Leica MP: Built for Extreme conditions.. how extreme?

Sorry Paul, but I've also know Jeep owners who's vehicles wouldn't start in -30c weather. So what. There's a famous story about a Leicaflex that fell 25000 ft to the desert floor after two F4 Phantoms had a mid air collision. The camera was found, heavily damaged, but repairable buried a couple of feet in the sand. It's kind of a matter (as many have said here) on taking reasonable precautions, but I'd be pretty sure an MP can handle Burning Man. Been there with a IIIg...it survived, probably somewhat better than I.

That's why we plug 'em in to engine block heaters (Edmonton, winter of '92).

Dennis -- ba-tump (drums !)

 

Rob's reference to the weather resistant Olympus Stylus Epic is worth noting. But Rob may have overstated the price.

 

US price for that remarkable little camera, new in box w/ warranty: $79.95 at B & H (slightly more if you need date, kit, case, or fancy colors ...)

 

Got mine used -- works perfectly.

 

And it has a special feature not all owners are aware of: spot metering. That feature may make up for it *not* being the camera you pass down to your son.

A new MP willl come with the Passport Warranty. So use the camera, take reasonable precautions (a kayaker's dry bag is a big help), and send it in for service if anything really bad happens. For what you're going to pay, you might as well get the full value of the warranty.

 

Or buy two or three Epics, and treat them as high-end disposable cameras. I'd have at least one along as a backup in any event.

Since you are concerned about rainy usage, the Olympus Stylus (some models which are

weatherproof) will meet your needs, and for all intents and purposes will probably deliver

similar results. And they are extremely reliable. The fact that it needs a battery is a non-

issue as it and and all film cameras also need film to operate. By two for several hundred

dollars (equivalent to the sales tax on your MP option) and you're good to go - you always

want a backup for Extreme conditions, right? And you were going to buy two MPs and

lenses because you are concerned about reliability for those Extreme conditions, as well,

right? Put the remaining thousands of dollars into film and processing.

My point exactly Stephen. I'm from Edmonton, and damn it gets cold (okay, I'm sure Tony R has seen worse). Any car will start if plugged in, it's common sense. Jeep advertised how well they operate under extreme conditions...if you plug 'em in, service them properly, etc. Leica is the same...they operate under extreme conditions (artic, desert, jungle...they've done it all, as have many other camera brands), WITH PROPER PRECAUTIONS!! As someone mentioned the closest there is to a 'bulletproof' camera would be the Nikonos...and try diving to 100' with out conditioning the seals and see how waterproof it is. As with anything, it's not necessarily the advertising that's at fault, but failure to use descretion when reading the copy.

Ahhhh ... if I take my M7 or an MP to a place like Mt. St. Helens during an eruption is the viewfinder gonna fill up with sand and dust like an hourglass? Like, that kind of extreme? Well, i guess a sandstorm is extreme enough.

 

Paul, all kidding aside ... if you are going to some harsh environments, buy a beater M6 and write it off. For example, maritime photographers will take a beater out on a cruise and depreciate the whole thing, sell it for scrap right after 'cause they know it's going to be eaten through in nothing flat.

On second thought, for the price of an MP, you could buy a PAIR of beaters so you have back-up capability, AND some lenses!

Having read the above discussion, I thought I'd better point out that the explorer Wilfred Thesiger took wonderful photographs throughout his life while living in marsh and desert conditions in the Middle East and Africa. He used first a pre-M Leica, and subsequently a Leicaflex. He protected the camera when not actually taking photos by keeping it in a goatskin bag.

 

I guess a simple equivalent would be a roll-top waterproof canoe bag.

Along a similar vein, there are water resistant plastic bag housings you can buy that work on the principle of a glove box. You stick the camera in the plastic bag and zip it up. The lens front goes into a coupling hole at one end and you lock it in place by screwing in a UV filter from the other side. You operate the camera through a set of gloves molded against the interior. The key here is that it's water and elements RESISTENT, not PROOF. But for what you're thinking about, maybe that's good enough. the only thing is I've seen this for SLRs, and the 39mm filtersize of leicas may not be available. Maybe you can improvise a similar arrangement with a baggie and make your own makeshift seal with some duct tape and a filter.

 

btw, the Nikonos that an earlier responder suggested is another excellent choice. There were combat photographers in 'Nam who used those in the mud and rain, they were so rugged.

"The trouble is that plastic is a chemical compound that constantly changes when exposed to elements. Plastic deteriorates immediately after creation (slowly but surely). Give plastic 5 years of regular use and you will see the deterioration with a naked eye. If you leave it out on the sun then the deterioration will happen within weeks through ultraviolet rays."

