Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/03/07

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Subject: RE: [Leica] Summicron 35/2 wide open
From: Walter S Delesandri <walt@jove.acs.unt.edu>
Date: Sun, 7 Mar 1999 15:37:16 -0600 (CST)

Thanks, BD...yeah, I thought I was "obsessive" about gear...
this has been a revelation for me......:) :)...I was 
under the impression that I didn't need to ever replace 
my "summicrons".....little did I know  :) :)
Walt

On Sun, 7 Mar
1999, B. D. Colen wrote:

> I never even THOUGHT about
> it's "performance"....it's Leica, so it's probably at least
> fair, but ya know what?  the pictures are sharp and hopefully
> meaningful....back to my LUG bashing, most "shooters" don't
> think about all this crap....they shoot, expecting the best,
> and usually get something OK.....if not, then they might
> worry about it....jeez
> 
> Walt
> 
> ----
> Good point, Walt. I must say that after hanging out on the LUG for a while
> now, I'm left wondering how every legendary photographer over the age of 50
> who ever shot with a Leica managed to become a "legend" using such inferior,
> crappy equipment. It's really astounding to think about what we were fooled
> into thinking was acceptable quality before the advent of the latest
> generation of lenses - how did HCB do it in 1938? How could Esie have
> possibly gotten the shots he did? And Larry Burrows? (Must have always been
> using Nikon! :-))Capa? Henri Huet? And those Jim Marshall shots we all
> thought were so spectacular? We must have been on acid! How could we
> possibly have thought those images were acceptable? Gene Smith? No wonder he
> did so much manipulating in the darkroom - he must have been making up for
> the inferior lens quality...
> 
> Yes, the latest lens are optically the best lenses. Yes, they will reduce or
> eliminate flare under circumstances where earlier generations would not
> have. Yes, they can give you the ability to count the seam threads on a pair
> of jeans at 20 yards.
> 
> But you're right Walt..."most 'shooters' don't
> think about all this crap....they shoot, expecting the best,
> and usually get something OK.....if not, then they might
> worry about it....jeez.."
> 
> And you know what, I'll be that when all is said and done, the "shooters" on
> this list like Eric, Tina, Ted, Harrison, etc., feel the same way when
> they're out shooting and not at the keyboard...
> 
> :-) B. D.
>