tjdaddario

<p>Hey everyone! I wanted to quickly say thank you for all the responses and suggestions. Special thanks to Bebu and Kari for providing the solution. I put film in the camera and, bam!, the flash began to work perfectly. Thanks everyone!</p>

<p>Hello,<br>

I recently purchased a Nikon F3HP with a Nikon SB-17 TTL flash from KEH. The flash fires on all settings but the problem I'm having is that no matter what it always is firing at full power. It seems as if the TTL is not working at all, and neither are the Auto programs. No matter what, I get the same amount of power every time it fires. f32 at 2 ft, f22 at 5 ft, f16 at 10ft, f11 at 15ft and so on. <br>

I cleaned the terminals on the camera mount. The body's red light comes on when I'm looking through the viewfinder (which I understand means that the flash is controlling the shutter speed of the body, bringing it to 1/80th of a sec)?<br>

The TTL light goes green on the flash unit itself, and the red flash light comes on quickly as well. I really don't know what could be wrong with it. Any suggestions or trouble shooting tips are greatly appreciated.</p><div></div>

<p>Old thread, but I have updated info as of Nov 14, 2011. Dropped my M6 Black classic the other day and smashed the heck out of the thing. Tried to return to natural shape and had a hard time. They really are made like crap these days. I emailed Leica parts dept at technicalinfo@leicacamerausa.com. Got a quoted price of $85.95 for a replacement (this is from the service center in NJ, USA. Someone else commented about this and said that DAG was a good source. http://www.dagcamera.com/leica_m.htm. I'm getting an old M4 Chrome replacement from them for $70. It will be mismatched, yes, but I don't mind. Esp considering the old m4's had brass rewind knobs (much tougher).</p>

<p>I live in New York City. I regularly come across police who are either arresting or in the process of arresting someone in the city. My question: is it legal to photograph police while they are working or investigating a criminal? What are my rights? What are their rights as officers. I understand that they are trying to do their job and make my city safer. I'm not looking to cause trouble.... but I do find it very very interesting and most definitely find myself in a situation where I want to take a photograph. Anyone know the rules on this? Attached is the NYPD's "operations order investigation of individuals engaged in suspicious photography and video surveillance" document. It says nothing about photographing actual police officers...<br>

Thank you - T<br>

<img src="http://www.damnit.org/albums/2009-05/operationsorderinvestigationofindividualsengagedinsuspiciousphotographyandvideosurveillance.jpg" alt="" width="1085" height="1311" /></p>

 

<p>I owned a Leica 35 Summilux and used it primarily for 10 years. I've always loved it's performance when shooting both color (neg and chrome) and black and white. However, one thing I've always wished was better was it's ability to focus closer than 1 meter and it's fuzzy quality wide open (when I say fuzzy, i mean: I know the bokeh is extreme at 1.4, but it seems to lack a true "point of sharpness" that the Aspherical German 1.4 has). <br>

<br /> Anyway, I favored this lens because it's quite a bit shorter (in physical length) than the Aspherical 35 Summilux by Leica. That, and well, it costs less than 1/3 rd the price. Trust me, I looked on ebay for years and finding one with a shade for under $3,000 is tough (I know they exist... I'm just saying it's tough). That and I don't have $3k these days.<br /> <br /> I have a lot of friends who shoot Voigtlander and continually tell me that the lenses are amazing. "Why don't you just buy the Nokton, it only costs $600?" Well, I finally did... Thought someone might benefit from my personal results:<br>

Leica Summilux (Non Aspherical Canadian version) 35mm 1.4 - VS - Voigtlander Nokton 35mm 1.4 Classic MC:<br>

