If you had to sell...

hi there,

I have a bad time making a decision, considering different pros and cons. I'll make the

question short:

 

Leica R6 or R8.

Which one would you sell/keep if you had to?

never used either, but for my shooting style, i'd keep the on that has aperture priority AE.

Sell the R6 if you think you will ever go digital.

 

The new R digital back is designed for R8/9 use only.

 

Which means those Rs will be useful even if film does become a more scarce commodity.

By the time film become hard to find you'll long ago have discovered that your old R8/R9 digital is no longer being serviced by anyone. For that matter, the same will be true of today's Nikon and Canon digital cameras.

 

Sell both, get a Leicaflex SL or SL2, and enjoy a quality SLR.

sell em both, get a car and go out and enjoy life

I don't think film will really be scarce some day. Without going down to that discussion

now, I saw lots of people selling their Vinyl-Collection and now crying because digital is

the more short-term-medium....

So, no interest in the digital back.

Al, I get your point but that wasn't the question. Maybe later I will sell the other one, too

and go for a rangefinder system. And Grant, as a musician I own a pretty big quality

german car that serves me damn good! ;):)

Thanks for your responses so far. I think my question here will raise the same pros and

cons that dance inside my head before posting. I'll see....

Markus, don't get this wrong... learn to see the future. Sell the R6, keep the R8, just <b>in case</b> you eventually, probably and however remotely... decide to go digital. If I had to eat crow for every time I said "I'll never do this or that" I'd be beyond full... But I learned on time to follow advice. Have a nice week!

Ask Jay for his opinion: he's our "R" champion!

Keep the R8. I like the way it handles, and the metering system much better than the R6. The R8 has been a very good 'stablemate' for my SL.

Both!

R6 can be serviced by any skilled practitioner: R8 (so they claim) can only be serviced by Leica Germany. If I've been told a lot of nonsense, perhaps somebody else will chime in.

If you are selling because you only want/need/can afford a single SLR body then I'd stick strictly to personal preference. I've kept (so far) my R8 because I have two Ms and that keeps me nicely in the street/unobtrusive line of photography, where the R6 would be a better bet. The R8 is a very nice body - not to everyone's taste - but if you can get on with it, then it has its uses.

 

If you are selling because you are worried about the demise of film then stop fretting. I can see no reason why it should disappear. B/W has survived for 20 years as a miniscule part of the imaging world, with no apparent decline in choice of films, paper or chemicals.

 

As Stephen correctly points out, the R6's repairability is not limited and I doubt if there wouldn't be repair options for the R8 even if Leica went under, which despite all the doom merchants out there isn't on the immediate horizon. They've had there ups and downs, but always manage to keep going.

 

Keep what you like and sell what you don't. If you change your mind there are plenty of second bodies available to reverse your decision.

Keep the 8, trash the 6.

Thanks for your opinions so far. Summary: sell both or if one: the R6.

 

OK, via mail i got a response that gave me indeed another thought on the first possibility:

 

I still have a Minolta SLR that does good for simple, automatic photography, and I

ogle to own a Leica M for quite a while.

I maybe sell my R-equipment completely, instead buy a used M with only one lens at first,

a good negative scanner for archiving and web-publishing etc.

Still I would have some money left over that I need now, which of course was the reason

for my question.

Does that sound reasonable? A good combination? A still useful SLR plus a quality M?

Good move, Markus. The M cameras are time-less and will always allow you to get a good resale amount should you ever decide the M one day ...for another M. Unless you are into automation and macro work, I would sell both R cameras and pick up a clean M3 or M6 TTL.

Harvey did Jay in! This proves it!

Someday, someone hast to explain this J-Trouble to me. (yes, i read here regulary).

Jay posts blunt comments and strong opinions. He can be downright insulting, but those insults are about 5 on a scale of 10. He usually posts correct statements. But why a personal attack of this magnitude on anyone for any reason is allowed to stay up is beyond me. I suppose some people think it is funny. I really do think it pushed Jay off the forum and that I find sad. Yes, even Jay. I hope that expressing it in a humorous way does not offend him. <p>

 

<a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=007S1Q"> Harvey's Dream<a>

Rent a M first. You didn't say wether you had used a rangefinder before. You may not like

it coming from an SLR.

 

The impression I had was that you had only these cameras, and had to make a decision.

If you had any inkling that you MAY want to go digital then I still think you should keep

the R8.

 

Also, how many lenses do you have in the R system verses the Minolta? Lens investment is

where you often take a beating when hopping from one system to another.

 

With the new info about the Minolta, I'd sell it and keep both Leicas and save the cash

toward buying the digital module for the R8 ... or get another lens... or film.

I did not use a M for a long time, but once I travelled with a friend who owned one. So i

had the opportunity to play with it a bit.

I do have more lenses for the R-System (24, 50, 60macro, 135), the Minolta (based on

different zoom lenses) gives me 35-200mm. BUT: The Minolta will never be for sale. First,

because that one travelled the world with me, an emotional argument of course. But

second, because it would not give me a good bargain for selling it. Electronics and info in

the finder won't work any more, one can only use best manually. So the body would go for

100� or something like that. So, not worth compared to what the cam means to me.

And once more for the digital argument: I understand that point, but at the time the digital

back will be affordable for me (it starts 4500�!), there will be another decent digital

camera. As for now, digital does still not convince me. That is also true for "the world

outside" photograpy. Digital has no medium yet that would grant some stediness. Floppy:

gone. CDs: not a long lifetime. DVDs: Still different standards, will vanish anyway, like

VHS, he Floppy and so on..... On the other hand, film as a medium won't vanish ever, like

vinyl and comparable analog items. Simply because both the analog world and the digital

have different qualities and also, different "values" (not$$). Anyway, I guess this discussion

will go on. I own a Canon Powershot Compact cam, enough digital for now.

I am really thankful for your comments, really gives me different thoughts making my

mind what I want/don't want.

 

And for that J-thing: Still I don't get it. I guess there is also a scale for sensibility and

another for misinterpretation... ;) On the other hand, maybe my English just isn't good

enough. Anyway, thx for your response.

Jay hasnt left has he? Shame if he has, we may disagree sometimes but thats only healthy debate.