Re: [Leica] Something for everyone

["Joe Codispoti" <joecodi@thegrid.net>]

Jim,
Several years ago I helped a friend buy a camera. She wanted a "good" camera
but not too expensive because she was certain that she would drop it
eventually. She settled for a Canon AE1 Program. She dropped it within the
first hour of ownership.
There are clumsy people who bump into things at every turn. I have seen many
lenses saved by the fact that a filter was attached at the time of  impact.
I have seen also many lenses with dents at the filter thread. these may or
may not have been saved by a filter or shade. A fall on cement is not
lessened by a filter, but a slight bump may prevent a dented front rim.
While I do not use filters for protection, I don't care if others do,
especially if they are convinced that it helps. We should let those who wish
to use filters to protect their lenses do so (it may help them
psychologically at least). You can lead a horse to
water...................................
Now, where did I leave my banana? OOPS.
Joe


Jim Brick wrote about his favorite subject:

> There is something that I don't understand. If you figure out the entire
> surface area of a lens or lens and camera, the front element is a small
> percentage of the whole. If you drop your camera or just your lens, what's
> the chances of it "just" hitting the front element glass? I contend small
> compared with banging the hell out of the camera body or lens mount. So
why
> don't all of you UV folks have your cameras in leather Never ready cases
(
> http://www.kameraleder.com/leicam6.htm ) or better yet, a padded sound
> blimp so that when you drop it, nothing gets wrecked. Seems illogical to
> attempt to protect just a couple of square inches  on the front of the
> lens. I guess that $2000 M6 body or that $5000 Hass 203 body doesn't
count.
> Poor things.
>
> Do you UV folks wear safety glasses 100% of the time? Why not. Your
> eyeballs are stuck out there in front of you, there one hell of a lot
> softer and more vulnerable than a rock hard lens, and all the money in the
> world cannot replace them. And without them, you cannot use the little
> piece of glass that you need so desperately to protect. Against what...
I'm
> at a loss.
>
> Dust, dirt, foul air? Water? Oh yeah, remember... PK informed us that
water
> dissolves lens coatings. So don't let your rubber ducky use your camera.
> You don't mind breathing it or sticking your eyeballs into it. Your whole
> camera is full of it (dust, dirt, foul air that is) as well as mechanisms
> under the f/stop ring and focus ring. So this rock hard piece of glass,
> recessed from the front of the lens, is going to be hurt by... what??? Oh
> yes, you are going to whacked it repeatedly against the corner of a set of
> concrete steps.
>
> Help me, Rhonda, help, help me Rhonda...
>
> Dope-ler Effect: The tendency of stupid ideas to seem smarter when they
> come at you rapidly.
>
> I'm going out this weekend and buying plastic runners for all of my
> carpets, plastic couch and chair covers, plastic lamp shade covers, and a
> hermetically sealed case in which to store myself and my cameras.
>
> Everyone needs to find out where Mike Johnston lives and stay away from
> there. Unless you are wearing your second story bounce suit.
>
> Safety first.
>
> Jim
>
> Sar-chasm: The gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the folks who
> don't get it.
>
> Help me, Rhonda, help, help me Rhonda
> Help me Rhonda, yeah, get her out of my heart.
>
> TGIF! OTOH, INFMTTYHTUYC ¹ .
>
> :-)  &  ;-)  take your choice.
>
> Now this is what one does when they are bored. Not perform sacrilege on a
lens.
>
> sacrilege: gross irreverence toward a hallowed person, place, or thing.
>
> ¹ Thank God It's Friday! On The Other Hand, It's Not For Me To Tell You
How
> To Use Your Camera
>
> And for those of you who are enlightened, the answer is 42.
>
> Jim again
>
> Have a great weekend. Photograph up a storm. This may be a Hasselblad
> weekend with a little M6 schnappens between the ker-chunks. Let's compare
> notes on Monday.
>