jack_matlock

I have been using Kodak labs for over 50 years, mainly for Kodachrome; sometimes for Ektachrome (never for Fuji!). Over the years, something more than a thousand rolls. Almost no problems. One roll, sent from Austria in the 1950s to the lab in France was lost, maybe by Kodak but more likely in the mail. And then there was a roll sent from Helsinki to Stockholm in the early 1960s that got mixed up with someone else's. I sent it back and the lab found my roll.

 

Every other lab I have used has had an occasional problem, sometimes serious ones. When they do, they usually don't admit what happened unless one confronts them. Then, you just get a roll of film.

 

My experience has been that Kodak is more reliable than most. The FairLawn lab in NJ takes more time than they should, particularly if you order a Photo CD, but in many respects (especially longevity) you just can't beat Kodachrome.

Pigriff-C is a focus module for 400-600mm lenses, with adapters for most SLRs. Novoflex markets 400mm and 600mm lens heads for them. A special Pigriff was made for Leica R cameras and was marketed by Leica from 1990 to 1995 with 400mm and 560 mm f:6.8 heads (Telyt-R with Novoflex grip). (Code 11926 for the grip and 400mm head; Code 11927 for the grip and 560mm head; the heads alone were code 11970 for the 400mm and 11971 for the 560mm.)

 

These lenses seem to come on the market more rarely than the other versions of the Telyt-R 400mm, 560mm f:6.8. The most common had a different grip and was marketed from 1970 to 1990. The head mounts are different and are not interchangeable (though I suppose an adapter could be made). The glass, however, seems to be identical.

 

I find the Novoflex grip much easier to focus than that on the earlier model. The 400mm head is sometimes available at a very reasonable price. (At least a couple of years ago Adorama had a few for under $300.) 560mm heads are not as common on the used and NOS market. The most expensive part, however, is the grip. The last time I checked (about 18 months ago), Novoflex had them for something over $2,000.

 

When you can find the Novoflex grip with a head in like new condition, it should sell for somewhere in the range of $1,500 to 2,000 for the 560mm, somewhat less for the 400mm.

 

This is a fine lens. Leica discontinued it so it would not compete with their current and hyper-expensive modular system. But if you can get along with f:6.8, you can save a lot of money and weight by getting the Novoflex f:6.8.

I have an R4, R4SP; also R6 and R8. No problem at all with the R4SP, which I bought used over 10 years ago. Ditto the R4 (some had problems when introduced; those that work now will probably keep on working for a while!). The only Leica R I have had to repair is the R6. (It's all mechanical, but go figure!)

 

Prices for Leica Rs are down these days; Leica Ms are not (I use them too--have for 40-odd years.) These things are very personal, but I definitely prefer the Leica R to Nikon (which I have) and Canon--except for the long-focus IS lenses, which are great for birds and wildlife.

 

Since the Leica Rs are so cheap, there is no reason not to try it. A used 50mm Summicron in good condition (better than the original 50mm 'lux) will not set you back much.

If the negatives are properly exposed, the problem is with the lab technique or the paper they use. Ansel Adams compared the negative to a sheet of music, and the print as the performance. You seem to have a performance problem.

"OK folks! When is the last time you USED your self timer? If you don't use it often, when is the last time you EXCERCISED your self timer? How about the 1/1000 second shutter speed?"

 

I last used the self-timer a couple of weeks ago when a relative visited from Europe. Before that, it was around Christmas.

 

1/1000 sec? Over 100 times most months. Outdoors in sun or snow. One needs it even with comparatively slow film to use the lens at its optimum opening of f:5.6 or f:8.

If you are going to be gone a year you will definitely want to buy most of your film locally and get it processed locally. Any reasonably fresh Fuji or Kodak 200 or 400 ASA film should be fine--100 ASA for outdoor pix in the sun. Buy from a dealer that supplies professional photographers and check the expiry date. Also get an informed recommendation regarding reliable processors. Maybe some on this list can help if you are more precise about where you will be.

 

As for a polarizing filter, it will be useful in some situations. It will darken a blue sky and remove reflections from a window or from water (if that is what you want). But it certainly is not essential for most photography.

 

If you haven't used your Leica much, take as many pix as you can before you leave in order to get completely familiar with it. It wouldn't hurt also to try out some of the more commonly available films. There is no good reason (other than local availability) to use different films while travelling than those you use at home.

 

Good Luck!

