geddert

i have a bought a number of items off ebay, and haven't had any

problems. if you have the option of paying with a credit card -

possibly through paypal or bidpay (i think it is called ebay payments

now) you will most likely have the security that if you don't get the

product you won't have to pay. I once bought something that wasn't in

the same condition as described and the person was freindly and

corrected the problem (i.e. gave me some money back... he would have

also taken it back had i wanted). The most important thing is to make

sure you ask ALL your questions before winning an auction, then you

at least have a case with ebay's conflict resolution department.

Alfie, you can get your purple haze... look at the purple leica on

this page:

<p>

http://www.cameraquest.com/TAnotcoll.htm

<p>

i personally would prefer to have black lenses on my Chrome M6 due to

the weight... if somebody wants to trade a mint 50 cron that is black

for a mint silver one (german made late pervious model, same optical

design, but with focus tab)... i would be interested.

he is great, and his pictures are great, but the scans at this site

are not so great - very soft and low contrast.

this is true of all cameras: "you take the photo, not the camera"

<p>

I don't care for automation, and will stick with M6 TTL's (i like the

size of the shutter speed selector)... but if somebody wants that

automation they can go right ahead and get it for all i care. There

are enough M6 TTL's out there to last me a few lifetimes.

you could get a canon eos 3 and 17-35 f2.8 together for the same

price.

I'm the guy that sold the mailers at half price to Douglas Herr,

obviously i didn't like them much... it was slow (my primary

complaint), they used cardboard mounts that cut off that covered the

edges of the frame (don't like those), and there was always the issue

of, if they get lost you are srcrewed and can't talk to somebody in

person to explain how improtant they were and that they should keep

on looking like you can do in a local lab. Although it isn't much of

an issue, I is also nice to invest in my local community - and

everything counts.

<i>The beauty of user-grade equipment is that it frees you from

worrying about cosmetic abuse!</i>

<p>

This is why i buy used cars - preferably with low miles so they work,

but with dents and scratches. I can understand why people worry about

hurting the looks of a car that costs $30k, but it is something i

don't want to bother with so i buy used cars, and don't worry if a

friend opens a door and hits a light post, or a shopping cart runs

into it, or... well you get the point.

<p>

I agree lots of people here... i don't try to hurt the cameras but i

don't try hard protect it either. I have a new M6 TTL - and it hasn't

had its first big accident yet - small knocks against rocks are not

big accidents. I treat it as if it had had that accident and don't

try to keep it in pristine shape, I intend to use this camera for my

lifetime and it will inevitably be dropped within that period of use.

There are repair shops after all, and if you aren't bothered abot

reselling the camera, costmetic blemishes are great for stories.

that should be "just like both cameras make images" - obviously they

don't both use film.

This is like saying, "personal computers suck... my calculator can

add and subtract just fine, especially since it is gold plated" -

Both devices deal with zero's and one's - just like both cameras use

film. If all you want to do is add, subtract, multiply and devide a

small calculator is great... and ultimately this is what i want in my

free time - something simple. If it were a job i would want a

computer.

Let's try that again:

Here are links to the download files on leicas site:

<ul>

<li><a href="http://www.leica-

camera.com/imperia/md/content/pdf/msystem/40.exe"

class="content">"M7 Screensaver for PC" (english)</a>

<li><a href="http://www.leica-

camera.com/imperia/md/content/pdf/msystem/LeicaM7.sit"

class="content">"M7 Screensaver for Mac" (english)</a>

</ul>

Here are links to the download files on leicas site:

<ul>

<li><a href="/imperia/md/content/pdf/msystem/40.exe"

class="content">"M7 Screensaver for PC" (english)</a>

<li><a href="/imperia/md/content/pdf/msystem/LeicaM7.sit"

class="content">"M7 Screensaver for Mac" (english)</a>

</ul>

I just wish the pictures were bigger.

if you want a built in light meter the M6, M6 TTL or M7 are the only

ways to go... and all are very good cameras... not necessarily the

cheapest, but if you find a used one in good condition at a good

price you could probably sell it in ten years without loosing money -

by the way, the age of the camera is much less important then the

condition. As far as lenses go... all of them are good. the current

28elmarit will not hold its value very well because the new 28

summircorn is better and faster... other then that any lens with

pristine glass would be a great way to go. Like many people here, i

recommend starting with just one lens and getting used to it, most

people start with a 35 or 50...

one of my best friends is a high end optitian, and he is always

amused by the people that insist on buying zeiss lenses... yes, you

should buy a good pair of lenses, but there is no difference between

zeiss and other brands (except in price and that feeling people get

oohhing and ahhing about their great lenses - kind of like leica

users do =)

<p>

There are big differences in the coatings and frames though.

