Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/06/07
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]>A great Advertising campaign for Leica cameras M and R could be: >Leica >Who do you think you are anyway? >You don't deserve them. You can't have them. Forget about it. >The Leica Camera company. >CO Mark Rabiner >> Yeah... This is good in any case... Leica needs some horsepower. Leica excelling in Leicality Auto to unimaginable advancements. A boundary here - but how and can it be defined. Is it plausible. I'll defend my M stuff without giving this any thought or care. But then come the complexities.. Two questions: (1)If we take this idea and assume that Leica 'can' do 'their own thing' (excuse the generalities...) then we can bypass the exponentially progressive inventions in autoeverystuff. Of course we they're not mutually exclusive. But pretend they are (easy enough). So Leica does not follow the automass, but continues to be Leica, the way we like 'em (..u know) Then the 'isolated' question is one that I surely cannot answer or even predict - How (assuming Leica "CAN") much 'better' can it get without getting progressively more assimilated into upcoming accuracy, etc. in auto...? I ask this as a technical question. Those with a more advanced knowledge of optics, etc may have some insights. As Mark's ad is not Yet on the current lens boxes, what can we expect of Leica's words "Highest optical performance to the limits of technical feasibility." We have seen a new generation of lenses that do indeed (more than they do not) push the limits of technical feasibility. For example - the 35 M. It is now available as asph. which we could consider an improvement. Fast? Well, it's tough to assess the summic vs. summil in terms of pushing performance. Leica used the words "highest optical feasibility" not applications. So extra-stops may be useful, but can we assume more precise? Perhaps. Presently the 35 summilux has shown no improvement over the 35 summicron (both asph) 'across the scale' . If anything the summicron will, under given conditions, 'optically' perform to the limit. So are we to think in terms of 'conveniences' or 'optical precision'. And if the latter, how far can this go without really spilling over into the autoworld? (2)As I print my good slides (1/72) (all color) I am falling into digital output (yes...they are running me through the fujix 4000 as a special test...) All my M-ness - how much is gone? None? Interneg/R-prints Ilfochrome/Lightjet/Inkjet/Summijet - are any of these 'preserving' my M-ness? Was printing 20 yrs ago anymore 'in bounds' to what the M offers than now? Why (not)? If this is not answered properly, I'm throwing everything away - except my limited-edition stylus epic. New Ad: Leica: Old, not improved! or Leica: Highest nanometer precision to the limits of the unseen!