Re: [Leica] Making the M6 discrete

[Shawn London <srlondon@ibm.net>]

>From:        Chandos Michael Brown, cmbrow@mail.wm.edu

>I agree with MJ Small that Leicas don't draw especial attention, not as
>much say, as my Canon AE-1 with its mammoth 35-105/3.5 zoom.  Thugs don't
>know Leicas from Kodaks, and in the circumstances where your camera is fair
>game, *any* camera is fair game. 

This is an excellent point.  Regardless of how much more upset I'd be if 
my M6 got stolen off my shoulder than my Canon EOS, I doubt that I would 
be any less likely to be robbed with the Canon rather than the Leica.  A 
petty thief on the street steals first and looks later.  Nobody but a 
camera aficionado is going to whip out a Leica pocket guide and try to 
look up a serial number before grabbing a camera.

The general idea, as I see it, is to minimize exposure to theft in the 
first place.  I tend to carry a CL in cities in which I am uncomfortable, 
because the camera can be easily stashed in the pocket of a pair of khaki 
pants (w/ the 40mm Rokkor/Summicron mounted., of course... don't try this 
with a Noctilux).  When I want to take a picture, the camera is only in 
view for a short time, and is largely inaccessible anyway.  For an M, I 
use a strap on the long side, and wear the camera over my shoulder on the 
inside of a coat.  The long strap lets you swing the camera out of the 
front and up to your eye while wearing the camera.  No help in warm 
weather, though.

As far as the children's photography thread goes, the child is no more of 
a target with a Leica than any other camera.  If you're allowing your son 
or daughter to go out in an unsafe area with Leica or non-Leica bait 
hanging around his or her neck, you have bigger problems than camera 
selection for the kid.