Canon P - A good secondary Leica?

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dugrant153

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So I love my M6 and as much as I'd love a second one, I don't really have the funds nor do I want to go through the hassle of getting a high-priced beater and having to fix it up.

I have a CV 50mm F1.5 LTM lens that I currently have with an M-mount adapter. However, the price and the "reliability" of the Canon P and other Canon rangefinders has me intrigued. I am enjoying the 50mm F1.5 LTM quite a bit and would love to pair it with a decent secondary camera to my M6.

I've been looking over Ebay and other places and am wondering if there's anything particular to look out for? I considered other options such as the the Leica CL or even a Bessa T...

In particular, how easily do these cameras get bumped out of rangefinder alignment? That's my #1 pet peeve...
 
If you like your M6 (like me), Bessa R2 would be a good match. I use both pretty often, mostly due to the lightmeter. Bright viewfinder, good ergonomics; only issue, if you care for that, is tha Bessa's are a little more noisy that M6, but I not really that conserned with it. Canon P umm, rather a different beast althogether. A good camera nontheless, but different to M6. I think is bigger?. IMHO, Bessa R2 is a closer match to M6. Same for Besxa T, its closer to the Barnacks than the M, but the lightmeter would come handy.

As for the rangefinder bump question, if you handle them with care, they are less prone to go out of alighment that a FSU LTM camera for example.
 
Is yours M6 light meter dysfunctional and you have no money to fix it?
If not, using f1.5 lens with TTL meeting makes sense a lot to me. Get Bessa R if you are short on money.
Bessa T is fun, if you like to spend your time with focusing in one window and framing with external VF which is prone to parallax with 50 and longer lenses.
 
Ko.Fe. said:
Is yours M6 light meter dysfunctional and you have no money to fix it?
If not, using f1.5 lens with TTL meeting makes sense a lot to me. Get Bessa R if you are short on money.
Bessa T is fun, if you like to spend your time with focusing in one window and framing with external VF which is prone to parallax with 50 and longer lenses.
Click to expand...

Agree with Ko.Fe. Bessa T will require something of a different mindset than using a M6. Bessa R is a rather good; some people complains its feels cheap, something fixed on the Bessa R2, but still a great camera nonetheless, and goes for little money.

Regards.
 
Funny this came up. I just bought a mint Canon P a couple of weeks ago -posted pics of it here http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=145849&page=4

The idea was I would use my LTM lenses on it. With my Ms I of course have to use an adapter. I kept it for about a week before selling it on.

I just didn't like it. Compared to my Leica Ms everything about it was worse, and it didn't even fit in my hand nicely. The blurry blob focus point compared to a nice, bright defined one in an M, CLE, Bessa R2/3/4 etc. To be fair the Leicas are much much more expensive cameras so that should be expected. But after using it briefly I could never see a reason to use one if I also had a Leica M with me.

On the other hand, compared to a Barnack Leica, the P seems more modern.
I guess for me it's in a bad place - none of the charm of a Barnack and none of the usability of an M.

Of course it's all a matter of taste. Others like them.
 
Human Nature.
I have had the opposite experience. I bought a P years ago when they were nothing. Since then I buy whenever i can.
A mate of mine offered me an M6 at mates rates< I used it. Did I buy it? no!
The P with a top service to me is lovely. The emphasis is on me!
What works
 
It sounds like you either love it or hate it, eh? Would love to see if I could try one out... wonder if I can find a local craiglister... hmm...

I actually don't mind the clunk of the Bessa. Though the camera is not as svelte as the Leica, as long as it works and gets the image, that's the important part for me.

My concern with Bessas (and every other older rangefinder) is an RF that is out of alignment and doesn't go back to alignment easily. My LEica M6 has taken some pretty serious bumps (Sorry, Leica) and despite all this, has been as accurate as the day I got it.
 
Go for the Bessa, ideally the R2 (I have one -- and also a T). I've had several Canons, and indeed have a VT on loan at the moment. They're lovely cameras, but very old, and are as likely to need servicing as an old Leica: for example, the slow speeds on the VT are gummed up.

Cheers,

R.
 
I have 3 Canon R/F cameras (1VSB2, 11D2, and a 11S2) all bought as is, and all about 60 years old. Apart from a slightly wobbly wind on shaft on the S2, they all work wonderfully and I wish I'd had them from new! I wouldn't go back to Leica and the noise from the Bessa would put me off.
 
I am with those who say not to do it. I was swayed by all the P lovers here, and if you like Leica for all the Leica reasons, the The Canon P stands for pathetic. It is basically an interchangable lens version of legions of cheap 35mm rf cameras, but with a worse finder and heavier than most of them. I like my Canonet QL-19 much better.

Don'tdo it!
 
Another instance where I wish people would put their locations in their profiles: if the OP were near me, I'd invite him over to see my P, and I imagine quite a few others would, too, but now he'll never know.
 
I'm not close to Chicago but thanks for the offer!

Hmmm... the results appear to be mixed but sounds like the Bessa R is the best "second" to a Leica M6 (short of buying an actual Leica).
I guess the price of the Canon P sounded attractive (love the accuracy of a rangefinder, especially in low light focusing) but probably because it's super old too.
 
The Canon P is a great camera in its own right and a very handsome one at that, but it is no classic Leica M.

Certainly the viewfinder on the P is not as good as on the Leica M, especially with ageing eyesight and wearing glasses. With young whipper snapper 20/20 vision, the viewfinder on the Canon P is plenty fine.
 
I bought a Bessa R2 as a "backup" for my M2 -

+ Finder is great, waaaaay better than my M2's (but my M2's is ruined)
+ came with trigger winder, which is cool but mostly useless for me
- doesn't feel or sound like the M2, which doesn't matter most of the time
- RF decouples at 0,9m which means there's no rangefinder between 0,7m~0,9m (really bad)
- Light meter has died mysteriously (pretty annoying since I bought the bessa because it has a meter)
- I paid $500 (CAD) for it somehow. that's alot of money!



Why not a Canon 7 though? they're super cheap. The finder is great. Feels and sounds as smooth and quiet as my M2 (pretty much). Only downsides are there's no accessory shoe, a bit bigger and bumpier than a Leica, and it's not M mount. But yeah. Maybe not an issue to you if you're only using an LTM 50mm.
 
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