Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/03/01

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Subject: [Leica] RE: Leica vs. Contax wars
From: Javier Perez <japho@cunyvm.cuny.edu>
Date: Wed, 01 Mar 2000 06:42:28 -0500

"This strikes me as a troll, but he misses the point completely because the
"Contax is, as I and others have said, not a rangefinder camera. On this basis
"I dismiss the paragraph as purile nonsense.


This sounds almost like a legal argument designed to get a particular camera exempt
from import duties in a country with with an archaic import taxation policy.
Unfortunately any amateur photo-litigator could tear it apart. Observe

1) The simple man's argument
Photo magazines are full of "rangefinder"  cameras that didn't posess a true
triangulating
range-finder. There are zone focusing models as well as models with finder windows
designed
purely for viewing. All of them are accepted as rangefinder cameras in that they
aren't
reflex cameras.

2) The more elegant argument
The G2 is a rangefinder camera compleatly and absolutely. Sure it's AF
but range-finding is an activity not a method. It doesn't require any mechanical
contraption whatever, just a gadget that sez how far. Therefore the G2 is a
rangefinder
based camera which uses a hybrid opto-electronic rangefinder which happens to
require
no range evaluation on the part of the defendant. The M6* remains the king of the
optical range-finding cameras.


Personally I'll stick with the M because I like it so much better but I won't try to
disqualify
the competition with hair-splitting arguments.


Javier