joe_buechler

Screw mount Leicas, Leica clones, and the Bessa-R make pretty good

second bodies, thats how I do it. Lenses are upward compatible, and

you don't need to have every lens in your stable mount on the second

body to make it work. My "core" set of interchangeable lenses (LTM)

include the Voigtlander 15mm Heliar, Kobalux 28mm, and the current

50mm Summicron in screw mount. This gives me enough interchangeability

to make the IIIf work as a second body, but I'm seriously considering

a Bessa-R for this role.

<p>

I wish I had something a bit better than the Kobalux for 28mm, though.

Whenever I want this focal length on the M6, I always find myself

mounting the Tri Elmar.

An awful lot of SLRs don't have an aperture preview feature. I learned

DOF using the lens scale, so switching to a rangefinder wasn't much of

a paradigm shift for me in that respect. I'll second the motion,

though, that modern SLRs with zoom lens, AF, and program AE have

diminished basic photography skills over the last decade. I enjoy the

process of making a photograph. Using a camera that exercises that

process and those skills, more than anything about the viewfinder, is

what I enjoy the most about the Leica M.

<p>

On the other hand, I'm not sure that the big smile on my face when I

see my results is really the result of being able to see around the

framelines, or being able to see a sharp background. I'm still willing

to believe that there's magic at work because these cameras are made

by elves in the Black Forest.

I've always heard that the Minilux and other Leica P&Ss are made by

Panasonic. Can anyone confirm or refute this?

I never bother to trim the leader. I use the "thumb through the lens

hole" method and I've never had a problem.

<p>

Key points are making sure that the take-up spool has a good

grip on the film, the film sprocket is engaging the teeth, the film is

in the film gate, and the rewind crank is turning.

<p>

It is possible, though, that there a film chips in your camera. Always

a good idea to have these serviced immediately, even if they appear to

have been serviced by the previous owner.

<p>

Joe

The 35 cron and T2 seem redundant, if you can't take too much stuff.

I'd personally like to go with the M6, 24 or 28, T2, and the Linhof

23b w/58 and 100mm.

In "Under Fire" (1983) photojournalist Russel Price (Nick Nolte) has a

Leica M around his neck throughout the movie, along with some SLRs.

While covering the Sandanista revolution in Nicaragua, he shoots every

single photo with a Nikon SLR.

A postwar IIIc and coated 50mm f3.5 Elmar hands-down winner on

price/performance.

If I had to do it over again, I'd do the same thing: Classic M6,

current 50mm Summicron.

<p>

Joe

My jacket pocket camera is a Leica IIIf with 50mm f3.5 Elmar. My shirt

pocket camera is a Minox IIIs. All manual, excellent optics, great

results.

<p>

Joe

I don't usually bother with a light meter for print film. Look inside

the box that the Kodak Gold came in, it'll tell you what exposure

settings to use. Memorize them. When you've practiced that, then try

using reciprocity - 1/250 at f5.6 gives the same exposure as 1/125 at

f8, except with more depth of field and with less "stop action".

Lastly, learn how to adjust the exposure settings for different film

speeds. Good luck, and enjoy the M3.

<p>

Joe

You already have a great 35mm lens on the Hexar. Get an M6 classic and

the 50mm f2 Summicron. I like using this particular combination

because it lets me switch between normal and wide without changing

lenses. Both the M6 and Hexar will fit into a tiny little camera bag

together.

Its mechanically locked to avoid overexposure, given the smallest

aperture that the Contarex will meter couple with. Use a smaller

exposure index if you want a slower shutter speed.

<p>

BTW the Contarex isn't a rangefinder, and it wasn't made by Leica, but

I liked seeing the question here anyway!

<p>

Joe

I use manual SLRs in addition to the M6. All have a shutter speed dial

which turns in the traditional clockwise direction to increase shutter

speed. If I got an M6 TTL, I'd have to mentally "switch gears" every

time I used it, not exactly what you'd call "intuitive".

Whatever you do, don't plan on using a 50/1.5 Nokton with a Leica

Screw Mount camera unless you're willing to use an accessory 50mm

viewfinder. The build-in viewfinder is unusable with a Nokton.

<p>

OTOH, the current 50mm f2 Summicron in screw mount is excellent on a

IIIF, my currently most-used camera/lens combination.

