Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1996/10/12
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Regarding the new Alpa, Eric wrote: >And it's a 4.5 x 6 cm. format, not even 6x6. What a waste, and what >hyperbole! I would think Leica users were quite modest in comparison (even >the annoying ones!). > I do a lot of Medium Format work, and I've never been able to see the use of the 6x6 format (except for weddings, where square photos are sometimes wanted, and you don't have to flip the flash for verticals). When we print to fill our paper, the 6x6 becomes a 645 in effect. The 6x7 produces a much larger negative/transparency--the quality differences are noticeable. I also find composing with the square finder image distracting--I want to fill the frame, to keep the quality up. The 6x6 format came, I think, from a historical accident--TLR's would be hard to turn sideways. Hence, my trade of my Mamiya 6 for a Mamiya 7, which is quite compact and produces those beautiful big transparencies--and my work with it has improved over the 6. BTW, Leica M users would love the Mamiya 6 and 7, which were designed by an engineer with a long admiration for the Leica M series (the current Mamiya 6 was named both after its predecessor and in tribute to the Leica M6). > > Charles E. Love, Jr. 517 Warren Place Ithaca, New York 14850 607-272-7338 CEL14@CORNELL.EDU