My First Rangefinder, A Leica M2 !

[mynikonf2]

Well I finally did it; I bought my first Leica, a M2 w/quick load spool. I did this after 35 years, a die hard Nikon SLR man. I purchased my camera from a RFF member & it is a beauty! Before this purchase I read many postings here and places like photo.net & Camera Quest. I wanted to learn from people who have a lot of practical experience using rangefinder cameras. I wanted to know which are the best cameras out there. This can be overwhelming because there are a lot of passionate opinions to be found. After a lot of reading & a loooong period of thought, I came to the decision that the M2 would best suite my needs.
Thanks to everyone who contributed to this, at times stressful :bang:but ultimately delightful "camera quest". 😉 Mike Blache'

 

[Bingley]

Congrats, Mike! I recently purchased my first M2, too, and I'm really enjoying it.

 

[rover]

This can be overwhelming because there are a lot of passionate opinions to be found. After a lot of reading & a loooong period of thought, I came to the decision that the M2 would best suite my needs.

That is the most important thing. Yes, passion goes hand in hand with opinions, but what is best for you is what is important.

What lens do you have to screw onto the M2?

 

[Paul C. Perkins MD]

Welcome aboard. I've had mine 38 years - and still reach for it before the M4.

 

[mynikonf2]

That is the most important thing. Yes, passion goes hand in hand with opinions, but what is best for you is what is important.

What lens do you have to screw onto the M2?

That is the next question to be answered!!
At present I have a 35/3.5 summaron w/adapter 😎 but am looking to upgrade. Please feel free to make suggestions. I need your advice.
Thanks in advance, Mike

 

[jarski]

glad to read about the enthusiasm 🙂

recently got my first bad experience from eVilBay (after dozens of ok trades) and camera scene has been quiet partly because of this, partly because of other things going on.

but my nice M2 sits and waits next rock-n-roll roll to tests old Summar, and I dont think I can hold it back much longer... 🙂

 

[luketrash]

I got my M2 last Friday out of the blue. I figured when the time was right, I'd purchase an M4 unless something came along for a steal.

Well, that happened. Mine came with a 50mm Nikon lens from the early 50s, so I'm sporting that on the body. I already had a few M mount lenses since I've owned the Bessa R3A and R2A for a while.

It's definitely a nice camera. Doesn't help my photography in the slightest though, haha. My dream kits were my Hasselblad kit teamed with a Leica M4 kit of some sort. I guess now it'll just have to be an M2 kit. The only real reason I wanted an M4 over an M2 was the 28mm framelines and the rewind crank, but really I can barely see the 35mm framelines with my eyeglasses on.

The rewind knob on the M2 is MUCH (SO MUCH) easier to use than all the lesser cameras I own like the Zorki 4, Argus C-four, etc....

So it's not as big of an issue as I had imagined in my head.

 

[Ronald_H]

Congrats! Bought mine a few months back. You will not regret it, I promise you. I'm on 4 lenses now (2 vintage Leica, 2 VC's) and counting...

 

[semrich]

Also congrats, I just got an M2 and will be developing my first roll through it this weekend. I did my research as well and all things considered it came down to the M2 as and alternative to buying another MP. It is a very sweet camera.

 

[kevin m]

I'm glad you like the camera, Mike! I'll miss owning it, but I'm sure you'll put it to good use. 🙂

 

[Tom A]

Welcome to the M2 addicts. We are fiercly loyal group of users and, to paraphrase Charlton heston " You would have to pry my M2 out of my cold, dead hands".
As for an upgrade lenswise: The Summaron 35f3.5 is an ok lens, but not a stellar performer. tends to flare and is rather low contrast. My suggestion is either a 35f2.5 VC Color Skopar (Summicron performance at less than 1/2 price for a used Summicron) or the 35f1.4 Nokton. Both of these will do very well on the M2. The 35f2.5 is tiny, not much bigger than the Summaron 35f3,5 and the Nokton gives you great low light shooting capability. Interestingly enough, you can get both of these for what a used Summicron 35 costs!!!!!

If you are not sure about 35/50 - just get the 40f1.4 Nokton or the Summicron 40f2. Either one will do well as an all-round "walk-about" lens.
Coming from Nikon SLR, it will take you a while to work out the "looseness" of composition with a rangefinder. You dont have the exact framing that you have with a SLR, but neither do you have mirror slap nor do you have momentary black out when firing the shutter.
Have fun and enjoy the M2.

 

[mynikonf2]

Thanks again Kevin for passing it on to another RFF member instead of listing it on e-bay. I know you could have gotten more for it there than what you sold it for here. It will be put to good use, for sure!

 

[mynikonf2]

Tom,
Thanks for the welcoming. You have been a major influence in my decision to go with the M2. As for the 2 lens you mentioned, I have thought about going with them (because of price) but was not sure of their performance. Now, I feel more comfortable with purchasing them. I bought the M2 for using 35mm focal length lenses pretty much exclusively.

 

[Nokton48]

Sold my two Bessa R's and some other stuff to get one, again. Had one twenty years ago, and wanted to replace it. Been using this one roughly six months, closing in on a hundred rolls (which is a lot for me), over that period of time. Which is a good thing, I just love to carry it around, it's so cool!

Presently my favorite camera, without a doubt.

 

[thirteen]

I just bought an M2 - eagerly awaiting it's appearance at my front door. It doesn't have the quick load spool however having loaded my IIIc countless times it's not a problem. It's got to be a keeper for me - its serial # adds up to my lucky number 13.

 

[shadowfox]

Good move on getting the quick-spool 🙂

Having two bottom-loaders -- although liking them a lot, I can say that I'm glad I don't have to mess with removable spools on my M4-P 😀

 

[Roger Hicks]

Welcome to the M2 club.

Unless you buy an MP, the M2 is the way to go (I have 2x M2, M4-P, MP). Especially with the Schnellladespule (both mine have these).

Now, of course, you need one of Tom's trigger-base winders (I have a Leicavit-M on my MP, a RapidWinder on one M2, and a motor, rarely, on my M4-P).

HEALTH WARNING: You are unlikely to get over this...

Cheers,

R.

 

[maddoc]

@ mynikonf2: Congrats to the camera 🙂 !! Actually I was thinking about that specific M2 also (from kevin m) but didn't have the free $$$ ... 😱

Don't forget to post some photos !!

The only real reason I wanted an M4 over an M2 was the 28mm framelines and the rewind crank, but really I can barely see the 35mm framelines with my eyeglasses on.

The M4 does not have the 28mm frame lines. The M4 has 35/135-50-90, while the M2 has 35-50-90. The M4-P was the first Leica having 28mm (and 75mm) frame-lines. 🙂

 

[tom_uk]

Roger said:

Unless you buy an MP, the M2 is the way to go

I think I might be the only person in the world who prefers an M6TTL to M2 - I had one of the latter (not in great condition, it has to be said) but I just couldn't handle the lack of metering (my shortcoming, not the camera's). I'm much happier with my M6. But each to his own, of course; and welcome to the fancy, mynikonF2!

Lens: you say you want to upgrade. Are you looking for a different 35mm, or something different?

(And whatever you do, keep that Summaron. It makes a nice pairing with the M2. There will be times when you'll become discontented with the razor-sharp, high-contrast images you'll get from your 35 ASPH 'cron 😉 and you'll enjoy going back to something mellower.)