Godfrey
Well-known member
In the 1990s, long before anything digital I could afford was worth being interested in, I'd decided I wanted to update my SLR kit and discovered the Leica R8. I handled this camera at the store and immediately rented one for a week with two lenses. Loved it. Then I priced it, and realized that I simply could not afford to think about buying the body, winder, and four lenses that would make a basic working kit. Such a kit was well into five digits and above my pay grade.
Well, film gear has gotten so inexpensive that between last year and this I've managed to acquire a healthy kit of Leica R lenses as well as a couple of Leicaflex SL bodies for a relative pittance. The R lenses work so well on the Sony A7 it's as if they were made for it, or it for them, and the Leicaflex SL is just a terrific old hammer to shoot with too.
But I still remembered holding and using that R8. I've kept my eye open for one. Recently there was one at a very fair price on Ebay that looked pretty good, so I bid for it. I won.
Now, there's no way I needed another SLR body, and particularly not a 35mm film SLR. So I was a little betwitched as to whether I really needed/wanted/etc such a thing at this point in time. Winning the auction was almost an accident as there was another bidder whom I was sure had a topping bid beyond anything I wanted to pay. I was lowballing it at two minutes to the end and figuring "eh, no loss if I don't get it."
The postman tried to deliver it yesterday but I wasn't home for signature, so I picked it up today. And just took it out of the box.
Wow. It is immaculate, looks like it's hardly been used. All the booklets and paperwork are with it, the motor winder and the standard battery holder too. Everything is crisp, clean, and pretty as if it just came off the store shelf a week ago.
Ain't it nice when fantasies drop into reality for a visit? Talk about deferred satisfaction .. It's been almost 20 years since I wanted one.
I'll have to put batteries in and load it, take it for a walk this Saturday morning.
G
Well, film gear has gotten so inexpensive that between last year and this I've managed to acquire a healthy kit of Leica R lenses as well as a couple of Leicaflex SL bodies for a relative pittance. The R lenses work so well on the Sony A7 it's as if they were made for it, or it for them, and the Leicaflex SL is just a terrific old hammer to shoot with too.
But I still remembered holding and using that R8. I've kept my eye open for one. Recently there was one at a very fair price on Ebay that looked pretty good, so I bid for it. I won.
Now, there's no way I needed another SLR body, and particularly not a 35mm film SLR. So I was a little betwitched as to whether I really needed/wanted/etc such a thing at this point in time. Winning the auction was almost an accident as there was another bidder whom I was sure had a topping bid beyond anything I wanted to pay. I was lowballing it at two minutes to the end and figuring "eh, no loss if I don't get it."
The postman tried to deliver it yesterday but I wasn't home for signature, so I picked it up today. And just took it out of the box.
Wow. It is immaculate, looks like it's hardly been used. All the booklets and paperwork are with it, the motor winder and the standard battery holder too. Everything is crisp, clean, and pretty as if it just came off the store shelf a week ago.
Ain't it nice when fantasies drop into reality for a visit? Talk about deferred satisfaction .. It's been almost 20 years since I wanted one.
I'll have to put batteries in and load it, take it for a walk this Saturday morning.
G