Body versus lens hypothetical

[it'sawhat?]

This more or less to find out which you value most body or lens. Imagine for a minute that pentax and leica lens have been switched. Leitz glass now only fit pentax slr's and are priced like pentax lenses. Leicas must now use pentax glass and they command current leica prices. Which are you going to choose?

 

[jsrockit]

I'm certainly a body first type... since that is what my hands touch most. I'm of the opinion that most prime lenses are good enough for me.

 

[Phil_F_NM]

I'm a lens guy but that lens has to be attached to a body I'm comfortable using. For example, modern Nikon V Canon. I choose Nikon every time because I like their manual lenses more than EOS lenses. I've got over a decade of constant use of Nikons for work, so I'm just more comfortable with them.
I love my F2 and F3. Loved my old F4. I've owned a few great Canons as well but didn't get along with them as much as their Nikon equivalents.
As far as rangefinders go, I prefer the Leica M (film) bodies but just don't shoot with mine much anymore. i almost always grab the F2.
Some cameras I shoot strictly because they can accept a lens, ie: Mamiya 6 with the 50mm f/4. That combination is outstanding.

Phil Forrest

 

[f16sunshine]

Maybe you should have chosen Sigma lenses from the 80's or similar.
There are plenty of Pentax Primes I would happily use interchangably with Leica 🙂

I'm With Rocket on this one. The body is esential to primary interaction. Most all modern prime lenses are created not necessarily equal but at least very close.

My Current RF is a CV Bessa R2 . The Leicas are gone. I like the swinging film door and small lightweight body.
The primes I use are f2.5/50 and f2.5/35 so a shorter baseline is fine.
This body suits these perfectly. For me the advantages of a Leica body are washed out with extra weight and inconvenience (I hate bottom loading).


Some people may shoot Leica because it's Leica. Others Because the need the extra accuracy of the Long RF Base.
Others because they like the feel of the Leica.

The point is,...I don't think there is one answer to your question.

 

[mfogiel]

I don't think you need to choose. In fact in SLR world I am using Nikon bodies with Leica lenses - a Leica R with a Nikon lens would be a disaster...

 

[it'sawhat?]

f16 indeed there is no one right answer. I admit I am more of a body first person. Full disclosure here- the pentax spotmatic chassis suits me very well so that's why I picked it for the question. However if I felt their lenses were lacking I would grudgingly give up the body I love to get the quality I need in a lens. Mareek I am aware of the leitax option and do see it's value but that wasn't what I was trying to get at.

 

[Bille]

Leitz glass now (...) are priced like pentax lenses.

I stopped reading there. Take my money!

 

[BlackXList]

Body, 90% of whether I get on with a camera or not is to do with the body ergonomics, if they're bad, it doesn't matter how good the lenses are.

If I can't get comfortable with it, I can't produce anything good.

I have a Yashica Minister D, the act of checking the meter then transferring the information across to the lens, breaks my flow, and I produce rubbish with it (and I've usually left the lens cap on for some of the roll too).

In general with Rangefinders, I have a habit of turning the camera to portrait orientation, then blocking the windows with my focusing hand, among other things this is why I've come to the conclusion that rangefinders and I are not an ideal match at this moment.

With my SLR's they do what I expect them to (hopefully), and I don't get in my own way as much.

 

[TXForester]

If the bodies are no more than a few years old, then the bottom 3 or 4 stops of ISO are pretty good even on entry level cameras and smaller formats. So, I'd go with lenses.