Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2001/01/12
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Dante A. Stella wrote: > Canon and Nikon LTM lenses are at the 2 o'clock position > Early Soviet LTM lenses are at the 12 o'clock position. Late are usually 1 or > 2. > Leica is straight up. > > Depends on the lens. > All the Leitz screw mount lenses line up at the 2 O'Clock position. So do all the non Leitz screw mount lenses I have ever used or seen. This includes the real Voigtlander, Dallmeier, Taylor Hobson etc. This goes for all focal length lenses. not just the 50mm. Leitz advertised at the early days of the screw mount cameras, that with a Leica camera it is possible to see and read all the camera and lens settings by looking down to the camera from the top. Even on the slow speed setting, the knob had such a shape, to enable one to view it from the top. However, with an auxiliary view finder mounted on the accessory shoe, it would have not been possible to see the depth of field scale and the distance setting mark, had this been at the 12 O'Clock position. The Leitz universal view finders stuck out a fair bit towards the front of the camera. The only Leitz lenses which could not fulfill this requirement, where the screw mount Elmar 50mm f3.5 and the Hector 50mm f2.5. These lenses had the aperture setting only visible by looking at the front of the lens. All bayonet mount Leitz lenses have the distance setting mark at the 12 O'clock position. Regards, Horst Schmidt