Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1998/10/05
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]> Nikon allows this too (albeit with certain restrictions!) Guido, Iisaka-san and others, Nippon Kogaku used to make good cameras (Is F-5 good? dunno, but at least it does not attract me), and many of which are - according to Nikon lovers that I know - still serviciable. According to them Nikon takes good care of their old customers, and that's why they are sticking with F mount, (but I think another reason is that as their flagship cameras are named F-<sequential number>, if they change the lens mount they would have to start all over with X-1 or such... Considering Nikon as the leading camera manufacture of Japan, at least they think so, their pride won't allow that to happen. Kinda Samurai issues. Well, just kidding... :-P) Canon doesn't care about old customers, they didn't miss their outdated mounts or their old soldier F-1. How about this? Large format cameras, whose history is much older than Leicas, and image quality 35mm cameras cannnot beat. They can mount some 100 yo lenses. Also Pentax K mount is designed to be compatible with M42, via simple and inexpensive mount adapters ( like LTM to M adapter) that they sell. You can Mount Preset Takumars on LX or even MZ-3(ZX-3 in the U.S., right?). but it's more than that... M42 mount compatibility means that you can use a variety of old time german lenses like Carl Zeiss Jena, Shnider(spelling?), Voigtlaender(under ZI), Angeneux, Steinheil, etc, etc... all postwar, though... There is Contax/Yashica mount to M42 adapter. How about mounting 58mm Bioter(for Contax S) or Tesser on Contax S2. I think it's a historically interesting conbination to see, don't you think? Pancolor can be a better choice, west meets east and then re-unite with another east. :-P I used to shoot with Pentacon 50mm mounted on Pentax. I think Asahi optics' Pentax is sort of related to Contax or Pentacon, so I consider this convination as interesting. Well, whatever, huh? Anyway summarizing from what I have learned, the significance of Leicas is the fact that they are the ones who started today's convenient mannarof 35mm photography. A portable and full metal camera (yeah, right, the world's first full metal camera is by Voigtlaender...) you can hang around your neck and go anywhere; and the concept of system cameras - compact accessories and a variety of lenses that fit well to the camera. Also the legendary optics... and good look and feel.(thanks to Apple, we now can have patent on it. :-P) If some of you want to dream on, I won't stop you, but I would be careful not to consider Leicas as more than what it is. I like my Leica, beautiful touch of satin chrome, gentle sound of FP shutter, enjoyable film loading process (that is nothing more than torture for some "nintendo camera people" around me), and beautiful negs it produces... but I feel like playing with other domestic(for me ;-)) cameras that some of our people took some sleepless nights to design. Even though I don't agree with their concepts, nobody should neglect their efforts and accomplishments. As a Japanese, I am proud of them for those cameras that can produce decent pictures without any knowledge of photography... but - again - I don't agree with their concepts... I believe they can produce better mechanical RF cameras than Leicas if they want to... they just have to forget - just for a while - - about cost efficiencies and build the 90's edition of Nikon S3 or Canon 7s with plenty of latest technologies dedicated to feel and quality, not to the extra, unnececary, and somewhat annoying functions... Japanese manufactures, forget about numbers on your catalog or sales reports for a while, and show the world what you can do! 45 focus areas? Who needs them? Well, let's get back... My point is that it doesn't hurt to be equiped with the right informations. You don't need any extra controvercial arguments to make Leicas shine. Leicas already are great cameras! Talking solely of craftmanship I recently learned that there can be some cameras better than Leicas... like Vitessa's chrome plated steel top plates and focusing system of Prominent 35 and II... those cameras are so beautiful ... oh only if there weren't that annoyiing and ugly chimney thing on Vitessas, and only if they had more variation of lenses on Prominents... maybe that's how they lost the battle... Leicas seem much easier to use... :-P I remember that another advantage of Leica is its simplicity... So I will take Leicas... Oh, it's too long, I know. Sorry, I just have too much extra time today... Tom K.