(all tests done with Fuji Provia 400 chrome)<br>

a) The Leica Non Aspherical 35 Summilux is less sharp at 1.4 (wide open) than the Voigtlander 35 Nokton<br>

b) The Nokton MC has 10-15% higher contrast than the Leica Summilux (more saturated colors) (this will make your Tri-X a bit more contrasty)<br>

c) The Nokton vignettes at wide apertures causing darkened corners on all photos exposed at apertures wider than f2.<br>

d) The Nokton can focus at .7 meters, approx 25% closer than the Leica Summilux Canadian Non Aspherical<br>

e) The Nokton and the Leica are exactly the same lenth (how far it sticks out of the body) but the shade on the Nokton is 2-3mm longer.<br>

f) the Leica Non-Asherical is not threaded, for filter use you must use a "Series 7" Filter, which has no threads and is enclosed in the hood. These series filters are hard to come by in anything else but a UV Filter. Series filters are much more expensive than threaded filters. The Voigtlander Nokton takes a 43mm threaded filter, which are easier to find and cost a fraction of the price of a series filter.<br>

f) The Leica's focusing tab is much faster (it's a lot easier to turn for focusing) Voigtlander stays where you put it, but it's a lot tougher to throw it into quick focus for those last second images. (I preferred the faster focus)<br>

g) Focusing and changing apertures is much easier on the Nokton, The Leica Non Aspherical Canadian Summilux has all rings and tabs for focus, shade removal and aperture movement in a very condensed area which makes it hard to tell one from the other when the camera is to your eye. The Nokton has a cleaner Shade to Lens design with allows a lot more space for each ring.<br>

For me, the sharper/closer focus and the vignetting almost cancel eachother out. In the end, I sold the Leica Lens (which held it's value 100% after 10 years) and kept the Voigtlander Nokton. Conclusion: Time to save for a German Leica Summilux 35mm 1.4 Aspherical.<br>

<br /> <br /> Best-Todd</p>

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<p>Thanks to everyone who contributed an answer for their advice, expertise and support. I found a brand spanking new one on ebay for $190 (Thanks Mohir Ali for the tipoff) (the key here was not to search for "Leica" at all, instead I searched M6 or M7 base plate) It's all about the search. I have my M Motor up on ebay for anyone who is interested. Starting bidding at $99. <br>

The best part of this forum has been my introduction to a vast number of camera shops across america I've never heard of: DAG, Tamarkin, Camera West etc.<br>

Thanks to Bob as well for pointing me to Rangefinderforum.com (i got a great many responses from people wanting to do a straight trade)</p>

<p>Best<br>

<br /> Todd</p>

<p>Anyone know if this combination will work? Or do I need to buy the Leica dedicated TTL flash. The little Contax flash is so cool!</p>

<p>I have made a helpful little photo montage of the items I own and the differences I can see. I have read that the Leica M6 TTL baseplate does fit the M-7. My M-6 from 1984. Anyway, I tried mounting it without film (the M-6 Plate to the M-7 Body and had no luck. I didn't want to force it, but I gave it a good turn, and nothing, it just wouldn't catch. The individual selling the MP baseplate said it would fit my M-7 no problem. I offered him $150 and he said "give me a day and I'll think about it". I also sent an email to Leica, which of course got no response. I've heard the plates can fetch a hefty sum when new. I have no interest in my winder. So yes, If I can't get the one online for cheap, I'd be more than willing to swap. Man, I thought I was getting such a deal... and I'd be able to use my current base plate and sell the winder for $300. Oh, well, live and learn. BTW, when KEH.com says something is bargain, it's more like excellent. Cosmetically, it's not perfect, but it's nice and works like a dream. Thanks for your help everyone!!!!</p>

<p>-Parts Missing D'Addario</p><div></div>

<p>I just a leica M-7 from KEH with a winder for $1599. I have an old M6 from 1983 and I read that the baseplates were the same. They are not. You see, the M-7 i got for so cheap was missing the baseplate. I don't like winders per se. So here I am, looking all over ebay for a replacement baseplate. I found some on ebay that claim to be M6/M7 Plates, but they look the same as my old M6 plate (which i know doesn't work) I think the plate is the same as the MP. Anybody know for sure? They look the same. <br>

<br /> All right you Leica pros. I need your help.</p>

<p>Signed<br>

- Leica Dork D'Addario.</p><div></div>

I would also recommend The Color House. The owners of the lab are actually Ex-US Color personnel. While US Color did good work, their customer service to the average photographer was poor at best. The Color House gives amazing one on one customer service with outstanding quality and attention to detail. Plus: they are open on the weekend. I've been going there since they opened almost three years ago, and I love it!

 

-Todd