Re: [Leica] b.d.'s planning something dangerous!

[Krechtz@aol.com]

In a message dated 8/22/00 11:21:15 PM Eastern Daylight Time, 
rdandcb@cybermac.com.au writes:

<< What I need to do is get my hands on one of these M2 or 3 things that I
 keep reading about.  Then maybe I'll see the light about this flare >>

I use 2 M3's, and they do not flare the way my M6TTL .72 does.  Both M3 
finders are as crisp and contrasty as the best I have seen anywhere, but 
neither has the brilliance of the M6 finder, which appears visibly brighter 
and more contrasty.  I took one look at the .85 and wrote it off as too 
annoying, along the lines you have already expressed.  To me it looks like 
nothing more than a .72 with a magnifying lens inserted.  Move a little off 
center, and you start to see curvature distortion, much as with the "eyes" on 
a 135/2.8 Elmarit.  For high magnification, the best compromise appears to be 
the .91 M3, particularly for contrasty, potentially high-flare situations 
like stage lighting, especially with the 50 or 90 focal length.  For the 75, 
it may be more of a toss-up, although I do not know how usable the 75 lines 
are in the .85. 
To my eye, the outer unbroken frame line in the 90 BL Leitz finder yields a 
reasonable approximation of the 75 area, very close to the broken lines in 
the M6 TTL  finder.  I believe this would be my choice for theatre 
photography, in situations where the M6 flare becomes a problem.

Joe Sobel