Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2009/09/12

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Subject: [Leica] Leica Won't Improve Your Photography
From: mark at rabinergroup.com (Mark Rabiner)
Date: Sat, 12 Sep 2009 03:22:44 -0400

> When Joe CaNikon's primary experience with Leica is that the average
> user attached to the camera is an arrogant ass with more money than
> eye and more attitude than ability....  he's not going to look fondly
> on the camera.  Sure, it's an unfair transference, but it's not all
> that unreasonable.
> 
> I love the lenses, I like the cameras, and I could drop a fair number
> of users off a very high cliff without doubt, hesitation, or loss of
> sleep... and, I suspect, at some considerable gain to the
> photographic world.



What they can't embrace is the spending of real money for something you have
to focus yourself. Which involves traditional engineering i.e. the Leica
rangefinder. And which involves spending money on quality craftsmanship and
higher tolerances made in  relative small amounts.  And what doesn't involve
scores of micromoters. They want to buy a big fat DSLR which they will be
trading in in 2 or 3 years for the next new model.
That's what we're up against.
High tech Bourgeois thinking and spending habits.

One thing we have on our side is Magnum.
The most select group of photographers.
It's the history of Leica use;
By all the best photographers; taking all the best pictures.
They can look at the Magnum class picture with 45 of the top photographers
with brassy Leicas handing off their shoulders and talk about how Leica is a
rich guys camera.
I predict the next years Magnum class pictures will have a dozen guys with
M9s. Following year two dozen.

http://www.magnumphotos.com

Mark William Rabiner





In reply to: Message from leica at rcmckee.com (R. Clayton McKee) ([Leica] Leica Won't Improve Your Photography)