jack_matlock

M1, M2, M3, M6, M6 0.85, M6TTL .72, LHSA M6 .72, LHSA M6 .85

Always, when shooting with the M6 or M6 TTL, unless the batteries are out. Not with the M1, M2, or M3 (though I have an MR meteer). It is more accurate to take a spot reading off the back of my hand, as Al Kaplan suggested (Zone VI). I use the M1, which has no rangefinder, with the 21mm Super Angulon, and find that scale focussing works fine.

 

Hey, do you use the rangefinder on your MP? If you can guess the exposure, why not guess the distance? An M1 should do you just fine and would save you a bundle!

Mentor (Ha!)

 

6 M bodies

 

10 lenses

I use Dale Laboratories in Hollywood, Florida. (www.dalelabs.com) They charge $9.00 for processing and mounting a 36-exposure roll, and an extra $16.75 if you want a CD. The scans are jpeg. They do only E6, no Kodachrome.

 

Address: Dale Laboratories, 2960 Simms Street. Hollywood, FL 33020-9846

You have a lot of advice, but you have travelled enough to know what is relevant to your own needs and preferences. All I have to say is that in the theater it is hard to beat an M Leica with a fast 90mm. For buildings, I find the R8 with the 28mm PC invaluable. (In some cities in the golden ring, you need the 28mm PC to get a decent shot of some of the most important buildings.) If you are travelling by boat on the rivers, the 180mm f3.4 is about right for many shots of people and scenes along the bank. (Ditto your 70-180 zoom, but it's a lot heavier than the 180 3.4 asph.) However, most wide angle shots that don't require perspective control are easiest with the M.

 

Most people are not unusually sensitive about being photographed, unless they think you are making a picture of something ugly or disreputable to disparage them. So long as there is some tourist "attraction" in the background, they will often assume you are taking a picture of it instead of them.

 

Of course, you know very well how much equipment you are willing to carry. However, I find that it is not too burdensome to have a couple of bodies (usually one M and one R) with an alternate lens for each. One camera goes over my neck, the other and the alternate lenses in the bag. For the theater, just one M is fine.

 

I always take more cameras and lenses on a trip than I carry at any given time, and just take with me what I need for an outing. If you have a car, driver and guide, you can always leave most of the stuff in the car.

 

Since you are using slide film you should note that the lighting in most theaters is closer to tungsten than daylight color temperature. Also, photography may not be allowed these days in the Bolshoy or Marinsky. (It used to be OK, but Russia is getting more and more like W. Europe and U.S. theaters in that respect. Better check with your travel agent.) Also, for best shots you need to be pretty close to the stage. Like the front row. Unless, of course, you are mainly interested in the audience.

 

Good luck. Don't let those weaklings that can't lift 5 or 6 pounds convince you not to take whatever equipment you think you may need to use.

I have checked and I do not have no. 4 for 1957. I don't know whether there was a number 4 that year, but there was in some subsequent year.

I agree with Ben Z. that rangefinders and SLR's are suited to different types of photography, with SLR's far superior for macro shots and telephotos over 135mm.

 

I have both the original Leicaflex and the SL. They are, as others have noted, built like tanks. The exposure meter on the SL is better (TTL), but must be adjusted to take batteries now available. Both are available for very modest prices, and with the Summicron f:2 (just as good as its RF equivalent) are not too heavy.

 

The "R" models from R3 to R7 are lighter and handier than the earlier models. There were early problems with the R3 and the first R4 (fewer with the R4S and R4SP). However, when these are fixed (as they can be by Leica (but not by Sherry Krauter), they can be quite reliable. Because of their occasional early unreliability, they go for a song today, but if they are in operative condition they are probably OK, though a CLA would be advisable.

 

The fully mechanical (except for the exposure meter) R6 and R6.2 are unlikely to experience serious problems if properly maintained. Of the two models, the R6 is probably the better buy since the R 6.2 still costs almost as much as it did new (and more than a used R8.

I have an almost complete set of the post-WWII issues (1948-1977). According to my observation, there were four issues a year 1948 to 1961; three issues a year from 1962 to 1967; two issues a year from 1968 to 1970, and one issue a year from 1971 to 1977. If there were any issues after that, I don't have them.

 

My collection is not as complete on the pre-WWII issues, but I have some from 1932 to 1939. Except for 1932, there seem to have been 12 issues a year (one a month) during that period.

 

I am not aware that it was issued between 1940 and 1947.

 

If others have information that would correct or expand this, it would be appreciated.

