Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2007/10/23

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Subject: [Leica] Getting into Leica
From: don.dory at gmail.com (Don Dory)
Date: Tue Oct 23 18:05:15 2007
References: <b779c01b0710231003u28fe08f0x2cdbdbf764bfa2c2@mail.gmail.com>

Justin,
Just to be a curmudgeon, go to the LUG archives and do searches on
this topic.  We have this discussion many times in any two year
period.

My two cents is to rent an M from Photovillage for a week to see if
you are a rangefinder shooter.  If you find seeing the image during
exposure a liberating experience then purchasing an M6 will be a low
risk endeavor.

However, if focusing with a rangefinder patch is just not your cup of
tea then figure out what lenses really provide the images you like.
If fast 35's and 50's are your idea of a perfect focal length then a
SL or R would be a great choice as these lenses are plainly superior
in the Leica world over the Nikon world.  Other windows of advantage
Leica would be 28's, 19's, 100 Macro, 180 and 280.

My personal recomendation would be a clean SL and a 35 F2 with a 90
APO F2 as a clean two lens package.  Add in a 19 and a 180 and you can
still have not spent all the F5 money unless you opt for the 180 F2.

On the other hand, if you opt for the rangefinder world and find
manual cameras what work then find a ratty M3 or M2 and pay Sherry
Krauter or DAG a few hundred dollars to do a proper CLA.  There are so
many lenses that are so interesting that we could spend weeks
discussing merits focal length by focal length.  With the M you can go
back 70 years in optical design from all over the world to get just
the image you want.

On 10/23/07, Justin F. Knotzke <jknotzke@shampoo.ca> wrote:
>    Hi,
>
>   Would someone be as so kind as to point me to a FAQ or a website that
> gives recommendations on a first Leica ?
>
>   I currently shoot with a Nikon F5 with 17-35mm and a 50mm as well as a
> Hasselblad 501 c/m and a Shen Hao 4x5. I'm thinking of dumping the Nikon
> gear for something lighter. I'm looking for a good working camera, not a
> collector's item.
>
>    Thanks
>
>     J
>
> --
> Justin F. Knotzke
> jknotzke@shampoo.ca
> http://www.shampoo.ca
>
> _______________________________________________
> Leica Users Group.
> See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information
>


-- 
Don
don.dory@gmail.com

In reply to: Message from jknotzke at shampoo.ca (Justin F. Knotzke) ([Leica] Getting into Leica)