Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/09/12
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Axel Schwieker wrote: > This accuracy is of _no_ use if the smallest exposure adjustment you can > do on a M is 1/2-stop. 1/4 stop shutter+meter accuracy is enough. But it is of use if you have a continuously-variable electronic shutter. And Leicas don't have 1/4 stop shutter + meter accuracy, in part because each part of a meter-focal plane system has a 1/4 stop tolerance, which is additive. 1/2 stop is enough to influence things. > AE does not ensure correct exposure. It screws up at least just as often > as fully manual with intelligent presetting. In my experience, AE with a lock function produces correct exposures 98+% of the time. It only requires you to understand the metering pattern. "Intelligent presetting" completely breaks down in situations where you are below the thresholds of the basic exposures - > If you never shoot in quiet places, this my be true. The motor > dependability however has another drawback. The Hexar is dead without > working batteries. This is a rehash of an argument that has been going on for 30 years. A CR2 (which, incidentally, the R8 uses, too), weighs half an ounce and is not a big deal. For the weight (and size) of a Leica winder of any description, you can carry 50 or more of them - meaning that you would need to go through 5,000-7500 rolls of film before having a dead battery. I have been using cameras with batteries for about 16 years, and I have yet to have a battery-induced failure, even in a couple of -20 F winters. You can see what faction is losing this argument when all top-end professional SLR cameras require batteries to operate (and this has been the case for some time). It's not a big deal. If I need something really quiet, I reach for my black Hexar AF. Makes an M6 sound like a gunshot. Contrary to what most people think, even rubberized cloth (and Canon foil) focal plane shutters are quite audible in really quiet places. If you are cathedral shooting in Europe, I have discovered that even the Fuji GA645s are not audible - and they are quite loud. > The M6 is a thinking photogs tool, not for the dumb masses. DX is just > convenience for weekend shooters. Please consider, I shoot most of my > film at a different rating than its DX encoded ISO number. DX reading > just gets in the way. A camera without DX override would be useless to > me. Again, I'm not sure what you are trying to argue. The Hexar has a DX override, which I use most of the time for print film. And you make a funny point - why would being a "thinking photographer" necessarily coincide with having the money to buy a Leica? It sounds like the same argument that people with $30,000 stereos make - implicitly that *they* can hear the difference. Frankly, I would guess that poor people would have better hearing (since their hearing has not been made weak by disuse). A Leica does not necessarily transform you into a "thinker." Of course if you are financially tapped by buying one, you may need to save film. > What you _really_ need is a direct manual setting of the ISO speed. > Well, maybe some brains ;) Nothing more. > > Axel What camera lacks manual ISO? ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Dante Stella http://www-personal.umich.edu/~dante