Doesn't Leica have a webpage where you can check the serial number of a camera or lens and find out whether it has been reported stolen?

I prefer the tab and the tab lock. I would buy a new Summicron with a tab and lock if it were available, but since it isn't I'll just keep using the earlier version.

I use my M-2 regularly for HIE. Just load and unload it in the dark (dark room or a changing bag).

 

Of course you need a filter to get full infrared results. B+W makes them, and they are not cheap glass but coated optical glass. There are several densities of IR. You can also use a deep red filter. Leica once made an E39 IR filter (which is the one I use), but a deep red will also give you much of the IR effect.

Thanks for posting. I am one of those who have been tempted, but put off by the difficulty of using the same printer for color and b&w. Also, I understand that the Piezography system clogged quickly if not used regularly, almost every day--another putoff for us amateurs who only use it occasionally.

 

If these problems are solved, I'll be interested. This is relevant to a Leica group since many of us use our Leicas (particularly the M Leicas) for our b&w photography.

If anyone gets in touch with him, keep us posted. I'd certainly buy some prints.

I've been in an out of New York since 1945, have lived there 4 years in the 1950s and 5 years in the early 1990s. I usually walk around with a camera, often with a camera bag. Never a problem. (Some derelicts may get excited if you stick a camera in their face, but I don't do that.)

 

The only place I had something snatched out of a camera bag was Tallinn, Estonia, and it was largely my fault because I hadn't closed the bag. The would-be thief handed it to me when I turned around and confronted him.

 

By the way, I was walking along the beach with my M6TTL in Warnemuende, Germany, a few months back. When a vacationer spotted the Leica, he commented in German, "Hey, that's really an old one, isn't it!"

 

Why are people so uptight? Rather than worry, just take out insurance. (I have had only one claim in nearly 60 years of photography all over the world, and that was when I left my Nikon on the seat of my Land Rover, windows down, on Zanzibar. My stupidity, but the insurance paid.)

Wouldn't it have made more sense for Leica to revive the Stemar system, which probably would have a niche market, instead of investing in the "0" Series?

Number 3--which I suppose shows I'm odd man out. I, like most of my generation of Americans, think in feet. Of course I can convert from meters, but why add a mental step to the process when there are other things to think about?

 

Number 1 is OK, however.

Excellent!

LHSA also sponsors some "regional shoots" a couple of times a year. Check the LHSA webpage.

My Polaroid Sprintscan 4000 does very well with Kodachrome.

I found her "On Photography" pretentious and dull. If there was something new or insightful, both of those traits would have been tolerable, though hardly admirable. But I found absolutely no new insights and resented the pretentious prose that seems to be a cover for a paucity of relevant ideas.

 

My impression is that the people who have been impressed by her writing know little about photography and are taken in by the pretence. (One really does want to seem politically correct doesn't one!)

 

What I would like to hear is something from a real photographer who found a thought of interest or a single new insight in her writing. If they can describe what that is, maybe I would give her another try.

 

But saying that she is "internationally recognized" is not very convincing. Recognized by whom, and why?

Another vote for XP-2, both for minilab processing and conventional darkroom printing.

Thanks for this post. Very useful to this SL admirer!

Yes, I like it very much. I didn't know it was hard to find. (I got mine 8 or so years ago from Jim Kuehl.) I think it was around $500. for the lens and the bellows, all mint. I have been very satisfied. It will go from infinity to extreme close-up with the Bellows-R. The APO-Macro-Elmarit-R is more highly regarded, but it costs quite a multiple, even without the bellows. For me the f:4 has been more than adequate.

If you need a reflex--as for long telephoto shots, or extreme close-ups, or for a shift lens--then you need an R (or an SL).

 

If you prefer a rangefinder for the shots you are making, you'll chose an M (or, if you are a retro type, a screw mount). Great for everything in the ultra-short to 90mm range, except macro.

 

Fine lenses are available for all. As for me, I use both M and R depending on what I am photographing.

I recently lost the battery cover on my M6 TTL, so the problem is not limited to the M7.

Wonderful shot! Wish I could match it.

Actually the seller asks for only $25K down, in escrow. This can be returned if the inspection of the collection does not satisfy the buyer.

 

This may not be a hoax. After all, if someone is thinking of endowing a museum collection, this could be a pretty fine core collection!

 

For those of us who failed to sell our dotcom stock at the top of the boom, however, it may be hard to come up with 13 million without mortgaging the house, or selling off some of those Leica collectibles we have stashed away.