is the MP for me ? why not a M6 ? please help, MP owners :)

I own 6 M's an a ZI. MY M2 and M3 are basically retired due to age and heavy use. The M3 is a 1955 and the M2 is a 1960 and the M3 RF is very dim now. The M2 RF is fine but needs cleaned. Both cameras could use a good CLA but since they're retired i don't think I will invest the $$$. I purchased an M6 about 15 years ago and used it and the M2 exclusively untill early last year when I purchased 2 a la carte MP's. This year I won a new MP from the LHSA which makes 3 MP's. Getting the 3rd MP basically retired the M6. Most of the time I leave the M6 in the safe and carry the 3 MP's and ZI when working. Nothing wrong with the M6 but I like the MP meter better under low light and like the .85x VF in my 2 a la carte cameras better then the .72x in the M6. The 3rd MP has a .72x vf so no big gain in that department. My preference is the MP but if budget is tight go for the M6 classic. It's excellent and will certainly do the job. The M6's are new enough that they will work well for many years before visiting the shop for service. The M6 is an excellent value these days.

By the way, I selected the ZI over the M7 because the M7 didn't do anything better than the ZI and cost 2-1/2 times more. The ZI has a better RF/VF than the M Leicas in my opinion and the shutter is quiet. It sounds more metalic like most metal shutters but it's quiet. The high eyepoint VF is the finest and focusing with fast glass close up is dead on. It's magnesium and is lighter and I love the more modern swing open back vs the old removable base plate. The meter is dead on too. I only use this camera in AE mode.

One note to mention that most people don't know. Atleast in the M2, M3 and M4 all but one shutter speed could be set between the speeds for intermediate speed settings. I've done this with all of my M's with excellent results. No problems with the MP.
 
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Well I say if you can afford an MP then get one. I bought one about 4 months ago and soon followed it with an LHSA kit to give a second body. Both sound quite different which is odd (I suspect once worn they will equalise), but both are very quiet and silky. I love the simplicity and do not regret it for a minute.

Truly outstanding cameras and I will say do not forget about the Zeiss ZM optics. The black ones match Leica BP perfectly and produce great results.

If laying out the cash is going to cause agony, go for the M6. If cou can stretch a little, I doubt you will regret the MP. The pain soon goes away...
 
The major difference is AE. If you're not going to use the AE then get an MP. I like AE and if the ZI had been around when I bought my M7s I might well have gone for those instead. If you still like AE then you owe it to yourself to at least try one. I've tried Joerg's and the VF is something else...
 
I half firmly believe each lens deserves it's own body. I think I have made smart purchases from a dollar standpoint. Though I'm sure the M7/MP class is the be all- end all in Leica film bodies, I have never felt under gunned with the M3... only limited by my skill.

I tried the M6(ttl) in both the the .85 and .72 viewfinder. Other than not liking the .85VF 35mm frame lines they fit the bill really well.

However, I like the simplicity of the M2/M3.

Honestly found that with a couple of spools preloaded, the early M film loading issue was non existent.

For me, my handheld Sekonic is a faster tool for me than manually metering through SLR's or TTL M6 bodies.

My style of shooting typically means two bodies, and I could use a third. My budget doesn't allow much since I'm up to my eyeballs in Canon DSLR gear, but even if I had the money, I doubt I would need more than a M2/M3 combo, or a pair of M6 bodies.

What camera most fits your style? Sounds like the M7 to me.
 
I got into Leica rangefinder photography in the mid-90's to get away from the electronics. Plus I wanted to make all the decisions. Either an M6 or MP are good choices. Go with the one that turns you on at an emotional level. Deciding about which Leica is not a left brain activity. You can't think about it too much. Go with the one that feels right. Either way, you can't go wrong.
 
I have handled a few MPs, and I've been a little disappointed. This does not mean they're not good cameras, they are. My first disappointment was that one of them really looked like an M3, and to top it off, it had a light meter! Yeah! But it didn't have the "buttery feel" of the M3. It had the feel of my M6, but worth about 2.5 times more. That was what sealed it.

Now, the main complaint about the M6, other than the red dot, is the viewfinder's patch flare. I got mine replaced with flare-free optics. Happy camper.

But this is only my personal preference. I decided to keep an M2 over the M3, although I consider the M3 to be a better camera than the M2.

The only thing I can recommend is that you keep the one that feels right to you, not necessarily the one that is "better" than another.

It's like playing music: if you're very comfortable with the instrument, and it plays flawlessly, to your expectations, you're concentrating on the music, rather than fighting the instrument into playing what it ought to play.

My twopence.
 
Gabriel M.A. said:
The only thing I can recommend is that you keep the one that feels right to you, not necessarily the one that is "better" than another.

It's like playing music: if you're very comfortable with the instrument, and it plays flawlessly, to your expectations, you're concentrating on the music, rather than fighting the instrument into playing what it ought to play.