 

I thought there were many different kinds of plastics, I didn't realize they were all the same, from the stuff they use to make kids toys to the stuff they use in the aerospace industry, so that this generalization holds true universally.

 

"Metal, if not corroded, will last unchanged for centuries."

 

Wouldn't that hold true only if the Leica was left on a shelf for those centuries? If it was actually used, then wouldn't things like wear and metal fatigue factor in?

"He protected the camera when not actually taking photos by keeping it in a goatskin bag."

 

So, in other words, your Leica keeps going long after the goat has died? They should use that in their advertising. ;>)

 

Seriously, regardless of the conditions I can't imagine a Leica that couldn't be cleaned, serviced or repaired after being used in extreme conditions... absent being burned or smashed, of course. If you're not concerned about cosmetic scarring, just use the MP and take reasonable precautions with it. Just as with my Jeep, I am a firm believer in regular maintenance. Use it hard and get it serviced, it'll do fine...

 

Dennis

I think goats will still be produced long after Leica dies.

As a meager number of posters have suggested, sensible travel preparation would serve prudent on any photographic excursion.

 

Having journeyed, trekked, kayaked and raced four-wheeled vehicles in the Sahara with a pair of M6's and a handful of lenses at hand I can testify that a Leica will endure as proclaimed. Substantially more meaningful then titanium or plastics utilized by the aerospace industry is a slight amount of common sense.

 

If an Olympus Stylus is capable of providing 98 percent of the end result that an M may then why not forgo the Leica altogether? Unless of course one elects to own an M as a fashion accessory and not the tool that it is intended to be.

"The MP is independent of batteries and all its operating elements are made of metal, so that it withstands heavy duty use under extreme conditions."

 

This is just marketing and is not even a logical statement. Airplanes are made out of composite (plastic), for crying out loud. Step back from the pitcher of Red Dot Kool Aid. It's just a bloody camera. No more or less durable than any other.

<I>It's just a bloody camera</I>

<p>

And Mogen David is just another vintage red too the uninformed.

"It's just a bloody camera."

 

...that may or may not live longer than a goat. ;>)

"And Mogen David is just another vintage red too the uninformed."

 

If your goal is simply to admire the workmanship, why even bother putting film in the camera.

 

Mogen David? Is that blackberry wine, served at Passover?

"Mogen David? Is that blackberry wine, served at Passover?"

 

It goes well with goat... the skin of which can be used to make a bag to protect a Leica. Conversely, the skin of a dead Leica cannot protect a goat.

 

You're welcome...

"I think goats will still be produced long after Leica dies."

 

I hear Kodak and Imacon are trying to develop a digital goat. I expect in a few years these will outperform analog goats, and those will be discontinued.

Ben, I read the exact same thing. Reportedly, bokeh is better in the analog species. The digital goats will come in silver or

blaa-a-a-aack. ;>)

Yes, Preston it is. It is also an inexpensive wine consumed by budget minded squalid untaught denizens of the street as means of attaining a 'buzz'. As they loiter in the shadowy darkness of alleyways before embarking on heinous crime sprees.

<p>

In regards to goals, it is quite possible that some enjoy the quality of fine workmanship and engineering while actually using film in the camera. In the same manner that some actually prefer the handling qualities of a BMW with fuel in the tank.

<p>

For some abnormal rationale you and your clique of Leica bashing thugs appear to have issues with certain freedoms that others enjoy.

I bet no-one here had actually dared put an MP through its paces. I dropped an M7 on the

floor while in its case and the electrics went fuzzy. Buyt I bet an MP can take a few hard

knocks. Not that I would ever try testing it.

On the contrary, I support your right to do whatever the heck you want, avec or sans film.

 

But to read most of the threads like this one is to discover that Leica cameras are simultaneously the most rugged, well-built pieces of craftsmanship known to man, able to handle the heat of the Sahara and the rot of the Amazon, all the while being delicate, finely tuned instruments, veritable investments, hardly worth the risk of mishandling or, gasp, mishap--as the otherwise trusty coolie inadvertinently knocks the thing from your hand while trying to refill your glass of bordeaux without upsetting the equilibrium of sedan chair on which you are perched.

Go to http://www.laytoncamera.com/ewtest.html these photos were taken with an MP,

which I kept, along with an M6ttl, out in these conditions for a couple of hours, two or

three times per day for a week - on the outside of my parka to let the cameras freeze so

that blowing snow would not melt on them (yes - dry is better than wet!) Both cameras

worked well, although the MP's batteries quit (no big deal) while the ttl's kept working.

These cameras travel with me on assignment to Ethiopia every year also, working in some

really remote places in less than marginal conditions - and so far they've done well.