Ed_Ingold

<p>The link doesn't seem to work. This is the photo I intended to include.</p> <p> </p><div></div>

<p>While taken with an M9 and a Zeiss Biogon 35/2.8, I think this photo demonstrates what I recall as a "Leica Look." The foreground is sharp, while the background fades gracefully into a soft blur. It gives a three dimensional look to an otherwise ordinary photograph. A few others from that excursion are posted in my meager Gallery.</p> <p>I took an afternoon to just have fun shooting pictures in a park, a chance to get away from the computer and video editing, and with subjects not burdened by privacy issues. In one sense, it may be a swan song for my M3 and a roll of Ektar 100, which I used in parallel. I don't have the results yet. It's a 30 minute drive to the nearest processing facility, and I will couple that with another errand in the vicinity.</p> <p><img src="/photo/17865950" alt="" /></p>

<p>Engines can be changed. It's not cheap nor for the faint-hearted. The <em>raison d'etre</em> for popularity of the 1957 Chevrolet was to put the largest engine available in that cavernous front end.</p> <p>Digital backs for most medium format cameras can be exchanged or replaced easily, if you have deep pockets. There is no plausible reason to carry more than one, except as a hot backup. They are major investments, selected for their capability, and replaced when they no longer function as intended (or are no longer competitive).</p> <p>The engine in my mini-van is just fine. I might like a 50 MP sensor for my Hasselblad 205TCC (or ELD), but my pockets aren't quite deep enough. A 16 MP CFV will have to do for now.</p>

<p>It looks like an adapter to use Leica 39mm threaded lenses (LTM) on an M camera (bayonet mount).</p>

<p>Have you looked at a Mamiya 7, a 6x7 rangefinder. They are much smaller than 6x7 SLR cameras, and the lenses are unsurpassed in sharpness. KEH has several used bodies, and a wide variety of lenses. Since the shutter is in the lens, they are quiet. As a rangefinder, it is designed to be used at eye level, and might be suitable for street photography. The Mamya 7 is very nice for landscapes, and not to big and heavy to lug around. Unfortunately, there is no path to digital for this camera.</p> <p>Besides being huge, medium format cameras are typically slow. A few lenses are f/2.8 or faster, but most are f/4 or slower. Unless you choose a very fast B&W film, you will end up shooting indoors at at ISO 400 and 1/15 second or so. That's okay for classical concerts if you use a tripod and your timing is good, but don't count on any one shot being free from motion blur. Medium format is also expensive, both to buy and to feed (with film).</p> <p>I took some concert shots with an Hasselblad this Spring, and got called on the carpet for the shutter noise. Unless you can get well off stage, behind curtains or glass, the music had better be LOUD. At least I have a sound-dampening sleeve for my Nikon DSLR, which helps but does not eliminate camera noise.</p>

<p>A ThinkTank Speed Racer is large enough for a standard DSLR and two more lenses, including an unmounted 70-200/2.8 with the hood reversed. If you have an hand grip, then the next larger size would be appropriate. The camera goes lens down and everything else is stored vertically and readily accessible.</p> <p>This is a convertible bag which can also be worn around your waist with a built in belt. The 70-200 would make this too heavy as a belt pack, but would work in combination with the shoulder strap. There is ample, but not excessive padding, to keep the weight down. All the pockets are zippered (Velco is noisy and wears out quickly).</p> <p>I have carried a shoulder bag for long periods weighing up to 20 pounds with a shoulder strap and belt. I don't recommend exceeding 15 pounds if you can avoid it. Any more, and you should be looking at a backpack. I've trimmed down to about 7 pounds by going rangefinder, which I carry in the smallest ThinkTank Speed convertible - the Speed Demon. I don't need the belt to carry weight, but it's nice to have when climbing or descending.</p> <p>Messenger bags are designed to carry a laptop, with cameras and lenses as an afterthought. A laptop is 3 to 5 pounds you can do without on your shoulder. As for stealth, something that doesn't look like a camera bag, it's a waste of time. The true contents are obvious to anyone watching you use it.</p>

