Accessory/External viewfinder

[writingwithlight]

Hi all, need your advice for something which I am not sure about.
I recently just got a Leica IIIa, and I realised that some lenses are not coupled with it. For e.g a Leitz Elmar 90mm. I read that besides the 50mm lenses, the Leica III series, save for the IIIg do not have any coupling with other lenses.
So I have one or two questions
1) If I buy a LTM lens that says it has rangefinder coupling, does it work on Leica IIIa? Since I read that it only couples with 50mm lenses
2)If I do need to get an external viewfinder, should I get one each for the lens that I am using? Or is getting an universal external viewfinder better?
Thanks!

 

[OldNick]

Your nomenclature puzzled me. Most Leica screw-mount lenses are coupled to the rangefinder of the IIIa. I have used one for more than 50 years. I suspect that you are referring to the fact that the viewfinder only shows the field of view of a 50mm lens. I have used the Leitz Imarect universal finder, but it is limited in usefulness with long lenses because the field of view is just masked off to match the lens, and becomes quite small. I now primarily use 35mm and 50mm lenses, and use top-mounted external finders with both lenses because they give a better view.

Jim N.

 

[Krosya]

I have this one for sale in Classifieds here on RFF. Its very nice:

 

[writingwithlight]

Your nomenclature puzzled me. Most Leica screw-mount lenses are coupled to the rangefinder of the IIIa. I have used one for more than 50 years. I suspect that you are referring to the fact that the viewfinder only shows the field of view of a 50mm lens. I have used the Leitz Imarect universal finder, but it is limited in usefulness with long lenses because the field of view is just masked off to match the lens, and becomes quite small. I now primarily use 35mm and 50mm lenses, and use top-mounted external finders with both lenses because they give a better view.

Jim N.

Hi Jim,
Thanks for your insight. Still pretty new to the Leica. I've only used the other fixed lens RFs, so feeling a little lost when it comes to the Leica screwmounts. So lets say for e.g if I got a 28mm lens that has rangefinder coupling, do I still need to get a external viewfinder?

 

[Krosya]

yes you do - your leica body has vf for 50mm lens only. All other FL lenses will need an extarnal vf for accurate framing.

 

[writingwithlight]

Well, I think the main reason for my confusion is because I read on photoethnography.com or cameraquest.com (can't remember which one) that lenses other than 50mm do not really match with the viewfinder. I may have misunderstood what the authors of the article were saying. And when I mounted a 90mm lens onto the Leica IIIa, I found that the image in the viewfinder did not blur or sharpen when I turned the lens. Still new with the Leica III, so do have some patience with me. I hope that I am making sense here.

 

[OldNick]

Hi Jim,
Thanks for your insight. Still pretty new to the Leica. I've only used the other fixed lens RFs, so feeling a little lost when it comes to the Leica screwmounts. So lets say for e.g if I got a 28mm lens that has rangefinder coupling, do I still need to get a external viewfinder?

The answer is "yes", though I can't recall a 28mm screw-mount lens for the early Leicas. Perhaps there is one in the CV group of lenses.

I just looked at the CameraQuest site http://cameraquest.com/voigtlen.htm and found that there are, indeed, quite a variety of wide-angle lenses and finders for the screw-mount Leicas.

Jim N.

 

[writingwithlight]

yes you do - your leica body has vf for 50mm lens only. All other FL lenses will need an extarnal vf for accurate framing.

Hi,
Thanks. I think I understand now.

 

[OldNick]

And when I mounted a 90mm lens onto the Leica IIIa, I found that the image in the viewfinder did not blur or sharpen when I turned the lens. Still new with the Leica III, so do have some patience with me. I hope that I am making sense here.

The Leica IIIa has two separate eyepieces on the back. The one on the right is the viewfinder, and it does not change when one focuses a lens. The eyepiece on the left, with the optical adjustment tab, is for the rangefinder, and the two images of the subject on which you wish to focus should be brought into coincidence by rotating the lens focus adjustment. The eyepiece optical adjustment can be used to correct any blurring of the rangefinder images.

The usual sequence is to be sure the lens is extended and locked, if it is a collapsible lens, the lens cap is removed (don't laugh, we've all left it on at least once), use the rangefinder to focus on your subject, then switch to the viewfinder to frame the shot.

I hope this helps.

Jim N.

 

[writingwithlight]

Hi guys,
Thanks once again. Gonna send my Leica IIIa for CLA and then it will be called into action. 😀

 

[Roger Hicks]

The answer is "yes", though I can't recall a 28mm screw-mount lens for the early Leicas. . . Jim N.

Dear Jim,

28/6.3 Hektor 1935, 28/5.6 Summaron 1956, 28/6 FSU copy of 28 Tessar (?Orion) 1950s...

Later (1990s), 28/3.5 Pasinon/Kobalux/possibly other names, 28mm from Voigtländer...

Cheers,

R.

 

[OldNick]

Thanks, Roger. When I revisited the CV products, I saw how wrong I was. I updated my post to reflect that fact.

Jim N.