My wish list: Smaller (back to the original M size, or possibly even

CL size), titanium shutter, elimination of rangefinder flare.

<p>

My do-not-wish-for list: Electronic shutter, AE, integrated motorized

film advance/rewind.

I'll add a plug for <a href="http://www.woodcam.com/">Woodmere

Camera</a>.

They're Leica specialists, and usually have a good selection of Leica

M and Leica Screw Mountequipment. Their prices are good, shipment is

fast and reliable, and their stuff is usually better than advertised.

Actually, the original question didn't ask for alternate lens kit

configurations, it just asked whether an older 50mm lenses would be as

good in a practical sense, and whether having both older 50mm and

35mm lenses was viable. The consensus answer is yes.

<p>

If we're going to suggest alternatives to the 35mm-50mm-90mm lineup,

then of course the popular 35mm-90mm combination is an option. But it

leaves out the best horse in the stable, the 50mm Summicron. That's

why, if it were ME, I'd get a new 50mm and a used 35mm or one of the

Voigtlander lenses, heresy as this may be.

You've made a compelling case for getting the older lenses. I think

you should just do it.

<p>

On the other hand, if it would make you feel better to "split the

difference", I'd personnally opt for the new 50mm Summicron and get an

older 35 f1.5. Just my opinion.

Bob and Andrew

<p>

Its rather a waste of breath to request enhancements. Philip Greenspun

doesn't read the Leica Photography forum. In any case, there haven't

been any enhancements to the LUSENET software since it first became

available, that I'm aware of.

<p>

It would be nice if LUSENET supported all of the current features of

photo.net, including image upload, a search engine, and a confirmation

page. But it doesn't. And since all of us on the Leica Photography

forum live on Mr. Greenspun's largesse, we can't really look a gift

horse in the mouth.

In the East, they destroy man's works in the name of God. In the West,

we destroy God's works in the name of Mammon. Take your pick.

My original Tri-Elmar blocks about 15% of the 28mm frameline on a .72

M6. I don't find this objectionable. YMMV.

The 50mm Summicron LTM that arrived yesterday is physically identical

to the M-mount lens, excepting the absence of the little red index

dot (and the mount, of course).

<p>

Amazing that these are selling for the same price as the M-mount

lenses. Now I suppose I should replace my 35mm Summicron-M with the

more versatile screw mount version as well.

<p>

Between these and a couple of the Cosina/Voigtlander lenses, I've got

a critical mass of interchangeability between my M6 and IIIf, making

the IIIf a perfectly viable and small second body. I don't know if

this concept works for everyone, but I'm happy as a pig in mud.

Call some pro labs and ask what output resolution they use for digital

prints. I'd be surprised if you found 300 dpi to be less than

professional quality.

I have made my references to photos on the Photo.net database

clickable links, but contrary to Tony's statement above, there's no

reason why they can't also be used as normal embedded JPEG images

(with the URL pointing to the address of the JPEG file on photo.net).

<p>

In fact, the images that I've posted to this forum point directly to

the .jpg files on the photo.net server. It just so happens that I also

created a link, so that when you click on the image, you are taken to

the photo.net html page. This provides additional information, and the

option to view the image at various resonlutions. It isn't necessary,

just a nice option to have.

<p>

When posting an photo, an issue worth considering is the long-term

viability of the image. If you don't think this is important, take a

look at the "15mm Heliar Gallery" thread on this forum, to see the

wreckage after only a short amount of time. Its similar to the Y2K

problem, in that its easy to fool yourself into thinking that the

future will never come. It would be discourteous to Tony to expect

him to clean up this kind of mess on a continuing basis.

<p>

This is the main reason that I use the photo.net image database. The

images are on the same greenspun.com server as this forum. There's no

guarantee that my photos will never disappear, but if they do, then

its likely that the "Leica Photography" forum will also have ceased to

exist at the same time.

I'll never give up my Summicrons, but the first version Tri-Elmar is

great for versatility. I like to carry mine along with the 90mm

Elmarit, or with the 15mm Heliar mounted on a IIIf. I use it in

daylight, and also frequently at 28mm in low light on a tripod.

<p>

For handheld work, you'll never see a practical performance difference

with the fixed lenses.