Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2001/11/05
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Dear Kyle, I was sort of a _camera swapper_ those days; it was after the AE1, though; I made a lot of pics with Canon 7, with various Leicas II & III, Pentaxes, Rolleis - so I really do understand - well enough IMHO - that all of them were good cameras - NUG, PUG, other users groups have got their reasons to love their gear and make good use of it. What I tried to say was: for me nothing beats Leica - and Nikon Fs (I've got MF Nikons only). And I perfecty understand - what works well for one person, doesn't work for another. But then - you are not lauding the merits of some really cheap-plastic-lens-camera - are you? If I try to describe the results, Nikon lens produced what I'd call _a rougher image_, while Leica provided a better _micro-contrast_ - the terms are not too technical, are they? I briefly tried to use a Canon Ftb with a 1.4/50, too - and liked it better somehow, but then I didn't need to have it, as I had my Nikon already. (I haven't used Nikon RFs.) After all - basically you can tell the difference mainly if working in BW - IMHO, again. On the other topic - actually I think PAW - although I don't take part in it - is a much better idea than _a contest_ the other user groups employ. There's no sports race in picture-taking. It's more of a contemplation thing. Yours Martin I swapped this [snip[ for a Nikon F with the old 2/50 lens. >I kept using the same developers, processes, you name it. >And the next day - all of a sudden - I was a better >photographer! Just because THE CAMERA PERFORMED! >The next step for me was Leica M3 - complete with Summarit >1.5/50 and Summaron 3.5/35. AND AGAIN IT WAS A STEP >UPWARDS! Just don't tell me my professional improvements >simply coincided with the moments I switched to a different >camera maker. I really mean it - it is easier to be a good >photographer with a Leica, but it i'm really skeptical to think of someone at the stage in their career where simply switching cameras, which for all intents and purposes are very similar (no light meter, AE modes, no real difference in lens capability, shutter speeds, apetures, etc.) will radically change their photographs for the better. from a technical standpoint, it's very difficult to quantify the "performance" differences between a nikon F and a Leica M3, unless you're gauging performance by the number of cameras you can stick in a sandwitch bag. i'm also terribly skeptical that it's "easier to be a good photographer with a Leica". i think it's terribly difficult to be a photographer at _all_ with a Leica -- hand it to the average Man on the Street and you'll get photos that look like Rudi Guliani's. The Leica M is a very difficult camera to use. My mom does great with a Canon Rebel and I'm sure she'd do equally great with a nikon N80 but a Leica would not help her.... And as for Leica making people better photographers than Nikons, has anybody taken a look over at the Nikon mailing list homepage lately? I hate to say it, but I don't think we've been producing work like this: http://www.nikonlist.com/trees/1.htm Which brings up a challenge: The nikon mailing list has a photo contest every month, would anybody be interested in challenging them? the LUG vs the NUG every month? I'm game if anybody else is. It could serve to improve our game. just my .02, take it for what it's worth..... kc p.s.: >But - please - don't tell me you can't tell the difference between properly >developed Leica negs/pictures - and those taken by a different maker >camera/lens. Because I'm no magician or superman - and I can. mike johnson proposed another challenge a few years back, he was going to make up a bunch of prints and send them around to people and have them vote: nikon, leica, pentax, etc. i remember he got a raft of fertilizer for trying and think he gave up, but it's a noble idea and one i'd like to see tried. i can tell my leica 35mm from my cosina 35mm lenses, but only because the leica lens has seperation haze..... anybody want to put that together? i'd really be interested in seeing the results, only because i can't tell in my own photos, & i'm just wondering if i should cut back on smoking crack. - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html