<p>The 503CW and 501CM have the gliding mirror system. This allows a longer mirror, which doesn't cut off the viewfinder for lenses longer than 100 mm. All 200 series have the gliding mirror system as well. The cutoff affects only the viewfinder, and has no effect on the photograph.</p> <p>The 503CW has TTL only for dedicated electronic flash units, not for exposure in general. If you want a built-in light meter, use a metered prism finder on any V camera, or purchase one of the 200 bodies which has TTL for use with the focal plane shutter (and a separate flash TTL, like the 503CW). As successors to the 500C/CM, the 501CM and 503CW are at least ten years newer. That said, my 500CM came back from the factory like a new camera, and has worked like new for nearly ten years now.</p> <p>You can use a digital back on any camera using a sync cord to the lens. That's actually the most reliable way using a digital back on a V camera. The 503CW triggers the CFV back mechanically with the same shutter release extension found on all V cameras. Theoretically, it will work the same way on a 500CM or 501CM, if the timing is up to spec. It will NOT work mechanically on a 200 camera. The shutter release is the same, but the timing is totally different.</p>

<p>With extensive use, the plastic focusing/zoom cam can wear out or break. I've had two replaced so far, within 10 years, in a 28-70/2.8 and a 70-200/2.8. My D3 shutter only has 90,000 images, with (potentially) 160,000 to go. Significantly, cameras and lenses of this quality can be restored to like-new condition for far less than their replacement cost. It is not uncommon, in industry, that repair costs are double to triple that of depreciation. As long as that equipment gives you the results you need, it makes sense to repair.</p> <p>One reason it wore out "early" is that I use the 28-70/2.8 for about 85% of my shooting. That was true throughout the DX years and well into FX. If I get a mirrorless camera, like a Sony A7, it will become a lens with an attached camera.</p> <p>The OP should keep his prime lenses. Their value on trade-in is insulting. Even if you got full replacement value for them, it is a drop in the bucket agains the cost of a new (or used) 24-70/2.8.</p>

<p>In my overactive imagination, it seems like many photos of human subjects are taken without the subject's awareness, doing things people do normally. That was Cartier-Bresson's stock in trade, and is done a lot easier with a Leica than a DSLR the size of your head, that sounds like a derailment. From 1962 onward, Leica has been the only serious non-SLR camera. The mirrorless trend may change that - cameras with a functional viewfinder rather than an LCD screen held at arm's length. This time around with closeups.</p>

<p>Just yesterday I encountered a fussy cable, used to connect the lens with a CFV digital back. The PC connector looks normal, but works only if you apply lateral force, or turn it just so.</p> <p>A trick that works (and is recommended by Paramount Cables), is to bend the center conductor slightly off-axis. Of course, the cable can break internally, usually near the connector, and give intermittent contact. That's why you always need a spare.</p>

<p>I don't recommend isopropyl alcohol for lens or sensor cleaning. It evaporates too slowly, and tends to leave streaks and spots. Q-Tips shed lint like crazy. 70% IPA is actually better than the 99% stuff (which has the consistency of thin mineral oil). For lenses and filters, I use packed alcohol (70% IPA) swabs (e.g. diabetic supplies), folded once and used like a brush rather than like a scrub pad. Better a thin film of alcohol than a thick one which dries to leave spots.</p> <p>The time-honored wet method is Eclipse fluid (spectroscopic grade methanol) and Eclipse lens swabs or PEC-Pads, which are completely lint-free.</p> <p>A quicker, easier method uses ultra-fine brushes. I have a Visible Dust "Arctic Butterfly" kit, which travels with me. It removes dust and lint in under a minute. The brushes are charged using an electric spinner (as an alternative to canned air). The static charge imparted to the bristles suck up lint.</p> <p>I only revert to the wet method if something sticks to the sensor, like an oil droplet from the shutter, or something in the air falls on it.</p>

<p>The resurrected Calumet stores in Chicago (e.g., Northbrook) still process C-41 film in store. They can do 120 film, but can't print or scan it in house. Processing only for 135-36 is $9 and 120-12 is $12.</p> <p>Be careful! My local Walgreen stores will send film out for processing, but all you get is prints and a scan. The negatives are not returned.</p>

<p>With Photoshop, RAM is more important than processing speed, as much as you can stuff into the computer. If you can't do it all at present, make sure you choose a computer which can be upgraded in the future. If you don't have about three times as much RAM as the largest image file, it swaps chunks of the image out to the hard drive, while your hair catches fire.</p> <p>You may have to discard (save or sell) some RAM chips when you upgrade. Most computers require the RAM cards be paired in some way (e.g., 24G = two 4G and two 8G). My laptop, a Lenovo Thinkpad, has four slots. I started with 8G (four 2G chips) and expanded to 32G (four 8G chips). It now churns out Photoshop nicely with the new RAM and an i7 processor - nearly as fast as my HP Xeon workstation.</p> <p>The other upgrade that helps is a fast video card with a GPU co-processor and on-board RAM. Unfortunately, that's not an option with any laptop I know about. The workstation wins after all.</p>

