Leica School, Wetzlar, Germany

A 'graduate' of the Leica School, Nov.13,1963, I would be interested

to hear others' stories & impressions of this experience. Of course

I would be MOST interested if you happened to be on that particular

course. Best, LM.<div></div>

whos second from left: theo scherer? kisselbach?

Is that the invisible man second from right?

I was fortunate enough to attend the Schule in 1986. One of the high points for me was to be able to spend time with Walter Heun. Walter was one of the true gentlemen of the photo world.

The school I attended was in Wetzlar and it was very cool to see the technicians assembling and testing M6 cameras. I have some pictures of molten glass being poured from a 1 litre platinum crucible to make glass for the Noctilux lens.

One of my my favorite cameras is the M6 that I bought at the school and paid extra to have engraved with my name and Leica Schule Wetzlar.

The invisible man couldn't make it, but no-one could tell from the picture.

Harry, Not sure who those two are & Google wasn't much help. All I remember about the older gentleman was that he was about 80 yrs. old and travelling the world with his Alpa camera.(not sure which model). I do know he was more asset than debit on this course. Best, LM.

 

Mat, Bingo! Boy, there's no sliding one past you is there? Saw your site, head's still spinning! :) Best, LM.

Paul, Yours is more like the response I was looking for. Happy to hear you got your 'jewel'. After over 40 years I still have not obtained a Leica though the lust for one is still there. Maybe, someday............ :) One thing I remember on the tour was a block of optical glass being cut in half and our instructor asking if any of us would place their finger on the rotating diamond saw blade to which came the unanimous group reply, NO! He laughed & proceeded to place his finger on it without incident. Seems that diamonds are hard & thus cut through the glass but smooth & dull so they don't cut soft materials. Don't know if they still run the school but would love, with 40 yrs. accumulated wisdom, to go again. Best, LM.

Robert (Another Bob). Your remark is humorous and lighthearted but your photos of the 'Laundry Tank', on your personal site, reveal a much deeper person. Many thanks, LM.

<<Len Marriott , jul 26, 2004; 10:15 a.m.

A 'graduate' of the Leica School, Nov.13,1963, I would be interested to hear others' stories & impressions of this experience. Of course I would be MOST interested if you happened to be on that particular course>>

 

Sorry, the only course I was on in Nov 1963 was grammar school. Would've been nice to be a part of photography back when Leica Schule would've attracted only one octogenarian and the rest in their 20's rather than the reverse. Oh well, but then I'd be ready for the nursing home by now. I you can't have your cake and eat it.

A Grammar school Jay? That sounds like you attended a school in Britain or Australia. (Or somewhere with an English influence.)

 

I have never heard anyone in the US refer to having gone to a Grammar school. (Sorry to interrupt your thread Len.)

Jay, The older gentleman's presence on the course lent a bit more dignity to it. We were all in awe of him & his ability to endure a world tour & enjoy life at his age. I guess it also took a bit of the fear of the future away from the rest of us. Old, really old people have much to offer if we're patient enough to let them teach us. P.S. Since I was on the course, I am probably older than you but I'm certainly not ready for the nursing home yet.:>) And yes, it was a good era for photography, as is today. Best, LM.

Trevor, For interrupting my thread, no Christmas treats, one year! Best, LM.

In the USA grammer schools were just that until the late 1950's, at least in Los Angeles

where I attended West Hollywood Grammer School before time began.

Trevor, in my grandparents' generation it was called Grammar School in the US too. I used the term presuming it would be the one Len would be familiar with.

Thanks Jay. We have lost a lot of Grammar schools in the UK during the Comprehensive school 'revolution' from the late 60s until recently (along with the demise of the old '11 plus' selection exam/IQ test.)

 

Some Grammar schools remain. Did your US Grammar schools teach Latin as well?

Len, it is interesting to see you describe how you were in awe of this old Gentleman with his knowledge & experience. It is nice to hear about a time when elderly people were considered to have something valuable to offer the young. (Before the generation who foisted the cult of Youth upon us in a vain attempt to deny the inevitability of getting old themselves!)