My twopence.
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indeed gabriel, reminds mt SLR days : 1Ds, D2x, D2h, 1D, and the list goes on. i was always one way or another to fight the beast to tame it , to get out what I want.

the other day, my workplace ( hotel ) need a photoshoot, they asked me if i do it if they could get me a camera. Sure I said.They managed a D2x borrowed from a fellow co-worker. I put it in manual mode, manual focus and was a happy camper, he was shocked. they asked me " but but, that way you have to make all the decisions... " , i just laughed and said "yep, thats the beautifull idea 🙂 )
 
proenca said:
kudos for the sympathy. yes i did emailed RW, Aperture, Solms, everyone i could think of with serial numbers, even some pawn shops with online email. One shot in a million to be honest, but as you said, you never know.
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Did you get money from your insurance?
 
jamie : i had no insurance for my camera, i always had expensive gear but never insured - you know, "it only happens to others". guess what . happened to me. plus the landlord of the house had insurance but not contents insurance, so there goes my second option. and third when I bought the M7 and lens, was part exchange with some digital gear, so i didnt payed with credit card, which has insurance for the stuff i buy, but since i did not pay with it, bummer. so basically was a total loss down the drain.
 
Intermediate speeds on the M2, 3, 4 and variations, 6 and MP work fine. If I remember correctly it's around 1/15 or 1/30 where the gear train changes and the intermediate speed doesn't work but can't remember. The catch on the metered cameras is the meter does'nt know what the speed is if set between but the speeds work fine.
 
Gabriel M.A. said:
I have handled a few MPs, and I've been a little disappointed. This does not mean they're not good cameras, they are. My first disappointment was that one of them really looked like an M3, and to top it off, it had a light meter! Yeah! But it didn't have the "buttery feel" of the M3. It had the feel of my M6, but worth about 2.5 times more. That was what sealed it.
to you, not necessarily the one that is "better" than another.

.
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I think the reason the MP's don't quite feel like the M2's and 3's is the M2's and 3's have as much as 50+ years of wear on the gears. In 50 years of use the MP's will be buttery smooth. Over the past year of using my new MP's and shooting a few hundred rolls through each I can now tell a difference in smoothness. Give them time.
 
Jimmy, no it doesnt. Im not a professional, far from it. From a simplistic stand point, on which I agree though, as in professional as someone that lives from photography ( and not someone that makes a few pounds, bucks or yens as a compliment to other sources of income ) , I am not. therefore it wouldnt help me much.

Although in a broader definition of professional as in "person that masters photography", i do not, since im a lausy amateur, it wouldnt help.

But I guess my favorite quote so far in this thread, the one that justifies my desire ( and ultimate the purchase) of a MP is " Go with the one that turns you on at an emotional level. Deciding about which Leica is not a left brain activity. You can't think about it too much." , afterall it only takes pictures. Its like buying a Rolex I supose, it only tells time like other watches. I dont own one though 🙂

I guess that buying a leica is something different - rationalizing is not an option. You simple cannot justify. For less money there are cameras that do the same job. You just have to say "sorry, I want it becauase it tickles me". And sometimes thats a hard thing for a grown up man to do 🙂
 
proenca said:
But I guess my favorite quote so far in this thread, the one that justifies my desire ( and ultimate the purchase) of a MP is " Go with the one that turns you on at an emotional level. Deciding about which Leica is not a left brain activity. You can't think about it too much." , afterall it only takes pictures.
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proenca said:
I guess that buying a leica is something different - rationalizing is not an option. You simple cannot justify. For less money there are cameras that do the same job. You just have to say "sorry, I want it becauase it tickles me". And sometimes thats a hard thing for a grown up man to do 🙂
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Very well stated and I got tickled too .... 🙂 Well... I am waiting for my MP (silver 0.72) to arrive and should not think about how to justify the purchase ....
 
Coming from a classic M6, I thought carefully about the MP. I know I would have loved it, but I am a shooter over a fondler or collector, use my camera's every day professionally.

I have two M6 TTL's with the flare free finder's that still cost me less than one MP. The improvement of using the TTL shutter dial over the MP /M6 classic style one is huge for me, it is *much* faster and more intuitive to use with the dial traveling the same direction as the arrows, the action is super fast with the size and still does not get knocked out of adjustment if rubbed on something.

The TTL flash feature is awesome with the SF-20 /SF-24!! I get stunning images at a flash compensation factor of minus 2-3 stops.

I am sure the MP is a nice tactile experience, but there is a really good reason that the M6TTL is the number one Leica M for pro use.

In my professional opinion, for making the best images you can for the money, the M6 TTL is a real shooter's camera.



eon said:
The MP is the beautiful one of newer date.

But my advice is to get the M6 TTL.
It's reasonably new. It has the same quiet mechanical shutter as M6 and MP. And most importantly, it has the same large shutter dial as you gotten used to on M7, and it turns in the same direction too. You anticipated to get a digital Leica later on and there you have the larger dial again. So M6 TTL will be a better partner to a M8.

/Erik
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proenca said:
But I guess my favorite quote so far in this thread, the one that justifies my desire ( and ultimate the purchase) of a MP is " Go with the one that turns you on at an emotional level. Deciding about which Leica is not a left brain activity. You can't think about it too much." , afterall it only takes pictures. Its like buying a Rolex I supose, it only tells time like other watches. I dont own one though 🙂

I guess that buying a leica is something different - rationalizing is not an option. You simple cannot justify. For less money there are cameras that do the same job. You just have to say "sorry, I want it becauase it tickles me". And sometimes thats a hard thing for a grown up man to do 🙂
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Well, it looks like the MP is way for you to go. If I did not need the most capable camera to put my leica optics on and I were a hobby only type, I would get one beautiful MP and be done with it.

I simply can't afford to have an MP, it is too much for what I can get out of an M6 TTL and is missing key features from the M6TTL that I use daily.

But you want the best Leica experience, so go for the MP.
 
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