M7 or M6 Classic - Why?

[love4leica]

Forget the price ! If you had a choice between the M7 and M6 which

one will you buy and why? It is really the choice between an

Electronic one as compared to a Mechanical one. What are your

reasons? May I please have your opinions.

[Rich B NYC]

Afzal,

 

I had that choice to make and chose the M6 Classic.

 

My preference lies with fully manual cameras so it was an easy decision. However, had I wanted AE, the M7 would have been the obvious choice....but you already know that.

 

Rich

[watts]

M7 anyday. I'm lazy and for the kind of photography I use the M for I prefer the AE that the

M7 offers. I have an M6 as well and simply prefer the M7 - no question about it. When I want

to be slow and methodical I prefer to use a different camera (and film format) altogether.

Incidentally, I find the M7's dependence upon batteries to be a total non-issue.

[hugon]

<a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=006AXf">Similar discussion</a>

[working camera]

The real answer is M3.

 

It basically comes down to AE or not to AE. The rub with AE is battery dependency. If that's a problem then the M6 is the locigal choice.

 

In my not so humble opinion the M6 dual triangle meter readout is also next to useless. So an M6 TTL would be better. Then again the dot in the middle of the dual triangle system which came with the TTL is only marginally better.

 

I never use my M7 in manual unless I've made a hand held metering reading.

 

In an odd sort of way the numerical AE mode readout gives me a wider scale of information than manual mode. I'm used to match needle readouts. I find the numerical SS readout in AE more useful. Simply because I'm used to translating SS numbers as f stops.

 

The manual mode in modern metered Leicas has too short a range to be really useful. It tells you which way to turn or aperture ring. But is it 4 stops 3 stops. You don't know until you nearly get there.

 

That's just my personal prefernce as it works for me.

 

C.

[tony_senzaorbi]

I chose an M6 because that's all that they made at the time. Leicas are made to last a lifetime of hard use and not much can wear out that would make them less economical to fix than to ditch. None of the later models has anything revolutionary or even innovative that appeals to me so I'm hanging onto my M6. If I was in the market today I'd probably still get an M6 since the newer ones cost more and don't offer anything I need in return. I never was a big fan of autoexposure, it requires constant monitoring to be sure the meter is reading the right part of each shot. With manual exposure I can meter only when I want to.

[cpj]

The M7 metering system is excellent in my experience and I owned two of them, recently

selling one to exchange for additional lenses. I also had M6's (and every Leica back to the

M3, M2 era) and I think the M7 is the best overall camera the company has ever made.

[Yeah, I'm an "old guy" but age brings the advantage of 47+ years of experience.)

 

The nonsense about depending on a battery is just that--nonsense. In all these years as a

working photojournalist I can only recall twice having an unexpected battery failure but

still getting a shot using the default 1/60th on most cameras. Just remember to change

your batteries once a year whether they need it or not, and throw a spare in your bag. The

same advice, by the way, holds true for film: if you run out of film you can't make the shot

either, so bring some spare rolls!

[shambrick007]

M7 --> AE

[socke]

I'm with CPeter, battery dependence is a non issue. The batteries I put in my G2 in october 2004 failed on sunday. I exchanged them with those form the flash and finished the roll.

 

Later I spoiled the film when developing :-(

[frank_scheitrowsky1]

It all depends on how old you are. If you are already in your 60's, then either camera will last you a lifetime. If you're younger, or if you are already considering the possibility of handing down your camera to the next generation, then the M6 is a better choice. Let the flaming begin, but that is my opinion.

[frederick_muller]

I think that in the long run a mechanical leica will be easier to service, will be easier to get parts for, and will hold its value better. On that score, I vote for the M6.

 

I do have an M7 and find the semi-spot meter is better suited for manual operation. Hence, I frequently use it on manual, but switch to auto when things move faster. For that reason, I would again vote for the M6.

 

I worry about dust getting into the finder of my M7 (even though I haven't noticed any yet). I've read so many posts about dust in an M7 finder that I am positively paranoid about it. Go figure. Get an M6 and you needn't worry. For that reason, I vote for an M6.

 

Having said all that, I like the M7 and use it. But I wouldn't want it to be my only machine. I would always take a backup.

[ross_wilson1]

I really wanted an M7 but couldn't afford one at the time so I got an M6. I was concerned however about it being fully manual and having no shutter display in the viewfinder. I'm glad I took the plunge, it doesn't hold me back at all.

 

In fact, having so little info in the viewfinder is very refreshing, and helps keep you in tune with the subject I find. The manual metering I find an advantage. You can set exposure for the area you want, then compose and shoot (or vice versa), although there is AE lock on the M7, you have to re-set it after every shot. I've found the M6 encourages pre-metering which is faster than metering then then shooting.

 

Amway, in short the M6 full manual way of shooting is very refreshing and has practical advantages. The fact the M7 can be used in manual mode, somewhat negates this however. Remember though, humans prefer the path of least resistance, and so you'll "probably" rarely use manual mode on an M7. Otherwise how do you justify spending the extra moola!?

 

Given the choice now I'd go for the MP.

 

Think about painting and having numbers come up in your eyes as you looked at the scene. Distracting? I think so, more than two little triangles that don't register much in the logical part of the mind, which is good when you're using the creative side.

