[Leica] trip to Armenia

[Charles Dunlap <cdunlap@es.UCSC.EDU>]

In April I packed my M6 and four lenses into a small camera bag and went to
Armenia for a month to teach a class on environmental science. I was
fortunate to have contacts there and travel into the countryside on the
weekends. I also went to Nagorno-Karabagh, an autonomous region of
Azerbaijan that gained independence in a war that ended in 1994. No peace
treaty has been signed, but the cease fire seems likely to hold. Armenia
and Azerbaijan are discussing a permanent end.

The Leica was a joy to use, and produced some keepers. I gained a new
respect for the M6 on this trip, and wouldn't trade it for any other
camera. I'm currently working on a web site of the pictures and will post
the URL as soon as it's in a respectable form.

Having the whole set of equipment (camera and lenses) fit in one
purse-sized bag was very convenient. In addition to the M6 I carried a
current-model 50/2, 90/2.8, and a Canadian 35/2. I also have a Russar
20/5.6 with LTM adaptor. I shot about 65% of the time with the 35
Summicron, used the 90 and 50 more often on landscapes, and found that I
would have really missed some good photos without the 20. All lenses
performed beautifully, though some day I'd like to get the Leica 21 ASPH;
the Russar isn't quite up to the level of the Leica lenses (but fills in
well for the time being).

I shot 29 rolls of film: 20 Fuji Astia, five Kodachrome E200 pushed to 800
(for church interiors--excellent results), and 4 Velvia (in my Nikon FM2
with 60 micro lens for close-ups.). I really like the Astia for it's
overall performance: excellent skin tones, neutral whites and greys, and
vibrant greens with just enough warmth and saturation to satisfy me. It
gives me a stop more sensitivity than Velvia and also more shadow detail.
With the Leica glass it works well, in my opinion, to retain the overall
clarity (read reduced flare and  enhanced microcontrast) of the lenses that
distinguishes them.

One of my favorite photos is this one of a herdsman we met on the road to
Karabagh:

http://www.surfnetusa.com/cdunlap/herdsman.html

It was taken on Astia with the 90/2.8, f/4 or f/5.6 at 1/250 hand held.

- -Charlie