Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1996/08/02
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]At 11:47 AM 8/2/96 PDT, ThomasP@nacm.com wrote: >Mine is superior to the earlier one I owned and used for many years. That > was a dual range model. The black one is lighter, too! Great for >close-ups, but Leitz did specify that the M3 would not rangefinder-couple >all the way. Planned obsolescence for the M3? Well, "superior" is a relative term, I guess. I've owned three collapsible, two rigids, two NF's, two second-generation, and three current-generation lenses. Of these, the two NF's were the most satisfactory to me in terms of both contrast and resolution. The second-generation were the least satisfactory, as well as being the most poorly constructed. The current version was deliberately designed to overcome the poor reputation from which the second-generation lens suffered. The first-generation rigid was the next most satisfactory, followed by the collapsible. The current version came next. The second-generation lens, politely, is a dog. The market bears this out: there's little demand for used second-generation lenses and they usually sell at a discount compared to the earlier or later versions. If you've got one you like, more power to you, and I'm ecstatic you're pleased. But the community attitude among Leica users has never been very positive about this lens. Marc msmall@roanoke.infi.net FAX: +540/343-7315 Cha robh bas fir gun ghras fir!