Would you pay $8,000 for a camera that only takes black and white photos?

There are those who would and will: they're pre-ordering the new Leica M Monochrom, due to ship in late July.

Here's Azadeh Ensha's May 16 New York Times "Gadgetwise" blog post  about the new camera.

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A New Leica, Not in Living Color

If you like black-and-white photography and Leica cameras, and have around $8,000 to spare, you might be interested to know that the German optics maker has introduced the newest addition to its M line of cameras: the M Monochrom.

The mirrorless Monochrom has a dedicated 18-megapixel image sensor that lacks a color filter array, so you can only shoot 35-millimeter black-and-white photos. But if your inner Scrooge is asking why you should spend eight grand when you can remove color after the fact, one reason is the camera’s dedicated sensor, which allows the M Monochrom to pick up more light. That, and the lack of a low-pass filter, helps churn out visibly crisper images than you're bound to get through post-processing.

Other features of the Monochrom include a 2.5-inch, 230,000-dot display, an ISO range that reaches 10,000, SD/SDHC storage, and a maximum shutter speed of 1/4000 second. The Leica M Monochrom will ship in late July for $7,950, but eager shutterbugs can start ordering theirs now.