Richard Williams

It's definitely a Leica! Not sure the photos indicate anything unusual (the centre and upturned edge of the lock on my IIIa also look shinier than the rest of the baseplate) but perhaps it looks different in the flesh? Is that 'bronzed' look in the first photo just the lighting? If you think the the whole plate is not made from the usual brass, you could always weigh it and compare with another IIIc plate - brass is denser than stainless steel. But this seems unlikely. It may be that Leica was using non-standard plating 'formulas' at the time due to shortage of materials (as with the tatty chrome seen on many post-war IIIc bodies).

Sadly, the original ABLON seems to have attracted the interest of serious collectors, and isn't much cheaper than an LTM body on ebay these days! I expect it helps, but I've never bothered making a template, but just cut freehand (there's a good diagram of the required profile on p29 of the manual). Cut between the sprocket holes and round off the corner. As the old Morgan & Lester book puts it: 'The film ends can be cut with a scissors without a Trimming Guide after a little practice.' Morgan & Lester is an excellent supplement to the official manual, by the way - the 12th edition of 1953 is readily available secondhand, has some good articles by famous contributors, and is contemporary with the IIIf. Some earlier editions are on archive.org, e.g.: THE LEICA MANUAL : WILLARD E.MORGAN : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

I don't know if any left the factory that way, but things get lost or damaged, especially when there's a war going on. The baseplates are brass, either chrome-plated (the preferred finish in the 40s and 50s, and by far the most common) or painted (apparently due to a shortage of materials). If someone needed a replacement baseplate, it might just have been easier to find a chrome one.

I'm not mad on the VIOOH / IMARECT universal finders. They are bulky, just crop rather than change magnification, and there are no framelines, a bit like looking though a letter box. Individual brightline finders are nicer to use, though good ones (like Leitz's original and the Voigtlander equivalents) are expensive, especially for wideangles. See how you get on with the built-in viewfinder and the 50mm lens to start with. Smartphone lightmeter apps can work very well if your phone's camera is compatible. If you haven't used a IIIf before, it's a rather quirky camera by modern standards. Film loading is a bit fiddly and the rangefinder is separate to the viewfinder. Most will benefit from a service, which can cost half the price of the camera (many will have significant issues like dim rangefinders or shutter problems). But it's a fun camera to use when everything is properly adjusted. Read the manual: Leica IF, IIF, IIIFinstruction manual, user manual, free PDF camera manuals Note that you need to trim the film leader first to avoid jamming the mechanism - just use scissors to get the profile shown in the manual, which has about 23 unpaired sprocket holes. With a little practice this is actually quicker and easier than the various tricks with business cards you'll see described that involve removing the lens, and you can pre-trim before you go out. Why the Canon lens on a Leica? The Canon P is a nice camera, with a more sophisticated combined viewfinder/rangefinder that includes framelines for multiple focal lengths, and is generally cheaper than the IIIf. On the other hand, Leica's own lenses like the Summitar and 50mm Elmar would match the IIIf well. If you do get a IIIf it's worth getting a collapsible 50 of whatever brand, since this makes the whole thing pocketable.

I used them a while back (though not for anything big) and didn't have any problems. I've also used and been happy with Aperture, Cameraworld, Dale and LCE. Ffordes, Harrison, Mifsuds, Wex, and Park, etc. also have good reputations.

Just looks like high shutter count and paint wear, etc. - could be worth going for at that price (the shutter is supposed to be good for 200k shots). They also have a D800 for £634 with fewer shots on the clock, though it looks a fair bit scruffier.

Nikon UK's exchange rate calculator seems to be broken, unfortunately. It's above £1700 at most dealers, though there's one selling it at the 'bargain' price of £1605. 20% of that is VAT, but it's still over $1800 USD before tax.

AI is fine, but for pre-AI on FX you'd probably need a Df - see: Can I use an older F mount non ai lens with a Nikon Dslr? You can get a nice D800 or D800E in the UK for under £1000 (Aperture sold a high mileage user D800 for £650 recently). The D810 is still in the £1400-£1600 range at dealers.