<p>Per the OP, the flash does not fire at all when the extension tubes are used. It's still a good idea to check the synchronization with the back removed. The most common problem is sluggish or sticking action of the auxiliary shutter (barn doors), which results in part or all of the film blocked during exposure.</p>

<p>If the film canisters were unopened, you should be okay. My wife uses old canisters to hold water to soak her reeds (oboe), and they don't leak unless crushed. The film is probably packaged under industrial "comfort" conditions - 50% RH at 70 deg F. There's so little absolute moisture in the enclosed air, you won't get condensation inside the canister.</p> <p>On thawing, you must allow the film to reach room temperature before opening the foil or container. Otherwise you can get condensation on the film which can be difficult to remove.</p> <p> </p>

<p>The M240 has a CMOS sensor, not a battery-chugging CCD like the M9. I have to change batteries every 150 shots or so. There is a similar difference in battery life between the Nikon D2x CCD and D3 CMOS, which is practically indefatigable (600 or more shots). The digital Leicas take about 2 seconds to wake up from hibernation, whereas my Nikons, from the D1x on, were practically instantaneous. Once awake, the Leica has about a 20 msec lag time, compared to about 30 msec for the Nikons. I have never felt these cameras were holding me back. The old M3 is the winner at about 13 msec. I understand the Sony 7 has a noticeable lag, but I haven't had my hands on one yet to confirm that.</p> <p>My first digital camera, a 1999 Kodak P&S was so slow, that at my son's graduation I pressed the shutter when his name was called and barely captured the diploma exchange.</p>

<p>If the camera, lens or any of the extension tubes are not cocked, you cannot assemble them together. If any do not fire, you get a jam which must be cleared through the back of the camera.</p>

<p>I use the "soft and quiet" mode, which matches the feel of the M3 release, and delays the wind until you release the button. You lose the ability to lock the auto exposure with an half press in this (soft) mode. If you set the shutter manually, you see opposing arrows or a dot in the finder, indicating which way to turn the shutter (or aperture) dial for the correct exposure. A dot indicates the correct exposure is set. You can then recompose and shoot all you want, and the setting doesn't change. I use it for tricky lighting situations (bright or dark backgrounds), and for consistency between shots, like a series of group or individual portraits.</p>

<p>The Zeiss 35/2.8 has more distortion than the f/2 version (1% v < 0.5%), but is sharper everywhere, even in the corners. Only the Summilux ASPH does as well. No Nikon lens comes even close, at least at the edges of the field. What I thought was good with the Nikon now looks like it has vasoline in the corners by comparison. That's the price you pay for retrofocus design.</p> <p>The highly symmetrical, rather bulbous Biogon lenses don't fare well when tested on the Sony Alpha, due to its close proximity to the film plane. However it does fine on an M9, sharp, with very little vignetting. Even that's gone if you plug it in as a Summicron 35/2 pre-ASPH.</p> <p>Zeiss makes 50mm ZM lenses with both Sonnar and Planar designs. The Sonnar is quirky, from what I've seen, with strange bokeh and a definite focus shift when stopped down. If any lens has a "look" or "glow", it is the Sonnar - like portraits with a diffuser, similar to the old Summitar 50s. Perhaps f/1.5 is pushing the envelope, because my Hasselblad 150/4 and 180/4 Sonnar lenses have no such behavior.</p>

<p>LowePro backpacks are rather shallow due to the space allowed to stow a laptop. I have better luck with ThinkTank bags, especially the Airport xx models. The inside is 7" deep, enough to hold a DSLR with a handgrip with room to spare, or an Hasselblad ELD with a 45 degree prism finder (I dedicate an Airport Commuter to each of those kits).</p> <p>The Airport bags are space efficient, because they have a rectangular, semi-rigid outline. There are three hand grips - top, one side and the bottom - for hoisting the bag into the overhead compartment on a plane. There is space for a laptop in the top flap, but I use that for other gear, and carry the laptop in its own case when I travel.</p> <p>The straps and belt are okay, but put more weight on your shoulders than a rigid frame. They're fine for schlepping through an airport or on local trails in the woods. The outside dimensions are 18" x 12" x 10", and will fit handle out in the overhead compartment.</p>