If money was not an issue...

[DougK]

I'd have to answer "neither one". I have almost zero desire to use/own/fondle a Leica. I think I'd be too afraid it would get stolen or damaged to use it and heck, that defeats the whole purpose of the camera in the first place. Then again, my current favorite camera to use is an Olympus IS-5 fixed-lens SLR, so my tastes obviously run on the plebian side 🙂

If money were no object, though, I'd run right out and buy a Bronica or Fuji RF kit.

 

[nickchew]

Thanks for all the contributions.

Basically my issue is with the high cost involved in a new leica. If leicas were 1/4 the price I guess I would not be having a problem actually using it! But even if money was not an issue... it is still tough to justify scratching and bumping a $5K system.

As for the optics on Leicas, for most parts I have to admit that I really don't require (or deserve) the leica optics. Some of my best shots were with the 50mm 1.8 AIS nikon on my FM2...then the FE2....then the....

Now, I find that logically, the CV Ultron serves my needs. I may lust for a summilux but really I don't NEED it. But since when has logic been logical ;-)

Nick

 

[Honu-Hugger]

The only way to bring an end to the Leica inspired nocturnal emissions is to just buy one -- the price of admission isn't as formidable as it seems when you consider resale. It will either be everything you thought it was or it will not, but at least you'll be able to wake up with clean sheets in the morning 😀

 

[rover]

I will only confirm that my sheets have been clean in the morning for the past couple weeks since my M6 TTL arrived.

 

[Honu-Hugger]

(snip)...speaking of lenses, i love hearing how much better the german glass is, especially from those who can't take a decent photo. if you want the best then use a tripod for every shot. not really why 35mm is around, imho. and really, if sharpness and tonality is your thing what are you doing shooting 35 and not medium or large format?...(snip)

joe

I'm with you, Joe, in regards to the importance of the equipment as it relates to the outcome. I accepted a long time ago that I'm not a very good photographer, but I like using good cameras and lenses in the "Harry Truman" sense in that "The Buck Stops Here." I will never blame my poor photograpic skills on my equipment.

 

[Jon Goodman]

I don't think so...if money was no issue, the list of other things I'd do is so long, there probably would be no money left by the time I got down to buying a new Leica.

Jon

 

[Pherdinand]

The only way to bring an end to the Leica inspired nocturnal emissions is to just buy one -- the price of admission isn't as formidable as it seems when you consider resale. It will either be everything you thought it was or it will not, but at least you'll be able to wake up with clean sheets in the morning 😀

That's an approach too, Hugger - however, it is a bit erroneous. If i don't like it, i sell it later - a tryout period with negative result is not much. If i like it, i won't get its price back, so the $$$$are gone on a leica - while something less would have sufficed.

 

[Honu-Hugger]

That's an approach too, Hugger - however, it is a bit erroneous. If i don't like it, i sell it later - a tryout period with negative result is not much. If i like it, i won't get its price back, so the $$$$are gone on a leica - while something less would have sufficed.

But it's a non sequitur, Pherdi -- it's well known that you're a Contax fan!!!
Are you looking for a replacement? I'm still sad for your loss 🙁 😡 :bang: (I think these faces sum up my feelings).

 

[Honu-Hugger]

I will only confirm that my sheets have been clean in the morning for the past couple weeks since my M6 TTL arrived.

I've also been sleeping restfully since finding the 100/2 Kinoptik 😀 😀 😀
But I miss the dreams!

 

[Pherdinand]

But it's a non sequitur, Pherdi -- it's well known that you're a Contax fan!!!
Are you looking for a replacement? I'm still sad for your loss 🙁 😡 :bang: (I think these faces sum up my feelings).

fan = fanatic, which i'm not; i just prefer them, but have no real shooting experience with leica, i have to admit that.

Thanks for the solidarity - at the moment i'm looking for a replacement job 🙁

 

[Oldprof]

My sentiments are similar to those of Pherdinand. I just don't see myself as a "Leica person." Despite the question posed by the thread title, money is always part of the equation. I tend to be thrifty and look for things that perform well at reasonable cost. I would always choose a Honda Accord over a Mercedes Benz, and a discount airline ticket over first class.