I don't think Voigtlander or anyone else made a lens exactly like this in the 30s. Voigtlander did not make 35mm cameras before the Vito of 1939, a folding camera with a Skopar on a bellows. The external design of the 50mm Heliar f/3.5 seems clearly inspired by the Leitz Elmar, updated with a more convenient aperture control. The internal arrangement of the lens elements looks like a vintage Heliar. Compare the lens diagram for the chrome finish Heliar on Cameraquest to the 1925 Heliar design (the one on the right) referenced on camera-wiki: https://cameraquest.com/jpg6/VCH10150.jpg Heliar

On the M6 classic the B setting switches off the meter, but you can still fire the shutter (otherwise you wouldn't be able to use the bulb mode). Apparently the M6 TTL has the extra 'off' position because in all other positions (including 'B') some current is drawn from the battery. However, the mechanical shutter can still be fired (I think in bulb mode) even with the dial in the 'off' position. Only the M7's electronic shutter is locked in the 'off' position (which also switches everything else off).

Full-frame body under £1000 with picture quality the first thing you list? As above, I'd suggest a D800. Battery life isn't a problem. Aesthetics are subjective, but it's better built than the lower tier bodies, though this solidity means it's not the lightest dSLR you can buy. I don't think there's much to choose between the various full-frame cameras for ease of use. They also have similar lens compatibility, working with AF-S, 'screwdriver' AF and AF-D, VR, G, E type electronic aperture, and manual focus AI lenses. The only issues are with a small number of recent AF-P lenses with stepper motor AF, where the D800 and other older bodies have restricted compatibility: https://www.nikonimgsupport.com/eu/BV_article?articleNo=000035705&configured=1&lang=en_GB . The only real minuses are a relatively low framerate, and that some early cameras had an AF calibration issue that required a (free) service to fix (mine had documentation that this had been done when I bought it secondhand). It's worth checking for any issues (test the central and side sensors separately): How to Quickly Test Your DSLR for Autofocus Issues - Photography Life.

Sure, it will meter with any lens you can attach. Preview and check you are happy with the 28mm framelines, especially if you wear glasses, as they are very near the edge of the standard 0.72 finder. Like other medium size lenses, the Ultron will also intrude a bit into the bottom right corner of the finder. Ken Rockwell shows this in his review (take the deliberately provocative text with a large pinch of salt!): Voigtländer 28mm f/2 Ultron Review

An M6 is not exactly ideal for focusing closer than 70cm, where the rangefinder and most recent lenses stop (older gear usually stops at 1m). Closer than that, and you're relying on depth of field from a stopped down lens, or scale focusing a Super Angulon or something.

If the deal includes the goggles and they just aren't shown, then the Summaron ought to work rather well with the 0.85 finder, with the 50mm framelines it brings up resized by the goggles more or less as they would be on the M3. The tape on the preview lever might suggest someone has tried to make this lens work without goggles while forcing the 35mm framelines to come up, but as Jochen notes the lever looks like it's currently in the 50mm position it would return to if (e.g.) the tape was removed and replaced without holding the lever in the 35mm position. As James says, the lens won't focus correctly without goggles unless it has had major surgery. In any case, the main thing to consider here is whether the seller is offering an unusual special edition at a suspiciously low price, which can raise warning flags about how it was acquired or (if you've only seen photos) whether the seller actually has the camera.

The current Gitzo traveller series are excellent but pricey. For specs, see: Gitzo Traveller Carbon Fibre Tripods I have the 1545T 4-section Series 1, which is taller than previous versions and is recommended for 135mm lenses (200mm max) by Gitzo. I bought it as the kit with the GH1382TQD, a nice compact centre ball head that fits between the legs when folded back on themselves, with a solid Arca-style clamp, but no independent friction control. The corresponding 2545T Series 2 is suggested for 200mm lenses (max 300mm) and is of course somehwat heavier and bulkier, but only a couple of cm longer (folded or extended). If you buy the kit, you get the bigger GH1382QDhead, which adds friction control. I think you also need a Series 2 for compatibility with Gitzo's optional spikes. The Series 1 kit is impressively light and very rigid. An additional short centre column is included, as well as a strap (but no bag). The twist locks work very well, and need only a slight rotation (keep twisting and you'll take the thing apart, as I found the first time I tried it). If I wanted to find fault, the rubber O-ring at the bottom of the centre column looks like something that might pop off and get lost, and the panning action on the head is stiffer than I'd like.

