Monochrome is not yet available as of writing this article, but soon. The Pentax K-3 III will be produced in small batches, and will probably be contingent on success to continue being made.
Used Monochrome Cameras Available
Here are past models that can be found on the used market:
(below are affiliate links. I will get a commission if you make a purchase through them)
Because there are custom services that convert cameras to monochrome, you could get lucky by saving an eBay search alert for a monochrome camera and seeing if any hit the used market. This would be rare.
Comment below if I'm missing any.
Have a Professional Convert Your Camera To Monochrome
There are a few services that will remove the CFA from your camera and convert it to monochrome. I can't vouch for these services, but here are the few I've heard of.
Note that the service will typically cost into the thousand or thousands of dollars. And that's not counting your camera.
To get my Pentax K-5 II Monochrome converted I used a guy off of PentaxForums.com with the username of Medex He posts his services there. They are inexpensive compared to these professional services, but only offered for Pentax or Ricoh GR models.
Monochrome Smartphone Cameras
Want to dabble in true monochrome sensor photography for less? Turns out there are a few smartphones with dedicated monochrome sensor cameras. There are plenty of reviews online about them, so read up. I haven't tried one myself yet, but seems like a fun option. They range from $50 for the older ones, to $1,000+ for the brand new high megapixel smartphones.
(below are affiliate links. I will get a commission if you make a purchase through them)
Drop a comment if you know of any I missed.
Sort-of Monochrome Cameras
Some cameras use different types of filters/systems to gain many of the same advantages of a true monochrome sensor when shot in black and white. These are not truly the same thing, but are compelling and cool in their own right.
Sigma Foveon sensor cameras. Look up how a Foveon sensor works. It's pretty cool, and allows it to get some of the advantages of true monochrome sensors.
Pixii Rangefinder camera. This cool new camera uses software to negate the effects of the CFA when in a special monochrome mode for "true monochrome RAW files". This one seems gimmicky, and I'd love to try it out. I'm sure it does SOMETHING, I'm just wary of whether it makes any tangible difference, let alone is close to the real thing. I'm open to changing my mind one day :)
Convert to Monochrome Yourself
This is a possibility, but incredibly difficult. It's what I originally planned to do. I did all the research, but a cheap broken camera to test on, and quickly decided to just pay someone to do it for me.
But if you want to give it a go, here's the info I gathered.
From the many sources I've read, the people who successfully do this do the following:
Disassemble the camera down to the sensor.
Remove any IR/AA type filters. Depending on the camera the process will be different. Also, it may be destructive or non-destructive depending on the camera.
Use special chemicals to soften/remove the CFA off the sensor. So far I have found no one willing to disclose exactly what they used.
Use a soft but sharp edge object to scrap off softened CFA off the sensor.
Assemble everything back together and hope it doesn't break.
I Own a Monochrome Converted Camera
I mentioned earlier that I had my Pentax converted to monochrome. I made a video talking a little more about it that you can watch here. I also have a Flickr gallery that you can check out here.
Hope this helps you achieve your monochrome camera dreams :D
-james