I don't think I'm giving up anything by being thrifty, and I am suiting my own budgetary and psychological needs. There is joy in finding a great tool at a fair price. And I truly believe I get excellent results with the cameras and lenses I have. A number of my photographs have been used for book and magazine covers, and no photo editor has ever asked me what brand of camera or lens I used.

 

[Stephan]

I think I would have to go for a couple of MP a la cartes and matching Noctiluxes 😛

 

[Jarvis]

Photography class ????

 

[aizan]

sure, i'd get an m7 that looks like this:

$4040, though!

 

[Socke]

I had the misfortune to visit Photokina 2002 with a presspass. When my, actualy shooting, colleagues drooled over Canon 1D and played with the 1200mm I strolled over to Leica. There they had several M bodies and they gave a M7 with 50 'cron to try for a couple hours. Kodak provided Royal Supra 800 and I was off shooting a M for the first time in my life. The photos turned out, well, unusable. But man, that camera feels as if it was made for me!

I then decided to save and save and save until I could afford a used M6ttl with a 35 'cron.
So now taht I have the funds, I wait for the digital Zeiss Ikon 🙂

 

[Sonnar Brian]

After collecting cameras for decades, I guess money is not the issue. I could sell off a Nikon rangefinder in the collection and buy an MP if I wanted to.That would put my "actual cost" (pre-Ebay dollars) of a new MP at about $500. It's tempting, but I have my user-grade M3's that are in perfect working order, crystal clear viewfinders, and whisper quiet shutters. I also picked up an M2 and had it CLA'd. The two M3's and M2 with the CLA on all three ran the price of a new MP. It's tempting, but I have not given in to it. After looking through the M3 finder, what else do I need?

 

[Natalia]

If $$$ was not a problem, yes.....I'd get a new Leica. And not just one. I'd a-la-carte me an MP and an M7. Engrave my name on them and pass them down to my posterity😉

 

[Honu-Hugger]

Fantasies can be so powerful and compelling; realizing one is, if not a disappointment, often somewhat sobering. People: just go buy your Leicas and get it out of your system -- they really are not the panacea you make them out to be. They are just nice cameras; nothing more and nothing less.

 

[back alley]

i prefer a back door on a hinge.

 

[Bertram2]

HYPOTHETICALLY of course
If money was no issue... would u still buy a Leica new? ( nick

If money wasn't an issue ? NOT AT ALL ? Why shouldn't I buy one ? or two or three of them ? and the whole set of lenses too ? Of course I would. And a Mamiay 7II too, a new Rolleiflex and a Rolleiflex wide too, a Nikon F6 with a set of all these damn expensive Tele and zoom lenses. And maybe a digital SLR wonder for $8000, just to see how bad the pics still are . :angel:

And a lot of some other photo gear, like large format cameras for example.
$ 100.000.- would not be enuff . And I'd give up work o deal 7X24 with all this stuff, excepted the times I have fun with several exciting cars on the German Autobahn.

But money PLAYS a role, more or less for all of us I suppose ? So your question wasn't focussed enuff I'd say.
"If you can damnage or loose a body and a lens for $ 8000,- and can go to the photostore next day to buy another one and it does not really hurt" maybe this would have met the point better ?
I can afford this with a Bessa plus lens for $1300, but not for a Leica. The keyword is afford. It does not mean you got enuff money to buy it, it means as I said you can loose it without tears !

Please do not take this as an offense but telling us you did not dare to use it this proves (following my definition above) you could not afford it.
And if you can't afford it , you cannot get happy with it. The opposite happens, you are afraid of damnaging or losing it all the time.

I could not afford it too and so I decided 2001 to buy a Bessa set of two bodies and four lenses instead of an unused demo M6 with three lenses for only the double price ! Had been a rel bargain !!!
Nevertheless I never felt any regrets, the more I learn about RF shooting the more I am glad that I did NOT buy the M6 ( which felt sexy indeed 🙄
The fun of photograhy comes from getting better all the time, not from pressing sexy buttons, one should not mix up the best things in life folks !! 😀


Best regards,
Bertram