I love this camera but I hate its logo

[fireblade]

The primary reason I gave up on photography for the past four years is I'm a fetishist; I worshiped this camera rather than shooting what has to be shot. I realized fetishism is the primary enemy of my life and all my life was either occupied earning money preparing to buy or spending the money to actually buy, this gets me to nowhere.
This fetishism is encouraged by consumer culture and various ads. Leica exploits people's dream of becoming a great photographer to push new products.
I love this camera but I will stop buying anything from leica now.

"I don't like the drugs but the drugs like me"....Marilyn Manson.

 

[telenous]

It gets really weird when you love the logo but hate the camera.

.

 

[squirrel$$$bandit]

I'm not into cars or designer bags or whatever normal women buy with their husband's credit card, but I bought a Leica because I was taught photography at uni by a tutor who loved Leica and showed me the ropes.

In fact, I don't think it was an ad or anything I saw which "tempted" me. It's for the love of photography (and really good lenses), but to be honest, it can be done with a non-Leica camera.

I think the primary reason everyone on here loves Leica cameras is because of what they are, not what they supposedly represent. If used Leica gear were around the same price as, say, used Pentax gear, I doubt everybody would drift off to find something more premium to be into. Rangefinder cameras are different from other cameras, and if that's what you dig, Leica's the only game in town.

I like the idea of being tutored in photography with anything besides an SLR—that must have been an interesting experience.

 

[Bille]

I think the primary reason everyone on here loves Leica cameras is because of what they are

or what they were

 

[jsrockit]

Rangefinder cameras are different from other cameras, and if that's what you dig, Leica's the only game in town.

In digital yes, in film no... but I still like Leica best when I want a RF.

 

[taemo]

makes you think though, realistically only half of the Leica M RF cameras have the red dot in them
M4-P
M6
M6TTL
M7
M8
M9
M240

M3,M2,M4,M5,MP,MA, Monochrome doesn't have them

i hate the flashy red dot as well, fortunately all the Leica that I've owned either have no dots or has been changed to black.

 

[Timmyjoe]

I was familiar with and had been shooting Canon and Nikon SLR's for a couple of decades back in the early 1990's, but knew little about Leica. I had the opportunity to attend the Photo Show at Jacob Javitts in New York in 1993, and wandered past a smaller sized booth that was Leica at the time. I picked up an M6 with a 50 cron, and it was love. The way the camera felt in my hands, the brightness of the viewfinder, the silky smooth focus of the lens. Must have stood there for fifteen minutes, just holding the camera and focusing on everything in sight. Put it down and vowed that some day I'd own one of those.

It wasn't until after I had an M6TTL that I saw my first Leica advertisement, in the French PHOTO magazine. Then many years later I found this web site. I guess we all come to Leica from different paths. Not sure how many have been pulled in by their marketing, though it has been much more aggressive in the last decade or so.

 

[Michael Markey]

Was this indeed a "genuine" post ... it didn`t feel like it to me .
Started three days ago and yet no further contribution or elucidation from the OP.

 

[splitimageview]

Take the spare change leftover, and get some of this.

 

[Ruhayat]

To open another tin of worms, I had the same feeling about Apple products 3 years ago. I have been happy with my dinky little Microsoft Surface for a year plus now. Before that I used to buy Apple laptops every year, especially when they were struggling on the brink of bankruptcy back in the day.

Then again, I buy a Leica not so much for the logo, but for the aesthetics. Aperture, shutter, ISO. Don't need much more than that. Less, even -- which is why the Leica R-E is still my all-time fave of the dozen Leicas I've owned. Too bad the electronics eventually died.

 

[bmattock]

The primary reason I gave up on photography for the past four years is I'm a fetishist; I worshiped this camera rather than shooting what has to be shot. I realized fetishism is the primary enemy of my life and all my life was either occupied earning money preparing to buy or spending the money to actually buy, this gets me to nowhere.

I am responding to this aspect of your post, rather than the anti-Leica statements that everyone else is latching onto. I suspect that others don't want to address this part, because it contains some truth.

