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"Goodbye, Leica"

jtwloh

New member
Read the letter posted on Steve's site. Enjoyed the humor.

I would have to accept what the author wrote as he was just being honest with himself though a little frustrated it seems. But I don't necessary agree with all the points he made.

But at the end of the day, each to his own liking/preference. Just as many of you have already mentioned earlier. A Leica M RF may not suit everyone's photographic genre and not everyone can draw out the best of what an M RF could do.
 

charlesphoto

New member
I like to frame with my lens cap on, and every time someone would come over to tell me that my lens cap is on, and then I have to explain to them that I am not stupid.

LOL.
Piece of advice to all M users - lose the lens caps! What if you were "framing" up a shot and then an amazing looking woman/man/animal/vehicle/band/etc etc walked into the frame - well you would be fumbling to take the cap off, turn the camera on, etc and lose the image. It's not a view camera! Be ready at all times - it will improve your photography in spades I'm sure....
 

weinschela

Subscriber Member
Goodbye Paul.

I don't find any of these "I'm leaving" posts very useful. Some people like Leicas (I do). Some don't. It doesn't make me silly for staying with it, nor people like Paul silly for going back to SLR. Whatever works for you.
 

JimCollum

Member
i find myself in Marc's camp here. The D3 I have is my ultimate 'go-to' camera... for shots/jobs that *have* to be made. It's bullet proof, and have never had a shot lost with it due to hardware, software or focus issues. That being said, the M9 is by far my favorite camera to use, and the images I get when using it are among my favorite. If I had to live with just one camera, it would be the M9.. if I had to make a living with only one.. it would be the D3.

jim
 

cmace127

New member
I agree with most of what is said here but imo, a DSLR and a Leica M are two different beasts. Different strong points and weaknesses, I don't think anybody would deny that.

For me, it goes beyond the image quality/ease of use. I remember going across the Golden Gate Bridge last year in very thick fog, M8 around my neck. Most people don't notice the camera but one person stopped me to chat and joked that I would be better off with a Holga in that weather. While he had a point that fine details are less apparent in that case, nothing is as FUN as shooting with a Leica M (maybe because it feels like I'm 'making' the image as apposed to just 'taking' it (read automation)). It makes me enjoy photography more. After all isn't that the whole point?
 

dude163

Active member
SNIP

nothing is as FUN as shooting with a Leica M (maybe because it feels like I'm 'making' the image as apposed to just 'taking' it (read automation)). It makes me enjoy photography more. After all isn't that the whole point?

Well said, I use my DSLR for fast moving kids and very low light, but if its a shot for my pleasure, I use the m8/cron 50 combo

Saying that, Im training myself to focus better, or should I say, my kids are training me :)
 

fotografz

Well-known member
so you like to carry heavy ;) why not the D700, same IQ, almost as fast as the D3 but MUCH smaller and less weight.
There are other considerations for some folks that have to bring home the shots, and there is only one chance to do it. Personally, I've always liked the dual card slots of the Pro Canons and Nikons ... either as parallel RAW for insurance, or RAW + Jpeg if you have to upload the images to a client quickly. Dual card slots is one thing I like about the S2.

Hey, I love the M9 files, no doubt about it ... and I do use it for paying work all the time ... I just don't trust it 100% when the chips are down and I have to get the shot, no second chances. Something as simple as a dad walking his daughter down the aisle in a cave like a church, no award winner to be had there ... but I damned well better get the shot.

-Marc
 

ptomsu

Workshop Member
There are other considerations for some folks that have to bring home the shots, and there is only one chance to do it. Personally, I've always liked the dual card slots of the Pro Canons and Nikons ... either as parallel RAW for insurance, or RAW + Jpeg if you have to upload the images to a client quickly. Dual card slots is one thing I like about the S2.

Hey, I love the M9 files, no doubt about it ... and I do use it for paying work all the time ... I just don't trust it 100% when the chips are down and I have to get the shot, no second chances. Something as simple as a dad walking his daughter down the aisle in a cave like a church, no award winner to be had there ... but I damned well better get the shot.

-Marc
Agree on the reliability thing. Thanks god in most cases I can try a second time, so for me always smaller and less weight will win.

Peter
 
I'm about ready to give up on Leica. Yes, it's all my fault for being an insensitive myopic clod. Fine. But I do keep missing the shot. Sometimes it's focus, sometimes it's not noticing that the aperture depends on the lens, and thus can change when I change lenses. Sometimes it's inability to see the frame lines in the viewfinder. At least the blinking 32" helps with the lenscap on problem.

But I no longer care what the reason is. It's not fun and the results aren't there for me after 10 months with this system.

Matt
Don't be too hard on yourself, Matt. I came to the same decision with my M8. It was good camera for some of what I shoot but not "most" of what and how I shoot.

Today there are many choices and Leica is just one of them. I love Leica glass more than Leica bodies (rangefinder) but the cost for both, more often than not, out weighed the results I achieved with the Leica gear.

I found myself missing shots as well and that, more than anything, was the reason I finally abandoned the M8. I sometimes miss it but those times are few and far between.