[stuart_richardson]

I would say the M7. It is one of those cases where "Everything you can do, I can do better".

The evil battery dependency gives you a more accurate, stepless shutter, TTL flash

metering, AE operation and slow speeds that are dead quite -- no buzzing. The shutter

speed dial is larger and includes times up to four seconds on the dial. The finder has been

upgraded, it's multicoated and suffers less from flare problems. It is also available in three

magnifications, something that the M6 classic was not. The top cover is brass again, if that

makes a difference. The camera offers DX coding, and the viewfinder will show you the

shutter speed in half steps in the viewfinder, also allowing you to lock that speed by

pressing down halfway. If you don't like these features, you can basically ignore them. In

manual mode you lose nothing to the M6. What is the big downside? It is 2mm taller and

requires a battery. But you still have 1/60th and 1/125th, and it is rather rare that you

can't take a photo with either of these speeds. In the space of a single cannister of film,

you can carry enough batteries to power it for hundreds of rolls of film. It just seems to

me, having used both, that price and romance aside, the M7 is a better camera.

[terry_rory]

M7 of course.

 

I have an M6 TTL because I had the rare opportunity to buy one brand new with full 2 year Leica UK passport (from an official Leica dealer) for less than half the cost of a new M7. But if money had not been a factor, then I would have bought an M7 without hesitation.

[fjords]

M7; a leica 'CLE', who fixes the CLE ? Who will fix the M-7 when leica merges with

Studebaker.

[frank_scheitrowsky1]

The only problem with the M7 is the longevity/reliability of its electronic circuit boards and componants, compared to the mechanical systems of the M6 (light meter circuit aside - it is still useable) .

[mike-images]

Hi Afzal,

 

forgetting price entirely: I'd buy an MP. I looked long and hard at the M7 when I bought my MP (after 6 years with an M4-2 that I still have). I never use flash with a Leica so who cares about TTL? I couldn't stand that blinking light - it blinks for all sorts of stuff as far as I can make out. It sh*ts me big time. It didn't outweigh the benefits for AE - been there done that with Nikon F3s for a long time prior to Leica.

 

For me the Zen is minimal finder info and no flashing lights. See it do it. In addition I don't like the thought of the electronic shutter. It's not the batteries - it's just the thought of a connection on that PCB one day going on strike. The MP will then be just like my M4-2 the M7 will be junk.

 

If you want second hand buy the M6 if money no object buy the MP - you get 5 years warranty and a seriously good camera.

 

Mike

[35mmdelux]

figure this: you got a Porche. Should you buy fully automatic or manual. What kind of question is this? M6 or better yet MP. M7 is for sissies.

[stuart_richardson]

Oh Paul, that is ridiculous. The M7 can be and often is used fully manually, it is exactly the

same as the M6. The only difference is that a microprocessor controls the shutter timing

instead of gears. And if you buy a Porsche today, fully manual or not, many of the

components will be controlled by a computer. <P>I don't buy the "electronics will fail"

argument. The thing is not really packed with electronics. The shutter's timing is

electronic, but otherwise it is very similar to the traditional shutter. Other than that, the

metering and the TTL flash is not that different from the M6. I am more concerned with

getting better use out of the camera for the next, say 20 years, rather than worrying about

it after 50 years. I know 20 is more than reasonable, as many of the electronic cameras of

the 70s and 80s are still going strong, and as scary as that is to think of, that was 20-30

years ago.

[ken_ford1]

The difference between the M7 and older electronic cameras is huge - no more discrete components.

 

All it takes is one critical out of production part with a tendency to break or wear out and it's all over - think Nikon F2 ring resistors!

 

If I were investing the bucks into a new Leica M body, it would be an MP. If the meter ever croaks, it'd still be a very usable body. The M7 has serious future doorstop/paperweight potential.

[stuart_richardson]

Man, I figure if it breaks in 30-50 years, I will say, "Wow, that was a great run" not, "Dammit, I

should have bought an M6." I guess that's just me.

[daveg]

If you think of your camera as a life long mate until death do you part, then you might want to get an M6. However, if you want a more capable camera, and are willing to risk the remote chance that you might have to spend some your waning years without this particular camera, then go for an M7.

 

IMO, compared to the availability of film, a hypothetical shortage of replacement parts for an M7 thirty years from now is moot.

[dan flanders]

The guy who bought my CLE is moaning and groaning because it quit. He maybe can find someone to fix it but it's going to be out of use for a while even if he does. OTOH when the battery on my M6 went out several hundred miles from Anchorage on a float fishing trip I continued to shoot using sunny 16 and "by guess and by God" for the rest of the trip. When I got back to town I only had a dozen or so bad exposures out of six rolls. Now what would I have had with an M7?

[working camera]

It gets even better the M7 also has a mechanical 125th as well as 60th

 

endless possiblities sans battery.

 

C.

[vic_.]

Afzal, The shutter dial on the M7 moves in the opposite direction as that on the M6. It bothers some people enough to make it a deal breaker.

 

Buy the cheaper camera and donate the price difference to your favorite charity. You already have complete M and LTM systems, so buying any more gear is wanton materialism.