Which Leica is the best for street photography?
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carpediem007
Member
Hi cam...
I'd agree with jonastovall: no AE needed for street...
If you don't use transparency film, the latitude of b/w or color film will be enough to get good results. Just use an incident meter and adjust when lighting changes a lot. Even the exposure instructions supplied with every film should be more than O.K.
Or take a look at this thread: http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=34642
Lots of great "pocket exposure charts" and info about exposure in general... It's very helpful when you don't have to worry too much about fiddling with exposure. You'll be busy enough reacting to picture opportunities without getting distracted with camera settings...
Hope this helps... 🙂
Michael
PS: As to your opening question: I prefer my chrome M3 for street; after a CLA in Solms it's the finest/smoothest/quietest Leica I've handled to date, although sometimes people start asking questions about this "funny little, OOOOLD camera" (Old? it's a day younger than I am! Am I OLD?!?!?! 😀. So for the more "stealthy" stuff, I use either the M6 or one of the M4-Ps (all black)...
PPS: Greets from Cologne to my beloved Paris!!!
I'd agree with jonastovall: no AE needed for street...
If you don't use transparency film, the latitude of b/w or color film will be enough to get good results. Just use an incident meter and adjust when lighting changes a lot. Even the exposure instructions supplied with every film should be more than O.K.
Or take a look at this thread: http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=34642
Lots of great "pocket exposure charts" and info about exposure in general... It's very helpful when you don't have to worry too much about fiddling with exposure. You'll be busy enough reacting to picture opportunities without getting distracted with camera settings...
Hope this helps... 🙂
Michael
PS: As to your opening question: I prefer my chrome M3 for street; after a CLA in Solms it's the finest/smoothest/quietest Leica I've handled to date, although sometimes people start asking questions about this "funny little, OOOOLD camera" (Old? it's a day younger than I am! Am I OLD?!?!?! 😀. So for the more "stealthy" stuff, I use either the M6 or one of the M4-Ps (all black)...
PPS: Greets from Cologne to my beloved Paris!!!
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Bully
Established
The Leica M is THE BEST street camera!
Of the holy Leica M family the M7 is the quietest and the M8 the loudest.
I would recommend every single M. If low budget (...is it possible with the Leica brand?) is important then the models like M3, M4-2 and M6 are a good choice. If money is no issue then I would go to the modern family M7, MP or M8.
Of the holy Leica M family the M7 is the quietest and the M8 the loudest.
I would recommend every single M. If low budget (...is it possible with the Leica brand?) is important then the models like M3, M4-2 and M6 are a good choice. If money is no issue then I would go to the modern family M7, MP or M8.
Roger Hicks
Veteran
Dear Michael,
Substantial agreement, but I don't use an M3 (I sold my last one years ago) because 35mm is my standard lens. And I prefer the MP to the M2 because of the meter.
Cheers,
R.
rogue_designer
Reciprocity Failure
Personally - i think the M4 (not M4-2 or M4-P) is best. But I don't need a built in meter, and I like feel of the old brass gears. Get it painted black, and you're set forever.
That said. An M6 classic is probably the best compromise of features (meter, good viewfinder for 35mm and 50mm shooting) and price (1200-1500).
Ultimately - the one in your hand is the best one.
(and for full disclosure - I also found that the best leica for me to use for street was a canon P). 😉
That said. An M6 classic is probably the best compromise of features (meter, good viewfinder for 35mm and 50mm shooting) and price (1200-1500).
Ultimately - the one in your hand is the best one.
(and for full disclosure - I also found that the best leica for me to use for street was a canon P). 😉
rolly
Member
The two cities I love most to shoot in are NY and Paris, and I've put a lot of film through my MP in your city. I agree with Roger that the last Leica I would part with is the MP. But I started off with a used M6TTL, then used an M4p for a while and to my ears--not the most acute ears I admit-- there isn't much audible difference between these cameras, and both the 6 and the 4p are available in good clean specimens for half the cost of a new MP. There's a nice Leica shop over in the Bastille area. He sells some used Ms, take a look. (And with the Euro doing so well, then buy the model you like, if you want to go Leica, Stateside). And down the street from the Leica dealer is a rental shop where you can rent an M6 and test it for a day. Can't recall the name, but it is a few blocks from Bastille on east side of Beaumarchais. Dante Stella's website has very good write up of what the Hexar can do-- http://www.dantestella.com/technical/hexar.html Look in his photo galleries at some of the work shot with the Hexar. bonne chance
Roger Hicks
Veteran
Dear Rolly,
Absolutely. Quite honestly, noise levels wouldn't affect which Leica I chose -- or whether I chose a Retina (a lot quieter) or a Voigtländer (detectably noisier). FAR more important is how obtrusive you are as a photographer: whether you radiate confidence or guilt, etc.
