[Leica] Using the R8 & 50 Summicron

["Robert Rose" <rjr@usip.com>]

On a recent trip to Arizona, I decided to try and travel light with an R8.  

I left the motor winder at home, and only took one lens, the 50 Summicron-R and the SF-20 flash.

I was simply delighted.  The SF-20 is adequate and easy to use for daylight fill flash, and much much lighter than the Metz 40. The flash automatically goes into 1 2/3 stop under mode when the camera is set to P and you are outdoors.  In Arizona, with the high contrast from the bright sun and deep shadows, fill flash is welcome, especially when shooting E100 VS.  The SF-20 is a perfect travel companion.  Indoors you get no red eye, and it is adequate.  I do miss the bounce/fill in of the Metz, but not its weight.

It was hard remembering to advance the shutter without the winder, but the lower weight and reduced noise more than made up for it.

The 50 Summicron-R (a recent acquisition from Rich Pinto) was the biggest pleasure.  This is one terrific lens.  Using the M system you never get the pleasure of "seeing" through the lens.  Until now I had been using the f/4 35-70 Zoom, or f/2.8 lenses.  What a difference.  Looking through the R8 high eye point finder through an f/2 Summicron is like looking at a brilliant movie.  The built in retractable hood is also very convenient.

I tried taking available light pictures, similar to what I would take with an M.  The results at f/2 (on Fuji Professional Press 800) were every bit the equal of my M lenses.  Same glow and feel.  (Okay I am sure there are differences, but my wife still said, "wow these are great.")

Also, I took some really nice time exposures of the University of Arizona campus at night.  With the R8 this was very easy; it would have been more difficult with the M for exposures over 1 second.

With the winder off, and the small 50 on front, I found the R8 noisier than an M, but not so obtrusive that it interfered with the subjects.  They soon ignored me, as they do with the M.

As for the convenience of a zoom, it is clearly there, but I learned to back up or move forward.  The 2 stops and small size made all the difference in the world in being able to use the camera in available light.  (I did find that I could not hand hold it to the same low speed as an M, however.)  As for the viewfinder magnification, it is close to 1:1 (the 60mm seems exactly 1:1) so you could keep both eyes open, but I seem not to with the SLR although I do it with the M.

Oh, and using the matrix meter for the chromes there was not a single missed exposure.

Just thought you would like a user's report for a change.  No charts, no graphs.  Just a happy camper.

Bob Rose