tom5

<p>It would be helpful to know if RFF is down permanently or suffering temporary server or provider problems. I'm surprised that the site has been down for 5 days and no word or even a temporary main page is to be found. A temporary page could be up in less than an hour; the lack of any word is not encouraging.</p>

<p>The third day now and still a blank web page. </p>

<p>Old links to various parts of RFF seem to work but the home page is blank, no matter which route I take to try and get to it.</p>

<p>I've been using the Lexerd protector. Very thin, protects well, and is virtually invisible. My first try yielded a slightly crooked placement, but they come in packs of 2 and the second was nearly perfect. You can get the Lexerd protector at Amazon.com.</p>

<p>I've used Don Goldberg, John Maddox (leica1925@aol.com), and Youxin Ye (wye7@yahoo.com) for screwmount Leica repairs - All are excellent. Ye would likely be the fastest but he was or is in China for a couple of months - I think he is getting back about now - late September or early October, 2010. Maddox is a specialist who works only on screwmount Leicas and their clones. Don Goldberg is a true master but he can be very busy. All are very clever at repairs.</p>

Does the lens coding do anything to RAW? I thought I read somewhere on this forum that

coding only affects the JPEGs.

John Maddox has worked on several of my Leica (and Nicca) screwmount cameras. He does

fine work, reasonably priced. I've also had work on an M6 and IIIc done by DAG, who does

absolutely top quality work.

I've had two cameras worked on by Don. His work is absolutely first rate. I had my M6TTL

checked in the last year for a possible shutter problem and Don went to incredible effort to

check and adjust the shutter. He even buffed down the pressure place and cleaned the

shutter opening to make sure all the possible sources of the reported problem were covered.

I had him do the anti-flare finder upgrade while he had the camera. He was easy to

communicate with, especially by phone. He is one of the very best!!!!!

Another vote for John Maddox. He has worked on several of my screwmount Leicas, with

excellent results at modest cost.

Thanks for the prompt answer! I should have figured that out about the depth of field

indicator. The lens is a real beauty and I have the original front cap and back of the bubble.

I don't have the "bubble" part of the case, however.

I bought a Contaflex 35mm f/3.2 lens at a sale, even though I don't have a contaflex. The lens looks

really pretty and is very clean. I can't figure out if the focus adjustment is broken or not. The focus

ring on the rear of the lens rotates smoothly around 360 degrees but nothing seems to happen inside

the lens.

 

Hmmm .. then I thought that perhaps the focus scale locks in place on the camera body. However,

there isn't any notch or indexing system on the rotating focus ring at the rear of the lens.

 

I'm suspecting that the focus mechanism is broken inside the lens but if this isn't the case, I'd like to

know.

 

Any Contaflex users out there? Thanks.

As I remember - mine is at home - to put the hood on, one tightens the little knob so that

the hood can't rotate on the mount, then screws the entire hood assembly into the filter

threads on the lens. Then loosen the small screw, rotate the hood so that it is oriented

correctly, then tighten the screw.

 

To remove the hood, make sure the little screw knob is tightened, then rotate the entire

hood assembly to screw it off the lens.

Jorge hit on an important point! If I put a put a 24mm lens on the M8 and a 32mm lens on

the MP, I'll get two photos that show the same field of view - The photos will look the same,

at first glance.

 

However, the photos will have different depths of field at the same f-stop. The 24mm lens

on the M8 will produce photos with a greater depth of field than the 32mm lens on the MP.

 

Optical physics can be strange and unintuitive sometimes.

The top of the viewfinder window is level with the top surface - Not what you would find on a

Leica. And, the vulcanite covering looks suspiciously like thin vinyl, not the thick rubbery

cover of vulcanite. Vulcanite would crack or separate from the body but not peel back. Also,

notice the lens cap, with sharp white printed lettering, unlike genuine Leica caps.

With respect to A&I, I've been sending my C41 film to them for most of the past year.

They do a good job and their routine scans are a fine first step - For higher resolution, I

can scan at home. I used to take film to Thompson but after a change in ownership, I

wasn't quite as happy with quality control.

 

With respect to Thompson, their email cites "Unfortunately, these efforts have not been

enough to keep the company afloat, and we are forced to take the difficult and sad

decision of closing our doors." Their last day of production is December 22.

Sign of the times - Thompson Imaging in Coral Gables (Miami), known as Thompson Photo for most of its

58 years, is closing this month. This was one of the last old pro photo labs in the greater Miami-Ft.