As has often been said... Leica is not for everybody.
 

jonoslack

Active member
Hey, I love the M9 files, no doubt about it ... and I do use it for paying work all the time ... I just don't trust it 100% when the chips are down and I have to get the shot, no second chances. Something as simple as a dad walking his daughter down the aisle in a cave like a church, no award winner to be had there ... but I damned well better get the shot.

-Marc
Funny - it's one of the things I like about weddings - the adrenalin involved in getting those 'must have' shots - getting back from the church and finding that someone has moved the barrier and there are BMW X5s and Mercs parked all over the sweep in front of the house where the group shots were going to be . . . . . and it'll be dark in ten minutes . . . and it's starting to rain. It's no time to have a camera misbehave . . or to have made an esoteric decision about what to shoot!

The beauty of the M9 though is that you can easily have it slung around your neck just in case it suddenly becomes the right thing. . . . .
 

Shashin

Well-known member
Funny - it's one of the things I like about weddings - the adrenalin involved in getting those 'must have' shots - getting back from the church and finding that someone has moved the barrier and there are BMW X5s and Mercs parked all over the sweep in front of the house where the group shots were going to be . . . . . and it'll be dark in ten minutes . . . and it's starting to rain. It's no time to have a camera misbehave . . or to have made an esoteric decision about what to shoot!

The beauty of the M9 though is that you can easily have it slung around your neck just in case it suddenly becomes the right thing. . . . .
But hitting someone with a D5 and large zoom on a tripod is infinitely more satisfying.
 

JimCollum

Member
so you like to carry heavy ;) why not the D700, same IQ, almost as fast as the D3 but MUCH smaller and less weight.


i've considered the D700... but have had the D3 since it came out (maybe the D800 is in the cards :) )

but.. as Marc said.. the dual slots is a big feature.... and a lot of customers feel much better about paying when their photographer has the 'biggest' camera in sight. Even as a photographer, who should know better... I still cringe when I see a single photographer doing a professional wedding with a D60 and popup flash.

Sure.. it's the final images that matter... but 'presentation' is still something that customers 'buy'
 

jonoslack

Active member
But hitting someone with a D5 and large zoom on a tripod is infinitely more satisfying.
Okay - you're right - but it needs to be someone else's D5 . . . there were plenty of available bricks :ROTFL:

i've considered the D700... but have had the D3 since it came out (maybe the D800 is in the cards :) )

but.. as Marc said.. the dual slots is a big feature.... and a lot of customers feel much better about paying when their photographer has the 'biggest' camera in sight. Even as a photographer, who should know better... I still cringe when I see a single photographer doing a professional wedding with a D60 and popup flash.

Sure.. it's the final images that matter... but 'presentation' is still something that customers 'buy'
Hi Jim -
I quite agree - when I was doing PR stuff a few years ago, I used to take the biggest camera I had . . . put it on one side (very visible) and shoot with the M8/M9 . . . But generally speaking an M9 seems to pass (credibility) muster - the D60 certainly doesn't.
I have one friend (much better than me) who wished he could buy a D3 sized case to put his GF1 in!
 

Araakii

New member
Do you enjoy the process of shooting more or looking at the images after? I have thousands of photos that I have not looked at since I took them. I personally enjoy the process of shooting more so whether I get the best shots is really secondary.

Of course it's a little different when I am on an assignment.
 

PeterA

Well-known member
I was walking my noble hound 'ralphy' yesterday afternoon and a young man walking in the opposite direction suddenly bent down and pointed his camera at Ralphy whilst smiling at me

I looked him squarely in the eye then asked Ralphy to "sit and stay" whilst stepping aside - and said to the nice young man who had obviously read a lot about how to approach people on the street - "only because you are shooting with a Leica"

as I moved past I noticed that it was a Leica M7 Chrome body on aperture priority with a 50 cron - all in pretty new condition..

Now Ralph ( being the good dog he is ) obediently looked at the photographer and gave him the " ralph the wonder model dog look" - and on command after the photographer had finished his snaps - proceeeded to catch up to me employing his usual jaunty walk.

if the young man was a more experienced street shooter he may have been so generous as to thank me for the convenience I had provided. If he had a clue he should have turned around and made a shot of Ralph's jaunty walk towards me - into the setting sun - and if he had some more experience he may have asked himself what chances a bloke walking his dog knew what camera he awas using and gave special priveleges accordingly might mean and what further possible utility thi smay provide.

So the moral of the story is shoot with what you like - but to be a photographer as oppossed to a user of cameras means a tad more sympathy and concern regarding "intent" and a tad less concern with the box in one hands.

PS if it hadnt been a Leica I would still have made ralphy the wonder dog model available.
 

Jan Brittenson

Senior Subscriber Member
If he had a clue he should have turned around and made a shot of Ralph's jaunty walk towards me - into the setting sun - and if he had some more experience he may have asked himself what chances a bloke walking his dog knew what camera he awas using and gave special priveleges accordingly might mean and what further possible utility thi smay provide.
If he were a PJ he'd recognize the unusual situation, and that it's a story worth sharing with other photographers and friends, if not strangers. Then he'd ask himself what kind of image will go along with the story. Even if an image itself can't fully convey it, what kind of image will help the audience 'get it'? What kind of image will require the fewest words?
 
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