Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2005/02/20
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]I think your statistics are right on. In 40 years of regular travel around the United States, Europe and Africa, I saw only one guy carrying a Leica. Then, last Saturday, here were five of them (actually four guys and a gal - she had the M3) carrying six Leicas in total. Amazing! It was probably just a statistical fluke aided by the enormous numbers of people in the park that day. Aided, too, I suspect, by the fact that is was an art event and as such, more likely to bring out the affluent crowd than, say, a rock concert. I did see one meterless Nikon F, a Pentax SLR and a few other film SLRs I couldn't identify. That's it. It does argue for the Leica M's staying power. Regards, Dick Boston MA >statisically, you are rather unlikely to see leicas in public at all -- >consider, what is the seriel number of the newest Leica? In the 4 >million range? 5 >million, tops? > >That means maybe 4 million of them made since 1926. By the mid-50s they had >made 1 million, and most of those are probably sitting on shelves or in >boxes >or got blown up in the Hindenberg or something. That leaves 3 million >still >in circulation, more or less. > >Now, how many own more than one? Everyone on this list, so the number on the >street on any given day is reduced again, unless I want to walk around with >8 >of them around my neck (including the Model C). > >So on any given day I'd bet, world wide, there's not more than 2 million >Leicas up and running with film in them, ready to be used. And that is >world-wide, spread among how many billions of people? Maybe half of >those cameras are >in the United States, with 280 million people, and I'd bet only a small >percentage of them are in New York City. > >So, the miracle is that you saw any at all, and given that number I'd have >to >say the Leica is still wildly popular. Consider: Minolta has made 10s of >millions of SRT model single lens reflex cameras. How may of those >did you see? >How many Nikon Fs? How many Canon Fs? > >Not a one, I bet. > >c trentelman >In a message dated 2/20/05 6:55:24 AM, lug-request@leica-users.org writes: > > >> >> Message: 32 >> Date: Sun, 20 Feb 2005 08:54:10 -0500 >> From: "Richard S. Taylor" <r.s.taylor@comcast.net> >> Subject: [Leica] Leica Sightings >> To: lug@leica-users.org >> Message-ID: <p06200712be3e40e2f1dc@[10.0.1.2]> >> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" ; format="flowed" >> >> I almost never see other folks with Leicas when I travel. Yesterday, >> at "The Gates" in New York's Central Park, where just about every >> other person was using a digital P&S, I saw the following: >> >> 1 M7 >> 2 M6 Classics >> 1 M3 wearing a collapsible Summicron >> 1 Digilux 1 >> 1 Digilux 2. >> >> That's the record for the "Most-Leica-Sightings-In-One-Place" award >> in my experience (other than at Leica meetings,of course). All were >> being "worn" on the chest, BTW; none were in use. >> >> Most of the DSLRs I saw were various flavors of Nikons. I saw a few >> film SLRs, including one old no-meter Nikon F. >> >> The Park was a mobbed; more crowded than I've ever seen it. Shutters >> clicked continuously. I even caught a few people taking pictures of >> *me* while I was taking pictures of others - unfair! >> >> I was using my M7 and hope to have some pictures to post in a couple of >> days. >> -- >> Regards, >> >> Dick >> Boston MA >> > >_______________________________________________ >Leica Users Group. >See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information