Re: [Leica] PMA'd out and the M7

[Henry Ting <henryting10@yahoo.com>]

Very useful information on the M7.
About the brass top-plate. I think the classic M6 have
the brass bottom plate, but it sure did not produce a
glowing patina after my years of use. It was just as
ugly as the zinc top in black. I think the black
chrome is very different from black paint, after the
aging process.

- --- TTAbrahams@aol.com wrote:
> We are back after 9 days on the "road". The trip
> included 4 days at the Nikon 
> Historical Society's biannual meeting in Scottsdale,
> Arizona and after that 4 
> days at PMA in Orlando, Florida. It was my first
> trip since I got sick so it 
> was much anticipated. Too much time had passed
> without meeting with friends 
> and discussing important subjects like cameras,
> where to eat, more cameras, 
> and where to eat after that! Part of the reason for
> going to PMA was to see 
> the new M7, although most of it was to meet with
> Bill Rosauer, Dick Gladden 
> (LHSA President), Ed Schwartzreich, Sal DiMarco,
> John Barnabas, and friends 
> from Leica Germany and USA. I had seen the M7 in a
> variety of disguises and 
> as drawings and parts in Solms. My feeling was
> lukewarm as the idea of an AE 
> M camera really did not turn my crank and I went to
> PMA with the feeling that 
> this would be the end result. I was handed a black
> M7 and spent the better 
> part of two days shooting with it and came away with
> a certain admiration for 
> the camera. It is still a Leica M at heart; it feels
> like a TTL and behaves 
> like one too. Once I got it in my hands I quickly
> substituted the regular 
> baseplate for a Rapidwinder and set the camera to
> Auto function. In its 
> manual mode it is another TTL so my mission was to
> see how well the AE 
> function operated. I am happy to report that I like
> it! The AE function makes 
> it usable as a street shooter's camera; just set the
> aperture and go forth 
> shooting.
> Amazingly enough the M7 feels quieter than the
> M6TTL, almost at the sound 
> level of a well run-in double stroke M3. Finders and
> controls are logical to 
> a long term M-user, nothing new there and Leica
> claims that they have solved 
> the glare-problem that has been dogging the M6TTL's.
> I saw no flare in use so 
> maybe they did it and I will give them the benefit
> of doubt. The "tester" was 
> a 0,72 version and I have never had much of a
> problem with flare in that 
> version anyway. The finder display of the
> shutterspeed was a tad too bright 
> for my taste, but the camera I used was a very early
> one (# 47) and Stefan 
> Daniel (Leica, Solms) assured me that it has been
> adjusted in the production 
> models. I did not have an instruction book as Bill
> Rosauer had left that in 
> his jacket at the hotel so throughout the 48 hours I
> suffered from the 
> misunderstanding that the M7 did not have an
> AE-lock. Upon returning the 
> camera, I asked Stefan about this omission and he
> promptly showed me the 
> AE-lock function. You depress the shutterspeed dial
> slightly further than at 
> "reading mode" and it will freeze the setting. Nice
> touch! Oh, the M7 works 
> very well with the Softrelease too. In fact, I think
> it needs it, as the 
> release is slightly "notchy" in feel. This stems
> from the fact that the 
> downward pressure on the release engages contacts
> that switches on the meter 
> and also engages the AE-lock. Leica even had made a
> small batch of their own 
> Softreleases, not as nice as mine (so I am biased)
> as it has a smaller 
> diameter "head" on it, thus negating the benefit of
> "2nd finger joint 
> release" action. It can be said though that the
> Leica M7 Softrelease works 
> very well on the Bessa R and T.
>  The On/Off switch under the advance lever is a long
> awaited feature, should 
> have been on the M6/M6TTL from day one!
> Unfortunately, it is somewhat 
> confusing as it shows a red dot in locked position
> but no indicator dot in 
> "live" mode. I prefer indicators to show active
> functions rather than a 
> "non-function".  It is also difficult to see the red
> dot on a black body in 
> low light, although that is a minor beef as a quick
> glance in the viewfinder 
> will confirm if the camera is on or not. When you
> switch it on it will 
> display the ASA setting of the film (at least if the
> camera is in DX mode) 
> for about 2 seconds after which the shutterspeed
> display takes over.
>  In short, I have only a couple of niggling
> negatives about the M7. The 
> On/Off switch and the "over" bright display among
> them and in the display 
> case, it has been fixed in production models. Now
> the other question is: is 
> this a revolutionary camera? No, I do not think so;
> it is more of an 
> alternative to any M6 out there. It offers some
> features that are welcome, 
> but as a whole, it is not as big a deal as Leica has
> made it. It is well 
> built with a proper top-plate in brass (which offers
> up possibilities of a 
> rainbow of coloured M7's in the future!). It is
> amazingly quiet, the exposure 
> system is convenient to use, and quite precise
> (particularly if one figures 
> out the AE-lock, which is no fault of Leica's by any
> means). It seems that 
> the price is going to be around $2,300 or so in US$.
> Not cheap by any means, 
> but Leica never really catered to low-cost cameras
> anyway. Would I buy one? 
> In fact, I have ordered one and according to Leica
> USA shipments should be 
> prompt. Let's see about that. I would also suggest
> that prospective buyers 
> buy Leica USA "sanctioned" M7's as I assume that the
> 3-year warranty applies 
> to these cameras. This is a relatively new
> technology (for Leica at least) 
> and I would prefer to have the security of being
> able to send it to Leica USA 
> for a repair or quick fix if needed. At least I have
> already been "trained" 
> to carry spare batteries with the M6TTL as the M7
> defaults to 1/60 and 1/125 
> of a second when the batteries die!
>   There were more things at PMA. I had the
> opportunity to try out the Bessa 
> R2 (the Bessa with M-mount). This is the new Bessa
> and it is a great camera. 
> For about US$525-550 you get a M2 with a built in
> meter and all metal body 
> (Magnesium top-plate/base and backdoor) and for
> another $100 you get it in 
> Olive Green too. The camera feels rock solid, almost
> like an old Contax 
> II/III. I will do a separate write up on that camera
> and some of the new 
> lenses for it. I did try out the Konica 21-35
> M-mount lens on the M7 and will 
> let you know how that one worked once I get those
> films processed.
>  It was great to travel again, and in spite of
> having my shoes X-rayed in 
> Phoenix, it was a smooth trip. 
> All the best,
> Tom A
> 
> Tom Abrahamsson
> Vancouver, BC
> Canada
> --
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