Re: [Leica] Leica in the future

[RBedw51767@aol.com]

Sorry Irwin.  I understand that you are considered the absolute in lense
testing but if I am investing my dollars in Leica lenses I am going to go to a
source that uses the lenses day-in and day-out for my references.   Eric, not
one time to my knowledge, has ever complained about someone else's opinion.
He has never been emphatic, argumentative or condescending.   He has
unselfishly provided his opinions and suggestions without reservation.  I have
purchased several Leica items based solely on his opinion and never been
disappointed.

It has been my experience that what one considers to be their level of
authority may be totally different from what the general consensus is.  If you
contributed half as much as Eric has contributed the group would be better for
it.   This reminds me of a child that has not gotten their way and turns their
lip up and pouts....so be it.   

Bob Bedwell



<< Someone wrote that he would bet that the current line of M lenses would be
 the last one and many persons speculated about the future of Leica products
 looking for clues from financial reports and words from the new CEO.
 Leica-watching for Luggers is as natural as kremlin-watching was for the
 CIA. I would say, both still have to score one significant point. The wave
 of insanity that engulfed the Lug the last weeks, only points to one
 conclusion. If every Lugger would confine his contributions to his own
 frame of reference or proven area of competence, we would vastly expand our
 common knowledge and reduce the traffic by a factor of 10.
 I myself cannot contribute to the Lug anymore since Eric in his Olympic
 wisdom has decreed that testers of lenses have worthless information about
 lenses compared to his own views.
 Still for the some of you who assume that the area of competence of real
 photographers should be confined to that part of reality (taking pictures)
 and that optical design, analysis and testing  is just not an area that
 most real photographers are qualified to have a valid opinion about. Real
 photographers are also not qualified to discuss the crashtest methods used
 in the automobile industry, even if some drive cars. I distract a little,
 but feel very much upset by Eric and a few others who stubbornly and
 erroneously decree (without any rational argument) tthat testing lenses in
 a scientific way is a futile excercise and that only real photographers
 have the right to allow themselves a serious opinion about lenses. To set
 things straight: ANYONE, not only Eric is entitled to have any opinion
 about any lens. And if opinions disagree is is not by definition that Eric
 is right (even if that is his right to think so). It might be that Peter K
 is right.
 It might even be that the tester is right. To elaborate on this topic would
 be another post.
 The current lens line for the M is not the end , but just the beginning of
 a new and exciting era of lens design.
 Just 20 years ago Dr Heynacher (from Zeiss, Marc!!) predicted (and his
 predictions are serious stuff as he is a real expert) that we are in the
 Stone Age as far as lens design goes. Especially as we continue to get into
 the intricacies of mastering  the aspherics challenge, we will see
 importent  improvements in the near future, but at a price.
 I know (now I am in my area of expertise) that Leica engineering staff has
 many new lenses on or even beyond drawing board  stage. It will be  easy to
 make some common sense hunches, so I will not give any details here. The
 new designs go beyond what is now possible in the Apo-Sumicron ASPH, the
 Apo-Telyt or the Elmarit  24 ASPH, these three currently  belonging to the
 top contenders for ultimate image quality.
 Which of these designs will see the end of the assembly line no one knows.
 But the idea that Leica has stopped  their search for the ultimate quality
 lens, has no factual basis at all. Not for the M and not for the R.
 I will not talk about the future of the M or the R as a camera system (not
 my specialty). But you can infer from the ongoing research into new lenses
 that is will not be done for dead bodies.
 
 
 Erwin
  >>