[Leica] The one and only new M6 feature that I would like

[Jim Brick <jim@brick.org>]

A lot of stuff has been said about M7 features, mostly electronic in
nature. But coming from the R world, there is one item of the M6 that just
bugs the hell out of me. That is... many of the best lenses cut off a good
portion of the viewfinder. To me, this is a serious drawback. This is why I
don't have a TriElmar, a Noctilux, a 75 Summilux, etc. The 35/1.4 ASPH is
about my limit as to how much viewfinder area I can live without. Here is a
magnificent camera, stellar lenses, but you cannot see what you are
photographing. For transparencies, this is bad. Even B&W, as you may not be
able to crop out the garbage that somehow crept into the obscured frame,
without ruining the overall impact. I know... Photoshop it!!! :) Bad plan.
Digital files for 16x20's and larger are huge and costly. Plus, I'm a
darkroom person so I would require film output. Too much money for a single
print.

So the single feature I would like to see is a variable focal length
viewfinder. Keep the 35mm frameline (great on the M6 Classic because you
can see beyond the frame) and correct the optics to match the focal length
of the lens. The Linhof Multifocal finder does just that. Actually, the
Linhof finde, I believe, is a zoom. So the optics cannot be that difficult.
I mean, if you can make a Noctilux, you can certainly switch in correction
lenses instead of frame lines.

My only M6(7) wish... and no, I won't take that bet with Erwin. I would bet
that Erwin is correct.

Jim