Lauderdale area.

 

Relevance to the Leica/Rangefinder group? Most of us, with the exception of the few M8 owners, use film.

And some of us use wide angle lenses for much of our photography. Even if I wanted to spend $5K for a

M8, what f/2 lens could I buy that would replicate the field of view of my 28mm Summicron, one of my

favorite travel lenses?

I have one but don't use it as much as I thought I would, mainly because it adds bulk to a

small camera. I have several LTM bodies that the winder will fit, and all have been CLA'ed,

but there is variation in smoothness between the bodies. The best performance is with a Ig -

very smooth. I actually got the winder to use with my If and Ig, with brightline finders. Set

the hyperfocal distance on a 28 or 35 mm lens and click away.

If you DON'T hear those sounds, something is wrong. If you buy a used Leica M, you

should listen for the characteristic slow speed sounds to make sure that the shutter hasn't

been repaired improperly.

Which framelines on the M8 are brought up by mounting a 24mm lens? I bring this question up because

the Zeiss 25mm lens brings up the 28/90 frames on my M6. I would think that the Zeiss lens would use

the same frame line selection method as the Leica 24mm. If this is so, then the Leica 24mm lens would

bring up the 28/90 frame lines on a M6/M7.

 

But, the M8 apparently shows the 24mm frame with the frame for the 35mm lens. I can imagine several

explanations for what is happening with the M8: 1) I'm wrong about the Leica 24mm lens and it actually

brings up 35mm framelines on the M6/M7. In this case, Zeiss would have decided to use a different

standard than Leica for the 25mm lens. 2) When old Leica 24mm lenses are converted to have the 6 bit

code, perhaps the mount is switched out for one that brings up the 35mm frame instead of the 28/90

combo.

 

I haven't seen anyone post an answer to this question. It would be nice if the Zeiss 25mm lens brings up

the 24mm frame on an M8, though I suppose that the 28mm framelines would be usable.

I've gone to using Fuji Superia, particularly the 100 speed. It seems to scan better on the

Frontier machines than most other C41 films I've used. There is a lot of variability in

scanning, even from the pro labs, at least in my experience.

I just came home from work today and found an envelope from Tamarkin Camera marked

on the outside "The New Leica M8 Digital Camera". Inside is a nice brochure with no

pictures but asking for preorders and offering free shipping, as I remember.

 

I'd be right in there with an order IF money was no object. When I win the Florida Lottery

either Wednesday or next Saturday - the lottery officials couldn't promise a win - then I'll

fly up to New York, buy a couple of new lenses, and place a deposit on the M8. If I don't

win -but can't imagine such a thing happening - then I'll take my trusty M6 out for it's

weekly run.

I can't help you on the film problem but have a related question - I'm looking for a lab. that

develops B+W and makes usable scans - 6MB JPEGs are good. What film or films and

developer combinations do you use when giving your films to Photo Impact? If you have

good luck with them I'd been tempted to try them.

 

Now, on your film problem - If you come to Miami, there are several of us that could help

you.

I have a Minolta 5400 scanner, which does a good job scanning, but I just don't have time

to make routine scans of all the photos I'd like to play with and put on a web site.

 

Until this year, I knew the photo manager at the local drug store, and he could get a great

scan out of his Noritsu processor. Then, the chain was sold and they fired the manager

and his assistant.

 

Can members of this forum suggest pro labs in the US that give most consistant low res

scans from C41 films, say 1200x1800? At lot of film users seem to have the same

problems and some hopefully have found a favorite pro lab.

I use a Voigtlander 28mm f/3.5 lens on a IIIc, a combination that sometimes is my only

travel camera and lens. The lens is quite sharp, easy to use, and small. I have the 28mm

metal VC finder but usually use an old 28mm Zeiss finder that I picked up somewhere long

ago and was cleaned and worked on by John Maddox.

 

The combination of the 28mm lens and the IIIc is sturdy and easy to use. I have the Leitz

Summaron f/3.5 - it makes vintage looking images - but the old style of rotating focus

mount and non-linear f-stops makes the Summaron harder to use than the Voigtlander.

I've had excellent service from John Maddox and Don Goldberg for cleaning and repair on

screw mount Leicas. Leica doesn't work on screw mount Leicas any longer and I believe

that Sherry Krauter mostly (or exclusively) works on M-mount Leicas.