The Grammar school I attended in the 50's [Alabama] was composed of grades 1-6. No Latin taught. Just a good basic education.

No doubt better than the one African-Americans got down the road in their grammar school.

Len,

 

I went to the English language course on the M which was last given in 1999 at Altenberg

Abbey in Solms.

 

The Akademie began with the fellowship of a Sunday night dinner at the Hotel Wetzlarer

Hof. After a champagne reception Monday morning, we found an M6TTL and 50mm lens

sitting on each of our desks.

 

The formal session started with an excellent lecture on composition by Verena Mueller, an

accomplished photojournalist who recently published a book of black and white

photographs she made with a M6. Then Hildegard Fritsch, a photo engineer and Akademie

instructor, provided helpful insights on M6 handling, metering areas, and finder coverage.

 

After lunch, we were loaned the lenses of our choice, and assigned items to shoot in

historic old Wetzlar. A special dinner and surprise Monday night showed that Leica is a

company that knows how to treat its customers.

 

The factory tour Tuesday morning offered the chance to see the cameras and lenses

lovingly assembled by hand, as well as a glimpse of the Leica ?family tree? and some

Leicas that survived the Hindenburg disaster, ejection from an F-4 jet, and a fall while

shooting honey gatherers in Nepal. After an individual critique of Monday?s shoot, we

again had our choice of lenses and the chance to improve on Monday?s take. Photos are no

longer allowed inside the factory.

 

Wednesday morning Ms. Mueller talked about choosing slide and print films, and how to

best mat and display prints. This was followed by a hands-on flash photography

demonstration with the M6TTL, and by individual and group critiques of our slides.

 

The chance to spend two afternoons shooting with a variety of lenses under the tutelage

of expert M6 users nicely complemented the practical lectures and demonstrations.

 

It was well worth the trip from San Diego.

I grew up in England, took the 11+ exam in 1960 and attended High Wycombe Royal

Grammer School. (I wonder if that still exists?) At age 11/12 we were taking Latin and

French, three sciences; chemistry, biology and physics. Discipline was administered with a

large cane to the posterior, we were required to wear uniform blazers, caps, flannel

trousers, school tie, socks with the school colors, etc.

 

Then in '62 we moved to Southern Cal. talk about culture shock! Negligible discipline,

'advanced' classes like shop and social studies (barely). My biggest memory of those days

was one of the most important things that rated your social standing was whether you had

'Chevy Rules' or 'Ford Rules' lettered boldly on your notebook, and whether you were able

to play the drum solo from "Wipeout' on the desktop.

<<Then in '62 we moved to Southern Cal. talk about culture shock!>>

 

The shock is hearing someone speak about Southern Cal and culture in the same sentence.

That's the old joke: what's the difference between yoghurt and LA?

 

Yoghurt has an active living culture.

Bob, Good to see, from your posts, that you are another that walks the walk with your M6. Wish it were me also. It's been over 40 years so my recollection of the 3 day course is a bit shakey. I do remember that the camera of the day was the M2, a body of which, was issued to each of us with a quick lesson on how they worked & how the different components (meters, finders, lenses, visoflex housings, & hoods) fit together. An assortment of lenses was also provided as well as a 36 exp. roll of Plus-X. We went on a walking tour of Wetzlar, taking photos of whatever moved us, and exchanged lenses with each other so as to get to use WA, normal, & tele versions. Our instructor used his camera to take photos of us. On the final day we were provided copies of all the photos our instructor took of us as well as the negatives from the roll we took, an assortment of 21/2 x 31/2 proofs of most of our good shots and a few 8 x 10's of what the instructor considered our best shots. A critique was offered & readily accepted by all. If you like I could send you a sample of the work from that day. Actually, some of the shots can be seen in my "20th Century" folder. Best, LM.

Neil, What in heaven's name has your answer got to do with the question asked? Join Trevor in Pergatory; for highjacking my thread, no Christmas treats for 1 year. Just kidding of course, gotta have a little fun sometime. Thanks for contributing. Best, LM.

Sometimes the Leica forum seems like purgatory, you just can't leave even if you want to;)