Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1998/09/09

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Subject: Re: [Leica] m3/m6 wide angle advise
From: pcb@iac.co.jp (Paul C. Brodek)
Date: Thu, 10 Sep 1998 02:29:40 +0900

Hi Gerry,

On Wed, 9 Sep 1998 01:20:57 EDT, Gwpics@aol.com wrote:

>I currently use an M6 with an M3 in reserve but rarely used.   My wide =
angle
>is an old Summaron 35mm with specs but I now want to replace this with a=
 28mm
>more suitable for the M6.
>
>Will I be able to use the new lens on the M3 with the turret viewfinder =
that I
>have (Russian but inc. 28mm) and if I do how will I focus? =20
You would focus normally through the M3 finder, then move your eye to
the turret viewfinder to compose/frame the image and trip the shutter.
I find this pretty easy to do; some have a hard time getting used to
using an external viewfinder.  If your subject is moving a lot it can
get tedious, I guess, having to switch back and forth several times
before tripping the shutter.

>Will it give me the 50mm brightline through the camera viewfinder
I can never keep this straight!  I also can't remember whether the
50mm framelines are visible all the time in the M3 or only when a lens
that selects the 50mm framelines is mounted.  Hopefully somebody else
can help here----however, whether the 50, 90 or 135 framelines are
projected, obviously none of them are correct and you need a separate
viewfinder for accurate framing of a 28mm lens.

>Or should I hang on to the Summaron and buy the
>new lens without trading in the old?   Remember that I now rarely use =
the M3.=20
I may be more diseased than most, but there are few Leica lenses I've
traded away that I didn't later regret giving up.  They take up so
little room, don't beg to be fed, upkeep costs are low---the more the
merrier, says I!  If you have the Summaron 35/3.5 you can probably
easily remove the specs and use the lens without specs on the M6.  If
it's the Summaron 35/2.8 removing the specs requires surgery, I think,
but even with specs the lens will mount and focus on your M6.  Don't
know what framlines will appear, and there may be viewfinder
magnification wierdness, but you have the turret finder so why not use
it on the M6?

There's also the not insignificant question of how you see and whether
a 28mm is more or less useful to you than a 35mm.  If I could only
have one lens it would be a 35mm, then a 50mm, then a 28mm (sounds
like I'm a candidate for the Tri-Elmar!); some could live happily with
only a 28mm.  Your turret finder can help here----switch back and
forth between the 28/35mm settings and think about what you see.

Best Regards,

PB     =20

Paul C. Brodek
Kobe, Japan
pcb@iac.co.jp