I bought two cases from Luigi a couple of years ago. He shipped them FedEX, which charged me over $40.00 for duty and clearance fees. Maybe it was becase there were two cases.

Since Ilford makes only B&W, it is unlikely they will stop unless they go out of business altogether. What we may not get is a lot of new emulsions. But B&W will be around longer than we are!

I normally take 2 M's and one R or Canon EOS 1v, depanding on where I am going. I have different lenses on the M's and different film in each (one for slides, the other for color negative or B&W). If I am shooting architecture mainly, I take the R-8 with the 28mm PC lens. If wildlife, the Canon with a long IS lens.

 

I am not a professional. Two or three Leica Ms are less a burden than a single Canon EOS 1v with a long lens. If I must go light and need the telephoto I would take the R6 or R8 with the 500mm mirror lens.

 

What do people think? I really don't know, and I don't particularly care!

This one looks like a scam to me. Zero feedback, no reserve, and why

would a guy in Texas quote a price in pounds sterling? What do you

think?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?

ViewItem&category=30030&item=3825929635&rd=1

You can shoot Tri-X at 1200 if you process in Diafine.

Did you check a travel advisory from the State Department before travelling? It usually gives up-to-date information on such matters. If there is not a lot in the U.S. media, that is hardly a matter of censorship!

I spotted this on Ebay before I saw your message. It certainly looks fishy to me. Zero feedback. Wants m.o. or certified check. No details on condition, and the picture looks like it was taken from somewhere else.

 

I wouldn't touch it with a ten-foot pole, but there are several bids down by suckers. Shouldn't somebody point this out to Ebay?

The M1 has a viewfinder but not a rangefinder, as some previous comments state.

I like the Digilux I, though I certainly don't use it exclusively. Use it at ASA100 and there is no problem of noise. Adequate for decent 8X10s in the TIFF mode. Also, you should be able to find a good one for no more than $600.

Whatever you decide, practice with it quite a bit before you go. You will need at least 400mm and the 6.8 Telyt will give great images under the conditions Doug Herr has mentioned. I also have the 500mm mirror lens, but have some trouble focussing accurately unless the bird is very still and the lens is supported (it is light enough to hand hold, but too light for me to hold it steady).

 

I also have a Canon EOS 1v with a 100-400 IS zoom. Works well with birds in flight if you can keep them in the focus area, but Doug gets better pictures with his 400mm Telyt and the Leicaflex SL than I have managed with the Canon.

I have the 560 Telyt in the Novoflex mount. Like you, I'd like to know what case would fit.

Magnificient! Makes you wonder why Leica stopped producing the 560mm (and 400mm) f:6.8. (Presumably to sell more of their current modular system, but who can afford it?) Also makes you appreciate the virtues of Kodachrome.

 

Neverthess, the essential element is Doug Herr's skill and fine taste!

Douglas Herr, hands down!

I liked mine very much until it came apart when it was shipped in my checked baggage. Nothing else broke in the bag, but the first element parted from the rest of mount--and the lens was packed well in a case. I'm still looking for a place to get it repaired.

Multiblitz is a brand of flash gun, is it not? They could be used with Leicas or any other camera with an appropriate socket.

I'm one of those who has never had a problem with PayPal or Ebay. I exercise normal care and try not to do anything stupid (such as answering scam messages or sending someone a certified check up front). But I'll tell you, it's a lot better to use PayPal than to send someone you don't know a money order or to transmit your credit card info by unencrypted email, or -- just about any other payment method I can think of. For the hypercautious, however, there is no substitute for buying from with a local dealer you trust and paying cash. (Also, one should cancel all those credit cards, because it is easy to steal the numbers or your identity even if you are careful where you use them.) Of course, you can't always find just what you want at your buddy the local dealer, you'll be paying more that a careful buyer on Ebay will, and you'll have the trouble of keeping all that money in your mattress (hey, don't put it in a bank because somebody can steal your identity and take it out and it might take a few days for the bank to reverse the transaction). If it gives you peace of mind and helps a friend stay in business, that's just fine; cash all the way, and with people you know.

 

Some of us, with limited resources, figure that we can get a bit more equipment for the same money if we use Ebay some of the time with prudence. And we are willing to run the risk of someone mis-using our credit card numbers (which we can always get corrected in a few days) for the convenience of their use.

 

Those who are willing to take no risk often take more in the long run that those of us who are not spooked by a few abnormal (and reversible) glitches in a new system.

Singapore should be a great place to arrange for quality printing at a reasonable price.