I come from a history of machine-like DSLRs, taking care of a third of the exposure for me; the shutter speed.
I have only tried an M9 until this weekend, and that was a year ago. This time around, I´ve had my own M9 for close to two months, but lacking a lens, that was pretty much all I did. I was (still am) a Leica owner, as I do own a Leica, but no lenses to use on it.
That changed temporarily this weekend, as I got to borrow a lovely 35mm Summicron v4 from my uncle, and used it extensively over the weekend (posted a few pictures in the fun...thread).
Now, focusing manually isn´t new to me. Choosing the appropriate aperture on the lens barrel isn´t, either. Hell, choosing the shutter speed isn´t even new to me. (wooo!) This was all on film, though, and that´s years ago.
I figured I´d start with the A-setting on the shutter speed dial, though, as I felt it more important to achieve familiarity with the rangefinder focusing and dialing the aperture physically, and not via a dial on the camera.
The thing is, the metering felt so weird to me - I´ve read Mr.Overgaard´s notes on the M9 metering, that I started to just stick "around" the red dot in the viewfinder, and mostly well below it, except when there was a bright highlight in the scene. Can´t explain it, but in Norway we have a bastardized German expression that says "gefühlen" - it means that we basically lick our finger and stick it in the air to see which way the wind is blowing.
This all felt so natural with the M9 (which in case it´s not obvious is my first rangefinder, and my first Leica, certainly not the last of either), and I love it dearly. My right hand index finger adjusts the shutter speed as my left is on the focus tab. In case of an emergency, "the decisive moment", the finger tip is on the shutter in an instant, getting the shot.
I love this tool. End of blog.
I have only tried an M9 until this weekend, and that was a year ago. This time around, I´ve had my own M9 for close to two months, but lacking a lens, that was pretty much all I did. I was (still am) a Leica owner, as I do own a Leica, but no lenses to use on it.
That changed temporarily this weekend, as I got to borrow a lovely 35mm Summicron v4 from my uncle, and used it extensively over the weekend (posted a few pictures in the fun...thread).
Now, focusing manually isn´t new to me. Choosing the appropriate aperture on the lens barrel isn´t, either. Hell, choosing the shutter speed isn´t even new to me. (wooo!) This was all on film, though, and that´s years ago.
I figured I´d start with the A-setting on the shutter speed dial, though, as I felt it more important to achieve familiarity with the rangefinder focusing and dialing the aperture physically, and not via a dial on the camera.
The thing is, the metering felt so weird to me - I´ve read Mr.Overgaard´s notes on the M9 metering, that I started to just stick "around" the red dot in the viewfinder, and mostly well below it, except when there was a bright highlight in the scene. Can´t explain it, but in Norway we have a bastardized German expression that says "gefühlen" - it means that we basically lick our finger and stick it in the air to see which way the wind is blowing.
This all felt so natural with the M9 (which in case it´s not obvious is my first rangefinder, and my first Leica, certainly not the last of either), and I love it dearly. My right hand index finger adjusts the shutter speed as my left is on the focus tab. In case of an emergency, "the decisive moment", the finger tip is on the shutter in an instant, getting the shot.
I love this tool. End of blog.