Re: Bruckner Edition M6

[Godfrey DiGiorgi <ramarren@apple.com>]

All the Leica special editions leave me rather cold, I just don't 
find any of them appealing. The standard black finish camera, 
or titanium finish if you want a little more stylish appeal, are 
the most attractive to me. The rest is fluff.

For me, I look to what Minox produced as their 50th year anniversary
edition as a monument to doing the Right Thing: the Minox AX was 
a recreation of Walter Zapp's original Minox, all mechanical, no 
meter, almost to the original size descended from 1932, but with all 
the current advances in lens design and manufacture, control 
ergonomics, etc, and gold plated to indicate that it was a special
anniversary edition. Now that is a classy camera, and a classy 
concept. 

I keep hearing people wishing for a lot of updates and "features". 

When I look around at cameras nowadays, there are precious few 
that retain an elegant simplicity and provide me with a sense of
being in total control of the essentials. The Leica M6 is one, 
the Rollei 35 Classic is another. I don't want 'features'; I want
a sharp lens, an accurate shutter, and fine workmanship for 
lasting quality. I want to control my focus, my shutter speed
and my lens opening accurately, instinctively. I don't want to
peer into a whirlygig of LEDS and LCDS, use multiple buttons and
knobs to set numbers in a display panel. I want modest size, 
light weight, and a feeling of solid construction, precision.
A viewfinder that clearly delineates what I'm photographing, 
and quiet operation. A film transport mechanism that is smooth,
quiet and long lasting, and that operates when I want it to.
And full capabilities when the battery is gone, excepting a
meter. That's about it. That's what I define as a professional 
instrument, not a behemoth with multi-this and electronic that,
and four computers to do what I should learn to see with my 
eyes. 

Leica could make me very very happy with an improved version of
the CL.

Sorry for the rant. I think I'll stick with my Minox IIIs, my 
Rollei 35s, and my Leica Minizoom (when I feel like being modern).
In the end, the pictures are the important part, not the camera.

Godfrey