Yes, many on the various photo forums are fetishists of a sort. They admire the mechanical aspects of the equipment they use, even over their utility as the tools they are designed to be. And a Leica is a good example of that sort of thing. These fetishists are the same kinds of people who enjoy owning fancy fountain pens, watches, cars, pocketknives, you name it. If it's mechanical and well-made and expensive and exclusive, there will certainly be a group of people who like the items not for what they do but for what they are.

And you have recognized, apparently, that you have that in your character makeup as well. You object to it.

I get that.

But you also seem to be blaming Leica for your decisions or your perceived inability to stop being 'fetishistic' about the camera. It's not the fault of the logo or the camera. That's all on you. But like a smoker who recognizes that smoking is a problem for them, it's good that you're taking action on it. Just don't make the mistake of thinking that everyone has that same problem, or that they care if they do. There is nothing inherently immoral or wrong about liking an object for the object itself as opposed to for its utility or purpose.

 

[jaapv]

I don't think it will trouble them to be honest. I'd wager 80% or even more of members here have never bought anything new Leica. We're not the target market.

Possibly not, however, with Leica selling something like 30.000+ new M cameras per year, it may well be that this forum represents only a small niche within a niche.

 

[f16sunshine]

Possibly not, however, with Leica selling something like 30.000+ new M cameras per year, it may well be that this forum represents only a small niche within a niche.

The "USED Rangefinder Forum" ?

Oh well better that we use them.
I imagine a larger Niche within the Niche is the "Fondled and then placed back on the shelf niche" 😀

 

[jloden]

[...]

Yes, many on the various photo forums are fetishists of a sort. They admire the mechanical aspects of the equipment they use, even over their utility as the tools they are designed to be. And a Leica is a good example of that sort of thing. These fetishists are the same kinds of people who enjoy owning fancy fountain pens, watches, cars, pocketknives, you name it. If it's mechanical and well-made and expensive and exclusive, there will certainly be a group of people who like the items not for what they do but for what they are.

[...]

But you also seem to be blaming Leica for your decisions or your perceived inability to stop being 'fetishistic' about the camera. It's not the fault of the logo or the camera. That's all on you. But like a smoker who recognizes that smoking is a problem for them, it's good that you're taking action on it. Just don't make the mistake of thinking that everyone has that same problem, or that they care if they do. There is nothing inherently immoral or wrong about liking an object for the object itself as opposed to for its utility or purpose.

Well put, and I have to agree with your sentiment on both counts. I certainly have a strong tendency or propensity to fixate on gear myself, cameras or otherwise. Though I'd argue it's actually for both what it does and what it is. I enjoy Leicas as fine craftsmanship, great tools, and even as beautiful machines. But I *also* appreciate rangefinders as a way of seeing and approaching photography, and I find them satisfying to use for their functional properties.

In my mind, the line gets crossed when you realize you enjoy the idea of a Leica (or any other tool), more than the reality of using it. I've been there more than once... buying new camping equipment thinking of all the adventures I'd use it on that never happened, or buying cameras or lenses for projects or "needs" that never materialize. I don't know if that's what the OP is feeling now, but I suspect I can relate on some level.

Speaking for myself, I know a big part of the driver for G.A.S. in general is that I have a day job and a family and many other commitments. Photography is a hobby and a passion all out of proportion to the amount of time I am able to devote to it. It's far easier to fixate on the gear, the aesthetic, or the history/myth/legend thereof than on making photographs. The ratio of time I spend reading, thinking, and talking about photography to the time I spend actually doing it is enormously lopsided. From that perspective. it's not hard to see why sp many of us can easily get caught up in the tools rather than the work... but they're also not mutually exclusive. Craftsmen or artists of any type can still appreciate fine tools, but hopefully just not to the detriment of actually producing work.

 

[bmattock]

Well put, and I have to agree with your sentiment on both counts.

Thanks!

