jonasv
has no mustache
...is how long it takes me to load my M4-P.
I was standing up straight, without putting anything down so it can be done anywhere, not just in ideal circumstances. In those nineteen seconds I opened the film box, opened the Leica, put in the film, advanced (once), closed the Leica again, advanced two more times until I was at frame one: ready to shoot. Upon trying it again I included rewinding and taking out the previous, full, 36-exposure roll: 29 seconds. And I only bought the camera recently, so I'm sure I can knock off a few more seconds with practice.
Before buying a Leica I was worried about the bottom loading, and it was actually one of my reasons for looking into the Bessa's. Now I know I can load my Leica faster than any back-loader (be it a rangefinder like the Bessa or a manual SLR), except maybe for the current AF SLR's with automatic loading which may be marginally faster (if the film picks up the right from the start, mine don't always do that).
I'm not much into the Leica-fanboyism and I like the camera for what it is, a photographic tool, so I really don't mean to put down other cameras. For most people a few seconds really don't matter anyway (and, to paraphrase Winogrand: there are no pictures when you're reloading).
The only reason for posting this is that it now strikes me that non-Leica users really have a wrong idea about the bottom loading. It's not comparable to any experiences with Soviet cameras, LTM Leicas, or maybe M2/M3's (without QL-kit). I can load my M4-P faster than I could load my Bessa. Just thought I'd share this bit of info for anyone interested in a Leica: don't believe everything you hear and try it out for yourself!
I was standing up straight, without putting anything down so it can be done anywhere, not just in ideal circumstances. In those nineteen seconds I opened the film box, opened the Leica, put in the film, advanced (once), closed the Leica again, advanced two more times until I was at frame one: ready to shoot. Upon trying it again I included rewinding and taking out the previous, full, 36-exposure roll: 29 seconds. And I only bought the camera recently, so I'm sure I can knock off a few more seconds with practice.
Before buying a Leica I was worried about the bottom loading, and it was actually one of my reasons for looking into the Bessa's. Now I know I can load my Leica faster than any back-loader (be it a rangefinder like the Bessa or a manual SLR), except maybe for the current AF SLR's with automatic loading which may be marginally faster (if the film picks up the right from the start, mine don't always do that).
I'm not much into the Leica-fanboyism and I like the camera for what it is, a photographic tool, so I really don't mean to put down other cameras. For most people a few seconds really don't matter anyway (and, to paraphrase Winogrand: there are no pictures when you're reloading).
The only reason for posting this is that it now strikes me that non-Leica users really have a wrong idea about the bottom loading. It's not comparable to any experiences with Soviet cameras, LTM Leicas, or maybe M2/M3's (without QL-kit). I can load my M4-P faster than I could load my Bessa. Just thought I'd share this bit of info for anyone interested in a Leica: don't believe everything you hear and try it out for yourself!