chris_henry1

<p>5 MP? That ship sailed six years ago.<br>

No thanks. I will go with a slim digicam from Pentax or other, all with excellent lenses for the size, and better resolution.<br>

They can keep the award. This just isn't all that innovative.</p>

>>"Aren't we forgetting that he is, first and foremost, a religious leader? :)"

No, obviously. The OP is asking specifically about a mass public appearance (and a Mass, too)

and what to bring for photography. The head of state issue is no small thing; public

appearances by a pope become matters of U.S. Secret Service interest and intense security,

unlike religious figures who are celebrities that are not heads of state (I am now recalling a

reception I attended at my university for the Dalai Lama where I was able to get quite close

to the guest of honor.)

Unless you have a press box pass, a 400mm lens probably won't get you much, except

unwanted attention. And as others have said, since the Pope is a head of state and not just a

celebrity, you can anticipate very heavy security, both from the Vatican and the U.S. Secret

Service.

Maybe a short lens to take pics of some of those listening might be more interesting anyway.

So might just listening.

Probably made by Kamakura Koki Ltd., who make many models of different brands at many

different specification and quality levels.

Only from Zeiss or possibly Cosina. And likely if at all, the market may start and stay in

Asia, particularly Japan. I'm not sure the market there would be all that good.

The numbers of potential buyers of rangefinders with appreciation for their utility as film

cameras is small and vanishing. A manufacturer would have to be willing to try to

resurrect or wholly re-create a well-heeled digital rangefinder market whose customers

would be willing to buy expensive interchangable lenses. I doubt there are enough

interested owners of older film rangefinders who would pay M8 prices just to use their film

camera lenses on a digital camera. I wish someone would prove me wrong, but trends

elsewhere in retro-engineering older film cameras to digital standards are, with the

exception of Canon and Nikon, not so promising. Hasselblad is down to making one film

body now, (and some film backs for their H3, which seems to be their main line now, in

digital.) The M8 is frighteningly expensive and I can't see Leica keeping pace with the

typical rate of innovaton in the digital camera industry.

My guess, no.

No, just their advertising. They used to be a camera and photographic company, and an

office machine company. Now they are just an office machine company. They still need to

market their office machines, against Canon, and Ricoh and others. (Ricoh has dramatically

curtailed its photographic business, too). Life goes on.

I would look at the Sony DSC-T7 and the Nikon Coolpix S1 before buying the Panasonic

DMC-FX7.

I think the moderator should scratch this thread. Justifiable complaints have a location for

posting at Photo.net, and of course should be backed up by facts to support publishing a

negative comment about a dealer or member, otherwise it comes off as simple dislike,

justified or not, or worse, libel. Some people think being told anything they prefer not to

hear makes for rudeness, or being denied something another considers unreasonable is

rude treatment.

If Leica has decided to sell its new bodies at $3,295, maybe it is time for them to start a

Leica certified pre-owned program for their older cameras. At least it could keep them in

the profit stream in the more accessible end of the camera market while adding some

value to the buyer of used equipment.

This is re-arranging deck chairs on the Titanic.

The M-camera prices are being hiked to $3,295 in the USA last I heard. That is a non-

starter in a market that has been rapidly turning to digital, a barrier to the still film

interested, not an incentive. The R camera line is where? Oh yes, the recipient of the new

digital body, which has sold how many units? And the Panasonic liaison, which

unfortunately has mated the Leica brand with a digital camera maker that is not a class

leader. Carl Zeiss has positioned itself much better with Sony, whose digital cameras have

enjoyed consistently higher ratings (as have those of Canon, Nikon, Olympus, Konica-

Minolta and Pentax). So that leaves sport optics. The Ultravid line of super-premium

binoculars and the Leica spotting scopes are excellent, but even at the top of that small

and rarefied market, that serves mostly the well-heeled birding and optics enthusiasts,

competetion is keen. Longstanding excellent glasses from Swarovski and new designs

from Carl Zeiss are matching them at price and quality, and Nikon, still the benchmarker

in the class, has introduced equivalent quality models at prices hundreds below Leica.

What is more, there is griping here and there about the build quality of the Leica glasses.

Leica may have a problem with corporate leadership, but they are all about the product.

If you got a current A-12 back, and a current 80/2.8 lens also mint, sounds like you got a

good deal.

All Hasselblad 500 series cameras use lens leaf shutters. That is one of their enduring

qualities. The 503cw is a current model, the 503cx is a couple of model generations

older. Pricing is as much a factor of demand, seller's inventory and whatnot. Make sure

you know that the camera body you are buying has the latest focusing screen.

