Re: Leica-Users List Digest V1 #585

[FKemper@aol.com]

In einer eMail vom 06.08.97  14:12:25, schreiben Sie:

<< A question from someone whose never looked through a Leica but is
 curious.... >>

Basically, all M-Leica finders are the same, they feature one focussing area
in the middle and some sets of frames for different focal lengths. The first
M-Leica, the M3 was made for three different focal lengths. If you look
through it, you see a huge frame for the 50 mm lens, if you attach a 90 mm
lens, there is one frame for 90 mm added, if you have a 135 mm lens, the
frame for 135 mm appears. So the frame always is selected automatically by
some notch in the lens mount. Early M3's lacked a lever, which was added
later. This lever swings into the position, the lens is referring to, but you
can also move it by hand and choose other frames. So you can check the view
with other than the mounted lens - without actually using them. The later M2
did not feature three different frame sizes, but only two: 35 and 90 mm, the
Leica M1 had only one frame and no frame changing device. The M4 began
showing several frames at once, so you see 35 and 50, 75 and 90 or only 135
(if I remember right.) The M6 shows you 28 and 135, 35 and 50, 75 and 90. If
I put a 28 mm lens to my M3, it engages the 135 mm frame. As the M6 shows a
28 mm frame, finder magnfication is very small. You see everything in 28 mm
ankle, eben when a 135 mm is mounted. Then the frame is really small. For
that reason Leica made the 135 mm lens with "eyes". These optics are mounted
in front of the finder- and the range finder window, and they increase finder
magnification by approx. the factor 2.5. So the 135 mm lens can use the 50 mm
frame instead of the 135 mm frame. This is especially impressive when you use
a M3 together with that lens.

Early Leica 35 mm lens with eyes made it the other way round. It was designed
to decrease finder magnification to make a 35 mm finder out of a 50 mm
finder.

Leica M finder do not offer information on selected time and aperture
(exception M5) and do not show you DOF (exception M3 to a certain extent).
The M6 is the only M-Leica with two LED arrows in the finder, which show you
correct exposure (same principle as in Nikon FM2)

The frames do not change size during focussing, but they slightly change
position in order to correct parallax error. If you look through a Leica M
finder you will find it beautiffully brilliant. If it isn't so, clean all
glass surfaces of the body very carefully.

That' it, basically.

Frank