Leica M5

Chuck A

Chuck A

Chuck A
Local time
3:12 PM
Joined
Mar 16, 2005
Messages
364
I have never seen one of these in person and they don't seem to get any respect from the Leicaphiles. What do you folks think of it?
 
All the people that I have talked to really likes the M5. Some even saying that the M5 was ahead of it's time. There are a couple of people on the Leica forum that swear by it.
 
The M5 was much like the Porsche 928. It was Leica but didn't look and feel like the traditional M cameras. I have a friend that owned one and loved it but the M5 was just too chunky for me. I don't think it suffered from the mechanical meter problems like the CL and think they gave good trouble free service. There were two versions, one with two strap lugs on one end and another with three so the camera could be carried in a normal fashion. The two lug models weren't very popular.


http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost/showgallery.php?cat=5045
 
I like my M5 a lot. The metering is very intuitive, with the two intersecting needles for aperture and shutter speed. To me it's a lot easier to use than the metering on the M6 with only the 2 red arrows. The shutter speed wheel is ideally placed to change speeds without taking the camera from your eye (on the M6 I find I'm mostly changing aperture). The viewfinder/rangefinder, filmadvance,... is everything you'ld expect from a Leica M-camera. The only problem I have with it, is the size. I can fit the M6 with a small lens (28 or 35mm) in my pocket (just), but with the M5 this is not possible.

Wim
 
At least in its day, the M5 didn't sell well. It had a somewhat larger body than other M's, and the meter was on a "wig-wag" behind the lens and prevented use of some wide-angle lenses. However true it may or may not be, the story seems to be that Leitz decided to put its power behind SLRs. When that idea didn't work out well either, sales-wise, they came out with the M4-2, which I happen to have one of.

As far as what the "Leicaphiles" have to say, a lot of it is just opinion. Some aren't terribly fond of the M4-2, either, but I see no reason to think it isn't a good camera. Nowadays the M5 seems to go for rather premium prices in the used and e-bay markets. It's sort of a rare bird, which in Leica lore always helps prices for those who have one to sell.
 
I've seen them, and despite their aerodynamic looks... they don't have the same Leica design. In fact, they're big in comparison (by something like a quarter of an inch). However, despite their kinda dated design, they were remarkable cameras, sharing with Leica the same kind of shutter and structure.

I was hunting for one for a while... to no avail. So, I gave up and found the more traditional looking M6TTL.

These M5 now fetch high prices, and most people blame Japanese collectors for the price hike.
 
The M5 was considered "ahead of its time" when it was introduced in 1971 I think, but the camera was not a success. I suppose Leica assumed that its customers would be interested in the enhanced functionality and didn't take into account the traditionalists who panned it. They went very rapidly back to the traditional form and produced the M4-2, M4P and M6 after the "mistake". Someone on PN once said thet it had a "low fondle factor" and that about sums it up. There were echoes of this when the M7 was introduced, and there are still many Leica owners who are upset with the idea of a Leica with a battery in it.

Stephen Gandy's Leica M5 page: Yesterday's outcast, today's star?

 
of the metered leicas, the m5 is my fav. great meter readout, and no unsightly battery compartment where the self timer should be. it's built from the ground up, not retrofitted. i like black chrome. different look, more modern. it'll fit in big coat pockets with a small lens, or you can hang it vertically under your coat (should go well with an upstrap). and you can adjust the shutter speed dial without taking your eye away. it's almost like having shutter priority. i muse about replacing my m2 with one, but then i wouldn't really be part of the leica m club anymore.
 
Thanks for the replys. I am putting together a list of cameras that I would be interested in buying and I wasn't sure about this one. But now I am adding it to my list.
 
Everyone I know who had an M5 didn't like it, except for the few who did and they still have them. Most people complained of the M5's extra size and weight (personally I can't see where it's that much different, especially put both an M5 and an M6 next to a Canon 1D.). A few people didn't like the strap lug arrangement, not even with the afterthought 3rd lug added. My gripe with the M5 is that the eyepiece is just far enough farther inboard that my nose hits the back of the camera instead of going alongside it. That keeps me from getting tightly enough against it to see the 35mm framelines comfortably. I also dislike the poor illumination of the meter display in low light. Bottom line, I wouldn't buy one without trying it first.
 
