Have I lost my passion for photography?

Nothing wrong with taking a break. Sometimes it helps with everything, including what you are taking a break from.

As for the M9. As with any camera, things happen, and maybe because of the high price and name we expect something close to the dependability of a Leica film camera, even if there is a lot more going on inside with a digital camera. My own experience with the M9 which I’ve had since I bought it new is that its been a very reliable camera, no problems other than usual ‘digital things’, the sensor needing cleaning and a few software quarks I’ve learned to live with. A couple weeks ago I sent it into Leica for a sensor cleaning and just general check. Came back yesterday with a new sensor, new cover, cleaned and adjusted, all at no cost to me ‘under warranty’, it took a total of about 2 weeks. Not bad service for a 4+ year old digital camera.

So before you get too depressed about a camera problem, send it off and see what Leica says. Load up a film camera in its time away and have fun ( that’s what I did after a long time away from 35mm film ). Getting back my M9 in ‘like new’ condition (with a few brass edges) made me feel pretty good. The M9 is still as close as you can get with digital to using a Leica film camera.
 
Raid
OK it broke 🙁
Are you doing postcard 5? Loved your last one🙂
This will sort out in time.Relax and get your rhythm back.
Always good to see your posts in the Gallery.
 
raid said:
Since a few days, and after my M9 failed, I have set photography aside. I really have no interest in going through my travel photos, and I am quite disappointed with how fragile the M9 is. Money does not grow on trees, and the tought to spend money on repairing a digital unreliable camera is making me just not want to think of it.

I feel like emailing the CEO of Leica a letter in which I tell him how I feel about this piece of unreliable equipment that is being sold at premium prices.

Maybe if I go back to film cameras, I will forget this exprtience. I only used the M9 for one year.
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Hi Raid,

Sorry to hear that.

You know - cameras are like anything manufactured, period : they come, go, work, fail, need repair. That's how it works. Nothing lasts forever.

And - electronic cameras aren't what full mechanical cameras used to be.

Plus, the M9 isn't the most reliable digital tool out there - this is not a secret.

So - personally, I would disconnect "photography" and "peculiar camera failure" in my mind.

You still have many cameras and lenses so the M9 failure, as much bothering as it can be, won't deprive you from taking photos AFAIK.

I don't have an M9 : the camera is too expensive for me, and, moreover, I know for certain that I could never afford an expensive repair if the camera suddenly got in need of one. A good friend of mine has one and for having used it sometimes I must admit that this is a very nice camera, though.

Now the question is : do you like that M9 enough so that you want to pay for the sensor replacement ? Are you ready for another expensive repair within the next few years in case something happens again ? Will you be comfortable on travel with this camera at hand, knowing that it can fail and have you miss some great shots at some places you aren't likely to visit twice in a lifetime ?

If you are deeply and surely into the M-digital system, getting a M240 would be another option. It doesn't suffer from all the M9 infamous sensor issues, and it has become possible to get some from second hand now.

This is what I would consider, instead of dropping some money on that M9.

OTOH, very sorry to hear about what happen to your belongings in Denmark.

All in all, when dust has settled, you'll forget the bad things that happened recently, and will remember the nice ones only.

Best to you and your family !

PS : me thinks that the Leica CEO won't care that much about what you might want to write to him.
 
M9 has absolutely no attraction to me. Above all the images from digital cameras just don't look as good as film. I am surprised you lasted this long.
 
Ansel said:
M9 has absolutely no attraction to me. Above all the images from digital cameras just don't look as good as film. I am surprised you lasted this long.
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After many years of surfing on the webforums I still wonder why some people can't refrain from posting those repetitive off-topic biased "film is better than digital" thoughts which don't bring anything interesting to the discussion.
 
As they say, trouble loves to come in series.

When I experience trouble with gear which I can' sort immediately I put it on shelf and let some time pass. Hot shot methods sometimes just replace issue with a set of another. When I've cooled down and return to problematic piece of gear, some solutions appear I haven't considered before.

Also I have thoughts I cheapen out a lot and could use better stuff. But when it quits working I can either repair it on kitchen table or put into parts bin without a shade of regrets. It sure isn't for everyone and neither is best solution but if I feel regrets for non-working stuff then I paid too much for it. But this comes at a cost of staying with much lesser and simpler gear than many are used to.

And most important from what I want to say - when I'm too frustrated I just let it wait while I get good rest. Nothing is better than good walk, deep sleep and some food to get back into shape. Making decisions while exhausted physically or mentally is straight way to get more issues instead of solving original ones.
 
btgc said:
As they say, trouble loves to come in series.

When I experience trouble with gear which I can' sort immediately I put it on shelf and let some time pass. Hot shot methods sometimes just replace issue with a set of another. When I've cooled down and return to problematic piece of gear, some solutions appear I haven't considered before.

Also I have thoughts I cheapen out a lot and could use better stuff. But when it quits working I can either repair it on kitchen table or put into parts bin without a shade of regrets. It sure isn't for everyone and neither is best solution but if I feel regrets for non-working stuff then I paid too much for it. But this comes at a cost of staying with much lesser and simpler gear than many are used to.

And most important from what I want to say - when I'm too frustrated I just let it wait while I get good rest. Nothing is better than good walk, deep sleep and some food to get back into shape. Making decisions while exhausted physically or mentally is straight way to get more issues instead of solving original ones.
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Great post, thanks a lot for this - it nicely applies to all life domains. Hopefully, what you write in the last paragrah shouldn't happen any longer as we grow-up in age. But...
 
Hi Raid,

I'm so sorry to hear about the camera, that's pretty bum luck! 🙁

I agree with what the others have said, but I'll add my two cents: The reason I switched to film from digital (apart from the fact that film would work better in remote, sometimes electricity-free, parts of the Middle East where I'm doing a lot of shooting these days) is that digital photography started to seem like a cheap simulacrum of the Real Deal. I reached a point where every M9 shot I edited left me wondering about color shift form wide-angle lenses, grainy images at moderate ISOs, etc. I traded those issues for the limitations incumbent upon film photography (film speeds, physical bulk, no meter or review, etc.). Now, lo and behold, my pampered M3's shutter has failed without a repair shop for miles and miles 😡

I guess photography is sometimes frustrating no matter what gear we're using.


raid said:
Since a few days, and after my M9 failed, I have set photography aside. I really have no interest in going through my travel photos, and I am quite disappointed with how fragile the M9 is. Money does not grow on trees, and the tought to spend money on repairing a digital unreliable camera is making me just not want to think of it.

I feel like emailing the CEO of Leica a letter in which I tell him how I feel about this piece of unreliable equipment that is being sold at premium prices.

Maybe if I go back to film cameras, I will forget this exprtience. I only used the M9 for one year.
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Highway 61 said:
I still wonder why some people can't refrain from posting those repetitive off-topic biased "film is better than digital" thoughts which don't bring anything interesting to the discussion.
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Couldn`t agree more .
Instead of sympathising with a long serving member who has had a grueling few weeks, been generous enough to share his pictures and now has had some bad luck it seems that some just can`t resist using it as a platform ...once again ...to bang the drum.

I`m a film user but I`m ashamed to be one if this is the sort of attitude which is associated with the medium.
 
Really sorry to hear of your problems. Not fun when things like that happen. You may recall I have mentioned a house fire some years ago, where I lost about 8,000 slides, many Kodachrome. I feel your pain. I'm not sure how much I am over that even now. But I am over it. What can one do. When things happen, one can brood and give up, or work out solutions.

Which I know you will do. From your past posts, that will be your solution I am sure. It is just that you had a lot happen in a short time. Wow, luggage stolen? Not as bad as a house break in I hope, but still a feeling of violation for your family, and worse for you because you are the head of the family who is supposed to make everything good.

Give yourself as much break as you need, then do what you enjoy; reacting with and photographing your family. That is one thing I never stopped doing. Too many memories to ignore that.

Hang in there, you well soon be back in good spirits, even given the expense of replacing clothing and fixing a loved camera. And you have lots of friends here on RFF pulling for you and your family.
 
mfunnell said:
I should get you to have a word with my bosses! If you charged them a high enough consulting fee, they might even pay attention to you 🙄
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I can assure you my bosses aren't much better at this, probably generic design flaw 🙄
 
Life's a symphony. IMO, reliability isn't often an issue killing your mood, it's the things that play together or not.

Get back to film (Leica) to find your true passion again. I did this, back to basics, literally - "rediscover" things you though you've grown out of. I've found with all the new expensive digital cameras when the latest-$$$-technology-nerdness fades away and you'll get down to real life again - image as an artistic experssion and artistic medium - the digital is just too lifeless medium, especially for the travel shots. Personally I don't like radical post-processing to bring some little life back into sterile digital shots, I found it makes them even worse. I use digital for work, but all my personal project are on film to keep my spark for the photography alive and kicking.

Just me 2c,
Margus
 
Highway 61 said:
After many years of surfing on the webforums I still wonder why some people can't refrain from posting those repetitive off-topic biased "film is better than digital" thoughts which don't bring anything interesting to the discussion.
Click to expand...

Michael Markey said:
Couldn`t agree more .
Instead of sympathising with a long serving member who has had a grueling few weeks, been generous enough to share his pictures and now has had some bad luck it seems that some just can`t resist using it as a platform ...once again ...to bang the drum.

I`m a film user but I`m ashamed to be one if this is the sort of attitude which is associated with the medium.
Click to expand...

... another vote for the 'take your prejudice elsewhere' party here
 
When I've had a major technical malfunction I start to have doubts about all my equipment. But what is worse, self doubt starts creeping in. I question wether my photographic work is "good enough" to put up with all the problems which sometimes seem technically or financially insurmountable. Eventually though, I overcome it and move on.

As has been said, I quite enjoy your work and have learned much from you.
 
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