Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2010/10/25
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Howard - You tried I'm sure doing some work with the R lenses stopped down? Because some say its quite doable. The image stays bright in the viewfinder. Here's a historical tidbit I just found: "1958 the Minolta SR-2 was the first SLR camera with an automatic diaphragm which maintained maximum aperture for brightest viewing and stopped down only when the picture was taken." Me I started buying Popular photography magazines and boring through them cover to cover around 1964. I still have my 1964 Popular photography annual with the gravure center. May have been even a 1963. I was 12 or 13. Back to pre history: I read in the many columns of my monthly Popular photography magazines the columnists with their personalities I absorbed some of whom have been working photographers awhile. And while most got swept up but the Nikon f tsunamis a few held on to what they were already working with. In 1959 The Nikon F comes out there are lots of guys out there shooting everyday with their cherished non automatic diaphragm glass they they swore by. A Minolta SR-2. Besides the Minolta shooters already out shooting and happy with their gear were the even more proliferous Exakta shooters. http://www.camerapedia.org/wiki/Exakta And I remember many of them wanted to know what the big fuss was about why they had to stop using their cherished glass that they'd been using for their Exakta system in the 1950's. Non automatic diaphragm glass. Who needs an automatic diaphragm? they asked. I'm doing fine right now! They'd say. My point is not only can it be done, non automatic diaphragm shooting it can be done day in day out 24/7. At least one guy on the LUG David Rogers does it all the time and shows his jpegs to us from it. I'm sure others have. You can stop down and keep shooting. My main main point is that although a Nikon AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II Lens is an awsomely capable tool I sure Hate to see somebody "trading" a Leica 135mm f3.4 APO-TELYT-M for it. That's like saying you want a BMW but you don't "trade in" your Bentley for it. Because they you don't have your Bentley and what is the point of life? A Nikon AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR you can shoot an elephant charging at you and scamper out of the way at the last minute I'm sure but do it with a 135mm f3.4 APO-TELYT-M you don't care if you live or die. You've just gone to heaven anyway getting a shot with such blazing micro contrast and who knows what you can't even believe it. The gnomes from Solms don't fool around. Less trading please. More use of piggy banks. http://photodevoto.wordpress.com/2010/09/02/known-history-of-photography-a-t imeline/ Or http://tinyurl.com/28tfwno -------------------- Mark William Rabiner Photography http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/lugalrabs/ mark at rabinergroup.com Cars: http://tinyurl.com/2f7ptxb > From: Howard Cummer <cummer at netvigator.com> > Reply-To: Leica Users Group <lug at leica-users.org> > Date: Tue, 26 Oct 2010 05:16:55 +0800 > To: Leica Users Group <lug at leica-users.org> > Subject: [Leica] M/V Star Aquarius 90 Cron R on D700 > > Hi Luggers, > The recent typhoon blew away all the pollution and Hong Kong was in > brilliant sunshine on Sunday morning. We were up early with jet lag - > just back from Vancouver - and walked along the waterfront. Here is > the Star Aquarius coming into the harbour under blue skies from its > latest gambling cruise. > > http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/HK2010_001/ > > I have followed the many postings about the D700 started by Mark and > would comment that you makes your choices and you live with them. > I chose the D700 and will have shortly rebayonted all my R lenses to > leitax N mounts. Leica glass is in almost all cases the best one can > get - but since DMR backs are a dying breed - to keep using R glass > one needs to migrate the lenses to another platform. For my money, for > my uses, the D700 is simply the best around and I do enjoy getting out > and using the R lenses. For long telephoto work where quick accurate > focusing is required, based on my experience last year with Jayanand > shooting tigers in India, I have moved away from R glass because, Doug > is absolutely right, you need the auto diaphragm feature to enable > accurate wide open focusing and to maintain some depth of field. > So, I have sold my wonderful 180 f3.4 APO and my less wonderful 400 > Telyt and replaced them with the latest Nikkor 70 - 200 F2.8 VR and > the latest 2X extender. > These will get a workout, I hope, this coming year in Africa. Before > that I will see how the 21 - 35 Elmar performs on the D700 and whether > I should take it along. A concern for me is its lack of dust proofing. > Cheers > Howard (back home in Honkers) > > _______________________________________________ > Leica Users Group. > See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information