Google Nik Collection https://dl.google.com/edgedl/photos/nikcollection-full-1.2.11.dmg https://dl.google.com/edgedl/photos/nikcollection-full-1.2.11.exe If you don't have Photoshop, they are compatible with various applications that can use PS plugins, or you can use them standalone: https://petapixel.com/2017/12/15/can-run-nik-collection-plugins-standalone-apps-heres/ Of course this is less convenient than having control points built into Capture NX, but the plugins do a lot of other things.

I guess I'm the only one who sees NX-D as mostly an improvement - there's now a decent built-in browser, and I prefer saving edits to sidecar files than directly back to the NEF. Control points are gone, but are still available in the free Nik collection.

Don't even think about a DX lens for film - get the FX 1.8 if you want a 35mm prime, or the AF-D if you want something cheaper and lighter. I used the 28-105 a lot on the F100 (at one point it was even sold as a kit with this camera). It's not very heavy, has low distortion and a reasonably fast aperture across a very useful zoom range, and a nice semi-macro setting. I've kept it as a lightweight alternative to the 24-70 on the D800. No VR or AF-S, but it focuses pretty quickly. There are Flickr pools for all three lenses and others mentioned above which will give you an idea of how they perform: Nikkor AF-S 35mm f/1.8G ED FX Nikkor 35mm F2D Nikkor 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 D

If you have a full version of LR6 and you ever want to unsubscribe from CC, you can probably just uninstall everything, using the cleaner tool if necessary to remove all trace of CC: Use the Creative Cloud Cleaner Tool to solve installation problems Then re-install LR6 from the original media.

Fake Leica I cameras in general are rather uncommon, and those I've seen attempt to copy the later variant, which is closer to the FED/Zorki: tom-hoglund A Zorki Camera, Leica standard copy, chrome, serial no. 57096, with Industar-22 f/3.5 50mm lens, leicafake We had a previous thread about a camera that in the end looked authentic - this also links to a method of detecting fakes by looking at the film transport gearing: Fake or real Leica? How to tell a fake Leica from a real one.

Yes, I know about the general features of fakes, but what specifically about this camera? Many fakes have their finish stripped down to the brass to give that 'Luxus' look, but real Leicas also occasionally turn up like this. I haven't seem a fake before with that style of lens mounting plate ('chopped off' at the top) or the plug on the back, both features of real early Leicas. Fakes are usually based on a FED-1 or Zorki-1 and have circular interchangeable mounts. Somebody has added what looks like a flash sync on the front, which is pretty common on genuine Leicas but an odd thing for a hypothetical faker who has bothered about details like the rear plug to leave undisguised. Better photos would help.

You might also be interested in another story involving the M2 in Vietnam, the camera Nick Ut used to take the Pulitzer prize-winning photograph of Kim Phuc, running from a napalm attack naked and burned. He got her to hospital, too, and using his media status to get her treated probably saved her life: Interview with Nick Ut, the Photojournalist Who Shot the Iconic "Napalm Girl" Photo Nick Ut: The Amazing Saga And The Image That Helped End The Vietnam War - The Leica Camera Blog The camera itself has been exhibited at the Science Museum in London, and more recently at the Newseum in DC: Newseum Leica M2 Vietnam Nick Ut also mentions that fellow photojournalist David Burnett missed the shot while reloading 'an old Leica — a very old model. 1945, or something like that', implying that LTM cameras were still being used in a war zone in the 70s, and that even the professionals had troubling reloading them quickly.

What specific features make you conclude this is a fake? Some early Leica I cameras only had a single screw in that position and shared other features with this one that would be unusual on a fake, including the 'hockey stick', the straight top edge of the lens mount and the focus adjustment plug on the back, e.g.: Leica A

Extra long life indeed - Zn carbon I suppose? I wonder if it would still power a flashlight? I guess there'd be no trickle current from something as simple as the Jacobson gadget, so leaving it in that would be similar to leaving the batteries on a shelf, but that's still an impressive 'shelf life'. It must be a monster flashgun to take two D cells!

There can also be apparent discrepancies between serial number and appearance because the original camera was returned to the factory for an upgrade, which Leitz used to offer as a standard service. However, if the Cameraquest list is correct, this one has always been a IIIa.