Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/04/17
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]> THIS MESSAGE IS IN MIME FORMAT. Since your mail reader does not understand this format, some or all of this message may not be legible. - --MS_Mac_OE_3007234060_424047_MIME_Part Content-type: text/plain; charset="ISO-2022-JP" Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit Hi, all. An interview article in a recent issue of Asahi Camera tells us how Cosina-Voigtl穫der Bessa-L was born. I try to summerise it here. - ------- Akagi (a Leica photographer): What made you develop Bessa-L? Mr. Kobayashi (The CEO of Cosina): One of our engineers proposed it two years ago. We started the project a year ago. There has been a Leica boom in Japan..... A: Why did you avoid rangefinder camera? K: You know it is extremely difficult to make rangefinder cameras like Leica. I myself has been a Leicaphile for 28 years. I use If's and Ig's and came up with an idea of making bodies without rangefiders for wide-angle lenses. A: 33000 yen for a body is very reasonable..... K: It has no mirror box. It shoud be reasonably priced. ;-) It is our policy to provide long-life cameras for everybody at reasonable prices. A: Did you buy the Voigtl穫der brand name? K: I cannot tell you about it in detail. We can use this name for our products in Japan. A German manufacturer owns this brand name, and the brand name is also used with cameras made in Taiwan and China. A: There is space for a rangefinder in the mout....? K: I won't say we are not going to make rangefinder cameras. But, we will not make cameras that will be compared with Leica. We try to be as original as Voigtl穫der was. A: Do you have any plan to release an AE version? K: I cannot lie....;-) It is not diffucult. Spot metering is feasible. But we have not decided in detail. A: A Super Heliar is a super wide angle lens.... K: I have been a member of a Leica club since I was a college student. In those days all the member but I had Hologon 15mm. It was so expensive for me that it took ten years for me to get one. I have been tenacious of making a 15 mm lens! A: The two lenses are very reasonalby priced... K: "No cams" enabled us to cut the cost. A: I have heard the name "Snapshot Skopar" somewhere.... K: Leica produced Snapshot Elmar 35/4.5 for trial. This lens did not couple to rangefinders but had click-stops for setting aperture. I wanted to make such a lens... A: Do you have any plans to sell new lenses? K: Longer lenses. But we have to think about rangefinders.... - ------ Sorry for my poor translation, but I hope this interest you. ^_^ Mikiro Strasbourg - --MS_Mac_OE_3007234060_424047_MIME_Part Content-type: text/html; charset="ISO-2022-JP" Content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable <HTML> <HEAD> <TITLE>Voigtlander story</TITLE> </HEAD> <BODY BGCOLOR=3D"#FFFFFF"> <TT>Hi, all.<BR> <BR> An interview article in a recent issue of Asahi Camera tells us how Cosina-= Voigtl=1B$B3O=1B(Jder Bessa-L was born. I try to summerise it here.<BR> <BR> - -------<BR> Akagi (a Leica photographer): What made you develop Bessa-L?<BR> <BR> Mr. Kobayashi (The CEO of Cosina): One of our engineers proposed it two yea= rs ago. We started the project a year ago. There has been a Leic= a boom in Japan.....<BR> <BR> A: Why did you avoid rangefinder camera?<BR> <BR> K: You know it is extremely difficult to make rangefinder cameras like Leic= a. I myself has been a Leicaphile for 28 years. I use If's and I= g's and came up with an idea of making bodies without rangefiders for wide-a= ngle lenses.<BR> <BR> A: 33000 yen for a body is very reasonable.....<BR> <BR> K: It has no mirror box. It shoud be reasonably priced. ;-) It = is our policy to provide long-life cameras for everybody at reasonable price= s.<BR> <BR> A: Did you buy the Voigtl=1B$B3O=1B(Jder brand name?<BR> <BR> K: I cannot tell you about it in detail. We can use this name for our= products in Japan. A German manufacturer owns this brand name, and th= e brand name is also used with cameras made in Taiwan and China.<BR> <BR> A: There is space for a rangefinder in the mout....?<BR> <BR> K: I won't say we are not going to make rangefinder cameras. But, we = will not make cameras that will be compared with Leica. We try to be a= s original as Voigtl=1B$B3O=1B(Jder was.<BR> <BR> A: Do you have any plan to release an AE version?<BR> <BR> K: I cannot lie....;-) It is not diffucult. Spot metering is fe= asible. But we have not decided in detail.<BR> <BR> A: A Super Heliar is a super wide angle lens....<BR> <BR> K: I have been a member of a Leica club since I was a college student. &nbs= p;In those days all the member but I had Hologon 15mm. It was so expen= sive for me that it took ten years for me to get one. I have been tena= cious of making a 15 mm lens!<BR> <BR> A: The two lenses are very reasonalby priced...<BR> <BR> K: "No cams" enabled us to cut the cost.<BR> <BR> A: I have heard the name "Snapshot Skopar" somewhere....<BR= > <BR> K: Leica produced Snapshot Elmar 35/4.5 for trial. This lens did not = couple to rangefinders but had click-stops for setting aperture. I wan= ted to make such a lens...<BR> <BR> A: Do you have any plans to sell new lenses?<BR> <BR> K: Longer lenses. But we have to think about rangefinders....<B= R> <BR> - ------<BR> <BR> Sorry for my poor translation, but I hope this interest you. ^_^<BR> <BR> Mikiro<BR> Strasbourg<BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> </TT> </BODY> </HTML> - --MS_Mac_OE_3007234060_424047_MIME_Part--