I did want to comment on this, though:

In my mind, the line gets crossed when you realize you enjoy the idea of a Leica (or any other tool), more than the reality of using it.

Why is that a line? I happen to still enjoy owning a Zippo lighter, even though mine hasn't been used to light a cigarette since I quit smoking over ten years ago. I love the sound it makes when you open it and strike it.

First, how is that anyone's business but mine?

Second, so what if I do not use the lighter as it was intended to be used?

Third, where is this line and who gets to decide what it is?

I suspect you meant the line only exists for you, and applies only to you, and I absolutely agree with you in that case. I believe, however, that for whatever reason, people tend to confuse their own opinions that apply only to themselves, and the 'rules' that apply to everyone. Your line isn't mine, nor is mine yours, and they should not be universal.

 

[jloden]

[...]

I suspect you meant the line only exists for you, and applies only to you, and I absolutely agree with you in that case. I believe, however, that for whatever reason, people tend to confuse their own opinions that apply only to themselves, and the 'rules' that apply to everyone. Your line isn't mine, nor is mine yours, and they should not be universal.

Basically, yes in a nutshell... what I meant was for me personally at least, that's when I know I've crossed the line of appreciating something for its 'mystique' or what it represents, as opposed to simply for it's functional use as a tool. And I completely agree that it's wholly individual whether that's a "problem" or not. Sometimes I see that as a sign I should change something, sometimes I'm perfectly fine with simply embracing it.

For instance: I drink my coffee out of a titanium insulated camping mug because I miss having more time in the woods, not because only a Ti mug could stand up to the rigors of my daily coffee. Although with as many ceramic mugs as I've broken in the past 5 years, that might not be that far off from the truth! 😛

Oh and funny side note - I have two Zippos neither of which I've used to light a fire, and I don't smoke. Somehow I love the idea of a Zippo but I always end up using something more practical 😉

 

[bmattock]

Oh and funny side note - I have two Zippos neither of which I've used to light a fire, and I don't smoke. Somehow I love the idea of a Zippo but I always end up using something more practical 😉

And there you have it! Thanks, interesting conversation!

I am sure that somewhere, there is a Zippo forum, with the occasional poster stating that anyone who doesn't smoke but owns a Zippo is a 'fondler' who isn't using the tool properly, and someone else insisting that anyone who owns more than X number of Zippos is a 'hoarder' because "how many Zippos does one person need anyway" and insisting that hoarding Zippos is a form of mental illness. Then there will be one guy who insists on 'One Zippo, One Cigarette, To Seek Purity,' and others will be cheering him on like he's an Enlightened Master. Because apparently this is what we humans feel compelled to do! 🙂

 

[Huss]

It gets really weird when you love the logo but hate the camera.

.

I knew this girl once. Her name was Jennifer, or April, or was it Mary?
Either way I loved her name but could not stand her.
"Just whisper it to me" I would say on the phone. "But no, I don't want to see you"

When it rains, I sometimes think of her. Tell me am I crazy, or is this more than a crush? I guess we can blame it on the rain.

 

[Huss]

I'm sure that's true.

Just for laughs, though, I stuck a "Turbo" plate on the back of my 2005 Toyota Matrix hatchback, so now it's a Matrix Turbo. 😀 I love it, even though it's slow and handles like a bathtub, but it's gone 225,000 miles so far.

It must have taken a hell of a long time getting there.
😀

 

[jloden]

And there you have it! Thanks, interesting conversation!

I am sure that somewhere, there is a Zippo forum, with the occasional poster stating that anyone who doesn't smoke but owns a Zippo is a 'fondler' who isn't using the tool properly, and someone else insisting that anyone who owns more than X number of Zippos is a 'hoarder' because "how many Zippos does one person need anyway" and insisting that hoarding Zippos is a form of mental illness. Then there will be one guy who insists on 'One Zippo, One Cigarette, To Seek Purity,' and others will be cheering him on like he's an Enlightened Master. Because apparently this is what we humans feel compelled to do! 🙂

No doubt... I'd put money on it, haha 😀