And I've got a LOT of mileage out of "I've just bought a new camera [or lens] and I want to try it out" -- in my execrable French, "J'ai récemment acheté une nouvelle appareille [ou objectif] et j'ai envie de l'essayer". This places photography firmly in the consumerist realm that most people understand, even if they don't agree with it.
Cheers,
R.
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rolly
Member
I agree, Roger, about confidence. That's what to work at. Winogrand did a lot of his shooting in bustling places. I also enjoy more contemplative shooting in quieter streets, like Cam, but there's so much energy and interest in more crowded venues, and Paris has loads of places where you could easily become part of the background-- and so gain an ease with shooting in such places. If you watch how Cartier Bresson strolled around with his Leica behind his back, all sophisticated innocence, but the camera ready to shoot-- you realize that that kind of smoothness and ease is something you can learn. Someone posted YouTube clips of HCB in the streets of Paris not long ago. Worth watching. Rolly
helen.HH
To Light & Love ...
THREE CHEERS TO MFOGIEL, GARY , & ZEITOUN
For Saying:
The Zeiss Ikon
The Rollei 35S
AND
The one that leaves you enough money for a big pile of film.
And a comfortable pair of shoes.
Cheers ! -H 🙂
For Saying:
The Zeiss Ikon
The Rollei 35S
AND
The one that leaves you enough money for a big pile of film.
And a comfortable pair of shoes.
Cheers ! -H 🙂
le vrai rdu
Well-known
the best camera is the one you prefer to use 🙂
cam
the need for speed
i'm still taking all the advice in, trust me, and i appreciate every bit!
for all my newness, lack of confidence is not a problem. for a petite woman, i've got very large balls. i get into the zone and frankly forget everything else. i have no guilt. if there is something i feel moral qualms about shooting, i don't shoot it. period. no guilt.
Roger, i appreciate your phraseology -- i may borrow it 😀 i'm grateful that i have a very sunny, stupid, American smile that typically wins people over.
Rolly, yes, there are exciting places brimming with people and situations. i shoot there sometimes. but i prefer the real Paris to hoards of tourists. where i shoot here are places very few are likely to go. i like that. i want to show the extraordinary in the ordinary. that's what enchants me.
i have watched as many videos on the greats as i can and admire them all. but i am me. i have my own style and it suits me... if i could change anything, it would be my desire to shoot faster. that will come with time -- both ease with the rangefinder and the healing of my right elbow. i fractured it badly two years ago, have had three surgeries thus far, and am still in rehab to teach the muscles in my hand/arm/fingers to react strongly and quickly enough.
cam
the need for speed
rolly
Member
That sounds good, then! So then it sounds like the Hexar would be worth looking into, given your experience. all the best in your quest--rolly
Roger Hicks
Veteran
furcafe
Veteran
Roger Hicks
Veteran
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cam
the need for speed
i will treasure that thought.
(you may have to come up here and bail me out of jail, though)
andrealed
Established
Take a look at the Barnacks.
ciao
ciao
Bingley
Veteran
madsolitaire
Established
When i got my Hassey 500 C/M, i decided to try some street photography with it as well. My experience with the camera so far is that people hardly take notice of me. Perhaps it's becoz i'm always looking down at my camera (thru the waist-level finder) and they're not quite sure what i'm doing. And certainly, the Hassey is not quiet - but it doesn't seem to be a problem or get in the way of street photography.
Well, it's a huge chunk to carry around though as compared to a Leica or a Bessa.
Well, it's a huge chunk to carry around though as compared to a Leica or a Bessa.
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