The 503cw body accepts an accessory winder; if you are not buying one of those, then it is

no issue. The only other improvement is the GMS ("Gliding-Mirror System") for eliminating

viewfinder vignetting with longer focal length (250mm+) lenses. I am not sure whether

the 503cx, the 503cxi or both have this improvement; the 503cw definitely does. If you

are not planning on getting a telephoto, then this is also moot.

There is a rear body curtain that closes to protect the film plane from stray light when the

shutter is open and the slide removed. That is in the location where a focal plane shutter

would otherwise be.

If you have never handled a 500-series Hasselblad, I suggest you at least try to rent one

before buying. It is a very manual experience; the WLF takes a little getting used to if you

have never used a TLR or other camera with a waistlevel. The image is left-right reversed

and upright, and the image brightness is less than that you might be accustomed to from

a pentaprism. You will need to meter manually unless you are buying a metered prism

viewfinder.

Students on a budget can't afford new Hasselblad, period. The 501 bodies probably

haven't attracted students in any numbers in quite awhile; better deals can be had in used

gear, as others have said.

The unsaid part is that there probably is little reason for Hasselblad to continue producing

the 503CW either, as there is probably enough inventory and used stock around to meet

the waning demand for their 6x6 equipment. The line is just not the aspirational product

it once was, continuing quality notwithstanding.

I doubt that Hasselblad will cut prices on anything. Stopping production is more likely.

Funny that the new Panasonic digitals have lens names like "DC Vario" but no longer carry

the Leica name on the lens.

"Will their work be worth more?"

A facetious question, I think. The problem is that not enough people think their cameras

are worth what they are selling for now.

Volcker said: "For the average photographer a new Leica is something to dream about"

Volcker, if this were only still true, we might not be making this thread. Part of the trouble

is that as digital offers a new medium, and larger formats offer distinct advantages as well

as increasing automation, digital adaptability and increasing compactness, fewer people

will think it important enough to buy new 35mm rangefinder equipment. Pros aren't much

of a force in the rangefinder market, and even well-heeled amateurs that once might have

aspired to own a Leica RF are drawn to other systems and media for obvious reasons.

I think this was inevitable and forseeable. Few retailers in even large cities want to stock

Leica because it just doesn't move, so there is lost the most important venue for everyday

exposure of this increasingly rare brand. Except for those interested enough to be

attracted by the rangefinder lore born of the first half of the last century (and that can't be

counted on for long either) who is all that interested in a brand whose products seem at

once so unreasonably expensive and so attached to a waning technology? I think the

answer is staring us in the face.

Zeiss' Hensoldt subsidiary makes the viewfinder. I never had a problem with the eyecap,

but the bubble level on my viewfinder fouled--something inside was contaminating the

inside surface and causing it to stain and darken. Hasselblad USA repaired the defect.

Probably the Kodak 126 instamatics. They used a lot of film, and inspired a lot of

amateurs to buy up to better and more expensive 35mm gear.

Marti:

Have you had your eyeglasses re-fitted since your surgery? If so, and if you are using the

reading segments to focus the viewfinder image, the working distance for your reading

segment may be too close for unfogged viewing at the viewfinder image plane. You may

only need to have the add of the reading segment dropped a little bit to get an

appropriate magnification for your viewfinder plane distance. If it is not too much trouble,

you should bring the camera with you when you are having your refraction and ask your

ophthalmologist to place your spectacle correction in a set of trial frames. Have him (her!)

adjust the spectacle power while you are looking through the viewfinder at a well-focused

target. This shouldn't take too much time to do, and will be a lot cheaper than switching

systems.

Poon is a reliable seller, and was very quick when I ordered some non-Hasselblad items

from him.

As others have said, KEH is a good guide for pricing. EBay is hit or miss.

As for the 100/3.5 CF; I think one with caps could be had for $800-1000, in excellent

condition. A CFi version of the same, with that smart little red nubbin on the ring is

selling now for around $1300, near mint. $1800 for one is ambitious, despite the new

selling cost of $1000 more. Shop around.

Re the 905WC; I doubt prices will rise for the new models; there are enough 903s around

on the used market to attract buyers who will be happy enough with that alternative, it

being in many ways equal if not better than the 905 (comparisons of old vs new glass

formulas and old vs new spring material notwithstanding). 903s are still selling at half the

price of the new 905. Uniqueness of the 905 aside, the fact that the manufacturer is no

longer making them will cause even the most committed MF used to give a second

thought to purchasing such an expensive specialty camera.