What would Oscar think?

What would Oscar Barnack, "the ingenious inventor of the Leica", make

of today's cameras? Barnack was an innovator. He was an asthmatic and

wanted a camera to take hiking. It had to be small and pocketable, but

also a precision tool. A system camera. Famously, he laid his metal

rule on the camera's top-plate and decreed its maximum dimensions -

probably he would have resisted those extra 2mm in height for the

M6TTL and M7. The last camera he worked on before his death in 1936

was the Leica IV prototype, a forerunner of the M3.

What would Oscar think of photography today? I think he would be

amazed by film quality. I think he would welcome technology, and be

impressed by today's point-and-shoots, while lamenting the loss of

craftsmanship and the over-all throwaway feel of many modern products.

What would he make of digital and the Internet? And which would be his

favourite Leica? M7? Minilux zoom? Digilux? Or would he prefer a Canon

or Nikon lightweight SLR, Contax G2 or a superzoom P/S? I'm not sure,

but I think he'd still have good reason to look back at the original

Leica and reckon he'd done a damn good job.

He would be most delighted to see, that his O-series camera is still

around, at least as (so far) unsold replicas in the shops. The others

are dumped directly into safes and cupbords after they where bought.

This he would not understand IMO.

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He would certainly like the appreciation his products still fetches

today and he would have used this internet-medium to answer questions

on his LEICA ...

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He was a modern minded man and he would have liked the M7. Maybe he

had wanted a shutter with more mechanical speeds though.

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Best regards

Ray, you're certainly correct ;-)</p>Wherever Oscar Barnack's soul is

now, he's probably amazed how many Leicas are bought for collecting

only, never to be used. And he wouldn't like an F5 or EOS 1v; he'd

rather get an ELPH (Ixus in Europe)!</p><i>ziiipp</i> [poster gets

into his Nomex suit]</p>Barnack wouldn't like a P&S at all IMHO,

neither a digital one, due to shutter lag. Ermanoxes, Kodaks,

etc.--not to mention the antecessors of Sinars, Wisners, et

al.--opened the shutter the very moment you pressed the button, and

the compact camera he envisaged should be <u>considerably</u> faster

in all aspects of handling.</p>Extremely small cameras were available

in Barnack's days ("detective cameras"). What he really wanted was not

just small dimensions but also fast operating. So if he were alive

today, he might cooperate with many gifted engineers to design an

extremely fast digital camera.</p>Dreaming of a 6 Mp Foveon X3 sensor,

shutter lag 6 ms, spot metering, interchangeable lenses, 1:1.4/90mm

equivalent (size à la current 50 'cron) available...

OK, I bite: If Oscar, an innovator, was alive today he would have

laughed at the M7, a new camera implementing a 30 year old

technology...

OK, I bite, too. If Oskar Barnack was alive, he would marvel at the permanence of his invention,

and he would be delighted by the fact that it succeeded in implementing a thirty year old

technology in a new camera while sacrificing almost nothing of the genius of the first designs. He

would understand right away that this "old" technology is the only useful one that could be

implemented in a Leica RF while keeping it a Leica RF. And he would definitely wonder why no

one has yet succeded in implementing his own seventy year old technology, that even people

who laugh at the thirty year old one don't question.

He'd probably head over to Munich for ein mass of Oktoberfest,

with his brand new M7/50 Elmar in tow. I little bit larger, sure, but

goodness, IT HAS A BUILD IN METER AND AUTOMATIC

SHUTTER!!!. Such a creation he would relish for sure. Then he

would begin to wonder who was responsible for allowing the

use of plastic in an E. Leitz product?!?!? And what the heck is

"Leica" anyway?

Come to think of it, I guess the Minox 35 would get a lot of (if not

the most) approval from Oscar. He wouldn't mind the

plasic/polycarbonate/fibre glass/whatever as long as it's sturdy

enough. After all, he aimed for a small and light camera while

designing the Leica.

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Other possible candidates (with lens-interchangeability) are the

Olympus Pen F and the Pentax 110 SLR. They are way more viable with

present film technology. A pity there ain't no more 110 film. The

APS format won't last for long, either

as an inventor, the guy would have invented a Leica G2, more quite,

internal AF lenses, much better viewfinder a long time ago

Good point, Pat. Whether that would go into production and how much

it would cost, are quite questionable though....unless Leitz/Leica

has someone else produce it, like Kyocera making the Contax cameras.

Barnack Spirit ?

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Quite difficult to answer, because making the dead people speak is a

tricky thing�

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Barnack was an innovator, something many people here seem to forget.

But he was obviously someone who preferred to use only tried and

true innovations.

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The rest is what we can speculate on�

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I think he would probably have stood with the 35mm film and would

probably be already in process to use digital but on a strictly

experimental way pending the quality be equal to what is obtainable

with the silver based film.

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He would probably have stood with the rangefinder concept and manual

focusing just because AF is something which doesn�t work well with

short focal length and is still inferior to a good old rangefinder

in dim light low contrast situation. But I don�t think he would have

hesitated to go with electronics, on the contrary of what a number

of people believe here (he would probably have laughed at the

battery dependence argument and proceed to devise a battery

emplacement protected from cold for low temp operations).

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He would have been infuriated in seeing the present Leica plant

using manufacturing technologies way behind the current state of the

art and a marketing department more concerned with special edition

series than to give the real photographer an appropriately priced

tool.

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He would have certainly addressed to the degradation of the

manufacturing standards, but probably not the way many of us think�

As an innovator, he would have recognized the advantage of using

quality high standard modern composite materials (but not cheap

plastics) when they are cheaper, more appropriate and durable than

traditional ones.

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And, finally, IMHO, he would have succeeded in restoring the place

of Leica as the prime choice for Press and snap shot photography his

original camera and its developments up to the M5 had gained.

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Barnack was not afraid in anyway by a sound application of progress�

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François P. WEILL

The only thing that can be said for sure, is that Barnack would be

very unhappy at people trying to add credence to their own opinions by

using his name.

My, oh my, Joe, is yours a silly remark! What is your problem with tghe name Barnack ? IIs it so

sacred to you that one can't quote it without being accused of... of what, by the way?

I'll bet he'd like the CL. Small, light, and pocketable, in keeping

with his original concept, yet more advanced.

Agree Oscar would welcome some new technology, don't think he'd mind

being asked his opionion at all Joe, some good points Francois -

would he strive so hard for Leica to be the premier press and

snapshot camera? - what's so wrong with producing a niche market

camera? For many pro purposes, the M6 or M7 would be better than a D1

or whatever, but perhaps Leica does not bother to promote itself

enough in what it considers "established" markets. But it's

interesting that no-one disputed rangefinders being "up to snuff",

especially in low light, that there is anything wrong with today's

Leica lenses, or that the modern Leica is the wrong size, big or

small, or that it is not reliable enough - so Leica must be doing

something right. I don't think Oscar would worry too much, in fact I

reckon fact he would be delighted the company was still going after

so many other German camera companies folded. Thanks to everyone who

replied.