as an experiened EOS shooter and somebody newer to lieca (only about

half a year with an M6)... i can tell you that i don't see much of a

difference between the two in terms of image quality... in terms of

ergonomics there are huge differences, but the picture quality is

there with both of them. Also, do not accept images you see on the

internet as proof that a certain film camera is better then

another... scanners and skilled operators of computers have much more

to do with that then lens quality. The difference between Canon and

Leica is that you don't really have to ask the question "what are the

best lenses" - all the new leica lenses are outstanding... you need

to ask yourself what speed you need and what focal length. The are

all damn expensive and Leica doesn't make low quality glass. With

Canon you do have to ask this question, but that is because Canon

makes "cheap" lenses as well as good ones. With "L" glass you really

don't have to ask the question either... I'm in the same boat as

Kristian, I would never consider owning leica R gear unless given to

me... the M is a different story, but it certainly isn't a general

purpose camera.

just a thought, if you are going to be near tropical waters during

this trip, you may want an underwater housing for your point an shoot

or a dedicated underwater point and shoot... i wish i had it along on

my last big trip.

Iván said: <i>I live in the "third world" (by the way: which one is

the second?)</i>

<p>

And i have the answer. The terms first second and third world,

contrary to popular opinion came into existance during the cold war

in order to differentiate between the US allied countries, the USSR

countries and those that didn't want to join either "side". The way

it ended up with the fall of imperialism is that those that didn't

pick a side mostly ended up poorer then those that did, and so now

people refer to "third world" and think it means "poor". So, to

answer your question, the second world is the whole former soviet

block.

On to the question at hand:

M. I just got back from half of year of travels in latin america,

africa and europe. And have to agree wholeheartedly with those people

telling you to worry about film... that should be your main concern.

as far as cameras go, i also highly recommend a backup for

your "real" system (both canon and leica would be great for this) and

that you take at least one cheap, small point and shoot... there will

be days where you simply don't want to carry a "real" camera and just

want to stuff that small point and shoot in your coat pocket. I would

most likely go for the EOS if i were used to it and had little

experience with rangefinders - plus with canon you may be able to get

away with not taking a backup body. the Rebel 2000 is available at

tourist areas everywhere... so you can rely on getting one if you EOS

1n breaks... a leica however... well, i would bring two if you decide

on the leica.

I don't think "a lot" of M6TTL owners would want to pay 300-500 for

that non-functional switch...

I agree wholeheartedly with what Dexter said. I don't think AE is

very useful at all when not combined with evaluative metering - with

completely certer weighted metering like the M7 you still have to

think about where to meter, thus requiring the same amount of thought

as if you were to use manual exposure. With evaluative metering you

do get the freedom to not think about exposure unless you are in

obviously meter fooling situations like snow, but on the M7 i don't

think the metering is very useful. Having more in between shutter

speeds is nice, but certainly not a worth a switch from the M6 and

towards battery dependence in my mind.

<p>

I was wondering, would it be possible to "install" similar anti

reflective coatings on a M6?

I would ask if the person has any references at other sites - like

ebay or photo.net "user recommendation" section... if they sound good

you will probably be okay. if nothing, then i would demand to get

their home phone, home address and work phone and work address...

then call their work and talk to somebody other then them - i.e. the

front desk - and see if that person actaully works there... if it is

any larger sized company they will certainly have records of the

person... and if it is a larger sized company you will know which

police entity to call in order to track down this person, and where

to send them. If it is a "i am self employed person" then you may be

SOL in finding them, especially if they tell you to send payment to a

post office box. Another way of doing it is COD (check on

delivery)... it costs about 8 bucks, but includes mailing your

payment back to you. FedEx will not deliver the package without

getting a certified check (if you tell them it needs to be

certified)... this would also work and isn't too expensive.

I agree with Douglas, the weakest link is me, and that is primarily

my disdain for tripod use. I keep telling myself that I don't own a

leica M (which I consider to be tiny having come from an EOS 1V HS

with big white lenses) to lug around a 7lbs gitzo (including

ballhead)... and i am sure that this makes the biggest difference in

the equation, but it sure makes taking pictures more enjoyable.

how much longer are ansel adams and salgado going to be in berkeley?

is it at the museum right on bancroft across from the university?

thanks for the info.

what do you mean by wedding scenario? will this be non-payed for

friends journalistic type shooting, posed formal shots...

Some Japanese tourist (the authorities say they thought he was a

tourist), was lynched to death by a mob in Guatemala because he

photographed children. Coincidentally (yeah right) the previous weeks

paper had had a story on foreigners coming in and taking Guatemalan

children to "rich" countries to be adopted...

<p>

I normally just take pictures of people and apologize after the fact,

but you certainly need to know your surroundings.

A rolex (I beleive that is what it was) mini-slr that used Minox

film... i am pretty sure it had two lenses a normal and a wide angle.

i can't find any info on it anywhere, but that is what i was told

over the holidays by the friend that let me use it for 3 years.