[Leica] Newbie wades in, lured by the Noctilux

[sleighteem at mn.rr.com (The Sleighteem)]

Hi.

After reading numerous Leica FAQ's and M guides, I submit the following:

I believe I'm what you'd call a budding Noctilooney.  I have never used an M 
camera, but right now I'm deep in my Web researches to select and buy my 
first one solely to harness the Noctilux.  I'm the first to admit that I'm 
smitten and not exactly rational.  Here I am poised to spend upwards of 
three-thousand dollars just so I can create images which appear as though 
they were made by a large format camera.  Is shallow depth of field really 
something to loose your head over?  Maybe.  Maybe not.  I find it 
intoxicating, others find it nausiating (Nausilux).  All's I did was look at 
some Noctilux image galleries on the Web and my quest was born.  If this is 
folly, would you snap me out of it?  Otherwise, could I trouble you to read 
my questions below and offer some advice?

First, the body:

The M3's stand-out EBL makes it a contender, but the improvements to the M4 
make it more desirable to me.  Am I missing something important?  I think 
I'm willing to sacrifice some EBL to gain the rewind crank and the speedier 
film loading.  I thought I'd sooner have the 4 than the 4-2 or 4-P.  I would 
have to add a hot shoe, but I'm willing to do that just to have the slightly 
better (?) VF/RF.  Yes, I see the 6 Classic and TTL bodies are practically 
clogging eBay these days, but I thought the 4 could still be had for less.  
My prior RF experience is limited to Graflex press cameras, stereo cameras, 
and the Texas Leica (Fuji's GS690).  I have always preferred SLR's, but I'm 
willing to give up their framing/focusing convenience just to shoot the Noct.

Next, the Noct version: 

I'm chasing the first incarnation 'cause it has the slightly smaller filter 
size.  I have this notion that overall barrel could be a tad more svelt than 
that of the subsequent versions (why I think that, I'm not sure - if all of 
them have the same glass, shouldn't they all have the same dimensions?).  
Will I end up paying a premium for the first Noct?  Perhaps the bargain 
specimens tend to be the second version.  Can you confirm this?  I read that 
a retailer in LA will rent you a Noctilux for the weekend for a cost of 
$100.  That seems reasonable, but I live in the midwest.  As crazy as it 
sounds, I may just have to buy a whole outfit just to experiment with this 
lens.  But I wouldn't call it pure extravagance 'cause I look forward to 
shooting the 35/1.4 and the 21/3.4 also [some day].  

Lastly, if anyone has a body or lens to lend (sell) to my cause, I would 
love to hear about it.

Thanks for your attention, and thanks in advance for any/all advice!

Sleighteem