To all the things Aizan said I would add the uncluttered viewfinder, being able to see your shutter speed in the viewfinder and the match needle display that lets you see if you are opening or closing the aperture as you set exposure. Mine is a three lug that I carry vertically.

Ben, I just tried to mash my nose into the back while looking through the finder with no luck. My nose goes alongside the camera where it belongs.

I sold my M6 for lack of use about six months after buying my M5.

In addition to the factors others have pointed out, (size, strap lugs, Leicaphile aversion to size and electronics) the simultaneous introduction of the CL at a much lower price did not help. Stephen Gandy has an analysis on his website in the Profiles section,
 
I enjoy my M5 for it's "feel" as well as the performance attributes.

I like visible shutter speeds in the finder.

Sometimes, when the GAS hits hard, I decide I want a camera without a meter; but then I like being able to basically "spot meter" through the viewfinder.

I prefer the needle type meter of the M5 and the bottom plate rewind crank.

The engraved top plate is beautful, I think. Although I have handled other Ms, I have never owned one, so perhaps I am a bit based!
 
The other day I was out shooting street performers (break dancers) with my M2 and my konica, and there was an elderly gentleman shooting with an M5 pretty much right next to me.

After the show was over, he noticed me and walked up and said "Thank god there are still people who take the time to use these wonderful cameras." Then he asked me if my konica was from russia. I just laughed and we talked for a couple of minutes, and he showed me what he was shooting with (Two M5s, one with a 28mm f/2.8 and the other with a 35 f/1.4). They were well taken care of, but you could tell that they had seen a lot of use.
 
Flinor said:
Ben, I just tried to mash my nose into the back while looking through the finder with no luck. My nose goes alongside the camera where it belongs.,
Click to expand...

Yes, well, I suspect that the distance between the center of one's right eye and the side of one's nose tends to vary among individuals. 99/100 people might not be affected like I was but if you're the 100th guy...That's why I said bottom line try before you buy.
 
There are lots of varied opinions on this camera.Now I really want to handle one. I think that I am going to have to take a trip to the big city.
 
The 'best user' M-series camera with refined features, a great light meter, and the best viewfinder in an M. The Leica logic at the time was it was no bigger than a traditional body with the add on MR meter, and if you are thinking that way it makes more than a bit of sense.

As for size... you either like it, get by for its advantages, or option for a newer M-series metered camera like the M6. Two of the main handling complaints don't bother me; I'm a left-eyes shooter and so my nose is up against the back of any camera, not along the side like a right-eyes user, and I like the two lug design with a long strap over the shoulder and across the chest with the camera along the side, it actually makes the camera light and it doesn't bounce around on my chest or feel like falling off the single shoulder way.

The meter is THE BEST; limited, defined area in the finder, fast with the over hanging shutter dial, analog so you see the light level all the way and see your adjustments to it ( my brain works better in this way :) and with 100ISO I have not a problem with reading down to 1sec. at f1.4 (sometimes a finger edge over the very bottom of the rangefinder window helps to 'blacken' the background of the meter bar, a 'trick' I've learned)

Its not a traditional M body, and that's the main area you have to get by in use and maybe in your mind, but it is an excellent camera.
 
Welcome to the forum dreamsandart and that's an interesting post! :) Next time I'm in my local dealership I should take the time to look at this camera. I've never actually seen or handled one - just read about them.

 
Well I use my M-5 and Hexar RF as my main cameras, love the meter and the shutter speed dial plus the read out in the finder. Yes it's bigger but seems to fit the hand better when you are using it and I don't have big hands... But to each his own.
 
Thanks for the welcome Peter, I've been looking in on the Rangefinder forum now and then and look forward to posting thoughts and help as best I can.

Definitely handling an M5 will give you an idea of what its like in actual use, but like any classic manual camera it takes a bit of practice to get the rhythm
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom