Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1998/11/17
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]In the spirit of Walter.... I travel a fair amount racing cars. It's a pretty tense, time-starved activity. It can be truly physically and emotionally exhausting. (If you aren't sometimes real scared in a racing car, there's something wrong with you.) But there are also quiet moments. And I've been carrying Leicas. They are small, so if I go through the weekend without shooting, I don't feel like I've lugged a lot of weight for nothing. They are fast in the dark and quiet, so I have gotten some shots of SO (who drives too), teammates, crew, etc. at dinner, meetings, and so on. Hit ratio is often low, but hit ratio without the camera is always 0. They work best for pix of people and the scene in general. Pix of cars on track, hyper close-ups of the hardware, and fisheye shots require other gear. But I tend to put an M6 in the bag with the Canons.... I use mostly color neg film. Believe it or not M pix can be seen to be different on 4x6's from the local lab. I don't think it's about extremes of sharpness, (I shoot hand held) but about contrast, saturation, and other things that I call "pop" and/or "transparency" (I don't know, I just like the pix.) The real key is to carry the camera and shoot with it when your emotions and circumstances allow. Accept a low hit rate. If you persist, there will be some fine shots. - -----Original Message----- From: Walter S Delesandri <walt@jove.acs.unt.edu> To: leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us <leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us> Cc: 'LUG' <leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us> Date: Monday, November 16, 1998 2:01 PM Subject: Re: [Leica] OK Walter, I'll Bite >Kevin, that's a great idea. (although I don't think I set myself up to >grade any stories!) > >I have enjoyed the evening/mixed light stuff for years, and it sounds >like you have a system all worked out. And no, there's not a better >tool for the job that I know of. > >One thing I do know, which you already have noticed, is that after >a fatiguing day, sitting in a bar or laying infront of the TV makes it >worse. Getting out walking around with a camera is the best "therapy" >there is! > >Good luck, and maybe some of you could post photos as attachments if >you have access to a scanner. > >CU later, >Walt >On Mon, 16 Nov 1998 12:16:17 -0800 Khoffberg <khoffberg@email.msn.com> >wrote: > >> Apologies to all - I posted this incorrectly a few hours before. Anyway . . >> . >> >> Walter recently wrote: >> >> "I'd love to hear more about their experiences, stories, travels, dangers, >> drunken stupors, etc. and a hell of a lot less about the DAMN 135 lenses." >> >> I'm new to the list and still trying to understand the lore, conventions, >> taboos, shibboleths, rules, and secret handshakes of the LUG. I will say, >> however, that I'm thoroughly fascinated by the threads, much more so than >> medium format digest which I also get. >> >> Anyway, here's my "experiences, stories, etc." >> >> I guess I fall into the sister of that cursed "doctor" category. I'm >> president of a consulting firm in California and find myself flying hither >> and yon to the tune of 120,000 or so miles a year. For the last year or so, >> I've been carrying my M6 and some other gear in pursuit of a project which >> I'm calling "Ends of the Day." I don't know how many hard core travelers >> there are out there, but it can be pretty hard to do anything other than >> drag back and forth to the hotel room and order room service when you're on >> the road for clients. So I resolved to take my camera and make myself get >> out and shoot pictures both before and/or after the work day. >> >> In Miami earlier this year, this resulted in some splendid sunrises off M. >> Beach. I also went for a couple of walks in the Art Deco district and shot >> the neon and passers by. My typical solution is M6 on a small gitzo, 35mm >> 2.8 or 50mm 2.0 at f11 and 6, 8, and 10 second exposures (E100S). Got some >> really lovely stuff. (Don't have a nocto. Like the slow exposures.) >> >> Many trips to NYC at different times of year generated some lovely late >> afternoon stuff in and around Times Square (hand held 50mm). Most recent >> trip I did my tripod trick up and down Fifth Ave. (Empire State Building in >> red) and slow handheld inside Grand Central Station. You all probably >> already know this but the city takes on a different feeling at night. >> Pictures that wouldn't amount to a hill of rattlesnake poop suddenly take on >> a whole different quality. >> >> A trip to Chicago found me wandering along the water to Navy Pier. Low and >> behold, they've spruced it up since I was last year and have quite the >> arcade going there, complete with a wonderful old carousel, Ferris Wheel, >> and wonder of wonders, fireworks. Same business with the tripod, settings, >> etc. >> >> More of the same from Sydney, Santa Barbara, Seattle, and elsewhere. >> >> So what do I conclude by all this? >> >> 1) I have a pretty extensive Hassy rig and a bunch of Canon stuff and I >> can't imagine doing any of this with anything other than the Leica. I know >> what exposures work. I set the hyperfocal distance and I'm done. Not to >> mention it's a much smaller kit. >> 2) Getting my ass out of bed in the morning (that darn time zone thing) >> and/or making myself change my clothes and go back out on the streets after >> a full day has proven a wonderful tonic for the work sodden soul for all the >> reasons I'm sure all of you understand. >> >> In fact, some of the folks around the office were sufficiently taken by the >> whole proposition that they've started to carry their cameras around and >> take pictures as well. Double in fact, we're going to publish some of these >> pictures as part of a product we have called Stop Winging It(r) which is a >> sales related journal. The "ends of the day" theme serves as a reminder to >> our users that they should stop and look around every once in a while. >> There's beauty and wonder in the details of even the most prosaic or >> troubling day. >> >> So how'd I do Walter? Hope this is a reasonable missive for this forum. >> >> Cheers >> Kevin Hoffberg >> >> >> > > >