richie chishty

Ray:

 

Isn't that Al Bundy's car? :-)

Andrew:

 

Congrats! Three new MPs! WOW! You lucky dog! :-) I am sure you will have lots of fun with your 3 new toys. That's what they are, aren't they? Reward for many years of hard work. Enjoy. I myself am very tempted by the MP3 LHSA model...

Very nice photo Gordon!

OK...

Afzal:

 

You can never have too many Leicas! Buying a Leica is not a rational decision, as you probably know by now. I have a Leica M3 and a M6 TTL, but like you, I too have been tempted by the siren song (mixing metaphors here!) of the Leica MP! If you can afford it, get the MP. I will probably get one sometime later this year! :-)

Nice photos! That Zeiss lens is very good! I like both the color and B&W versions of the first photograph. They convey very different moods.

It's obvious! Sell the M7 to me! Autoexposure is wildly overrated. Stick to the M6 and the MP! :-)

Very nice photos! Very skillful use of both the 15mm and 28mm VC lenses. I am very tempted to get the VC 28mm/f1.9 lens for its speed.

I have this lens, and as a previous poster wrote, its imaging quality is very similar to the legendary Leica 35mm pre-Asph Summicron. I have shot mostly B&W film with this lens and the 'bokeh' is very nice (creamy and smooth) at f2.8 or f4. It is a bargain! The lens shade is small but OK. Flare is not much of a problem. I have many 35mm lenses, and this is the smallest and lightest one.

Economies of scale? A previous poster has mentioned that Nikon F mount cameras probably outnumber Leica M mount cameras by a ratio of at least 100:1! Zeiss expects to sell more of the Nikon mount lenses. So the per unit average cost of the Nikon mount lens is far lower, even though slightly more glass may be used in it because of its larger size. Hence the difference in price. Of course, Zeiss may also have discovered that it is much easier to fleece Leica owners! :-)

I have the same problem with my Leica M6 TTL. The meter stops working if I am outside in 32 degree weather for 15 minutes! This is very irritating. I have never had this problem with my Nikons and Canons in the past. I sometimes carry an old Gossen Lunapro Sbc meter just for cold weather photography. Or use my Leica R8 which is much more rugged and works perfectly in the cold.

Don't sell that M3! You have one of the best Leicas ever made. Just buy a Cosina/Voigtlander 35mm viewfinder for about $145, and you can use any 35mm lens with your M3. I bought one because I found it difficult to see the 35mm frame lines in my M6. Here's one source:

 

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

Wow! Those photos sure look good. I will have to start saving up for an M8 now. :-)

Afzal:

 

Nice collection of Leicas!

I have bought many Leica lenses and bodies from KEH. Only once have I returned an item. You have 30 days to test and use the camera. If you are not satisfied, send it back for a full refund.

The Thambar IS a rare lens. But it was never reputed for its optical excellence! :-) Let's see what YOU have done with that lens.

Not exactly what Salvatore wants to know, but check out the photos on this site:

 

http://www.itntokyo.com/users/nomoto/Galleryfiles/R_Sample/rlensgallerymenu.html

DAG can CLA the lens for about $100. It is amazing what he can do with old used lenses.

Happy Thanksgiving! :-)

Regit:

 

That lens looks pretty good at f1.4!

Al:

 

Welcome back to the virtual world! Now let's see some of those Hurricane Wilma pictures you took! :-)

Nice shots! My Summaron tends to flare badly in the sun. You must have one of the later ones.

Claude wrote: "........ttl flash was a daft idea for the M6."

 

Spoken by a true Leica expert! :-)

"...who needs a faster shutter speed than 1000th of a second, and who in their right mind is concerned about using fill flash with a Leica?'...."

 

Claude:

 

I happen to use the SF20 TTL flash with my Leica M6 TTL camera regularly. The SF20 provides a nice little fill light in daytime. And at night it's a powerful little flash considering its size. Just because your style of photography is different from ours does not mean that yours is the only correct way to do photography.

Frank:

 

Just get the Summilux.