Leica R System - Loving it

[Keith]

When you think about it an original 5D with a couple of adapted R lenses would set you back less than a third of the price of an M9 body ... and it would have the IQ to match!

 

[Keith]

Sssssshhhh!

You're right ... secrecy needed here! 😀

 

[Pickett Wilson]

I gave up trying to get a working R4 after buying numerous (five or six of them) bodies and none of them worked properly. These were excellent condition cameras which all had different problems. I do have an SL that works well, and could probably have found an R6 or later that worked, but by that time I had really lost interest in the search. I'm not convinced that the R lenses are really worth the additional cost.

 

[ferider]

Hmm. Today you can buy 4000 (!) rolls of Neopan 400 (35mm x 36) at Freestyle for the price of an M9 ....

Now, using an 80mm Summilux on my Nikon F would be a different story 🙂

 

[Keith]

Hmm. Today you can buy 4000 (!) rolls of Neopan 400 (35mm x 36) at Freestyle for the price of an M9 ....

Now, using an 80mm Summilux on my Nikon F would be a different story 🙂

And that represents 144,000 shutter accuations ... could an M9 do that I wonder! 😀

 

[dave lackey]

I gave up trying to get a working R4 after buying numerous (five or six of them) bodies and none of them worked properly. These were excellent condition cameras which all had different problems. I do have an SL that works well, and could probably have found an R6 or later that worked, but by that time I had really lost interest in the search. I'm not convinced that the R lenses are really worth the additional cost.

Then, you did not look at over 300 images by the 80 Lux...here:

http://www.flickriver.com/groups/summiluxr80/pool/interesting/

But then again, maybe this is not the look you need.

The 35 Lux is just as delicious as are the other R lenses. A little research will show how nice these lenses are at very reasonable prices...for now.🙂

 

[taskoni]

Here is a shot with the Lux 80 wide open - sadly OF a bit 😀



Regards,
b.

 

[gavinlg]

That summilux 80mm f1.4 would be a really nice lens.....

















If the canon 85mm f1.2L II didn't exist 😎

edit: just checked ebay pricing on that summilux - Sheesh!

 

[Freakscene]

When someone speaks of reliability issues, it certainly makes sense to name names. Which body? R3/R4/R5/R6/R7/R8/R9? What problems were encountered? What year did these problems occur?

R5, RE, R6.2, R8 (2 of each at a time). 1998-2000, during which time I worked as a photographer.

The R5s had problems with the mechanical linkages to the electronic switches. One was better and malfunctioned only 3 times in 9 months, the other spent more time being fixed than in my bag. One also had problems with being able to hold the exposure values in memory when using the spot meter.

The REs both broke the tow line between the controls and the viewfinder indicator, making it hard to meter while looking through the viewfinder. One had the screw holding the strap lug in place come loose and then it snapped, and the camera skated across a concrete floor. End of the REs.

The 6.2s were the least troublesome, but the meter in one ate batteries - a battery usually lasted about 10 days - Leica said they fixed it a couple of times but it was never resolved in the 6 months I used them. The other one had a problem with the prism cradle - and no I never tried to remove the focusing screen myself.

The R8s were a disaster. They never worked properly with the winder, and mainly kept firing after I had taken my finger off the shutter button. The cameras usually locked up after a few exposures and the back had to be opened to reset the camera, although sometimes it locked up completely. I had them for 4 months but never took them into the field.

I love the R lenses and I still have an R body that I use for personal work, but these cameras weren't reliable enough for my professional use.

As far as Nikon being bullet-proof, that is a myth. I know, having used Nikons since 1971 and experienced problems. Including the latest DSLRs. How does a dead D3 sound? Or a D2H with shutter problems? Or a D2X....etc. With the cost of depreciation of a high-dollar DSLR, I can buy another R body every month.

The Nikons I switched to weren't perfect, but apart from the F100s snapping their rewind forks nothing went wrong that I thought wasn't my fault.

Comparing Nikon dSLRs to Leica Rs is apples and oranges. In professional use where reliability really matters, these days you need a digital camera - the time delay and higher cost of using film leaves you uncompetitive most of the time and in most situations now. If comparing Nikon and Leica film cameras, I'd still back the Nikon for reliability under hard use. And if you're just taking photos for yourself, buy a pile of Rs and just shrug when you have a problem - you're not losing much.

But those R lenses are sublime.

Marty

 

[dave lackey]

R5, RE, R6.2, R8 (2 of each at a time). 1998-2000, during which time I worked as a photographer.

The R5s had problems with the mechanical linkages to the electronic switches. One was better and malfunctioned only 3 times in 9 months, the other spent more time being fixed than in my bag. One also had problems with being able to hold the exposure values in memory when using the spot meter.

The REs both broke the tow line between the controls and the viewfinder indicator, making it hard to meter while looking through the viewfinder. One had the screw holding the strap lug in place come loose and then it snapped, and the camera skated across a concrete floor. End of the REs.

The 6.2s were the least troublesome, but the meter in one ate batteries - a battery usually lasted about 10 days - Leica said they fixed it a couple of times but it was never resolved in the 6 months I used them. The other one had a problem with the prism cradle - and no I never tried to remove the focusing screen myself.

The R8s were a disaster. They never worked properly with the winder, and mainly kept firing after I had taken my finger off the shutter button. The cameras usually locked up after a few exposures and the back had to be opened to reset the camera, although sometimes it locked up completely. I had them for 4 months but never took them into the field.

I love the R lenses and I still have an R body that I use for personal work, but these cameras weren't reliable enough for my professional use.



The Nikons I switched to weren't perfect, but apart from the F100s snapping their rewind forks nothing went wrong that I thought wasn't my fault.

Comparing Nikon dSLRs to Leica Rs is apples and oranges. In professional use where reliability really matters, these days you need a digital camera - the time delay and higher cost of using film leaves you uncompetitive most of the time and in most situations now. If comparing Nikon and Leica film cameras, I'd still back the Nikon for reliability under hard use. And if you're just taking photos for yourself, buy a pile of Rs and just shrug when you have a problem - you're not losing much.

But those R lenses are sublime.

Marty

Well, either you have had incredible luck (bad), or Leica should have gone down the tubes. I think the truth is somewhere in between. Doesn't matter that my 50-year old M3 and 30 year old R4 are doing just fine in my professional work. Even if every single body left is crap (and they are far from it), as before, they can be replaced by another cheap light box for far less than a D700, Canon, whatever digital. I have lost my @ss on "professional" digital cameras depreciating over the last 10 years. The R bodies, I like them. They work for me. They don't for you. Fair enough.

To each his own. I use digital for professional work. I use both of my film Leicas for professional work and both have been extremely good and reliable. After all they have been around for awhile. Almost as long as this old, analog, unreliable photographer.😉

 

[dave lackey]

Now, back to the merits of the original post.:angel:

 

[Freakscene]

or Leica should have gone down the tubes.

My Ms have been a lot more reliable - I've had a lot of problems with an M7 but the others have been great. I figured when they stopped making the R series that everyone had trouble with them, including Leica.

RE, 80/1.4, Neopan 400, Xtol 1+3, Rachel.

Marty

 

[dave lackey]

My Ms have been a lot more reliable - I've had a lot of problems with an M7 but the others have been great. I figured when they stopped making the R series that everyone had trouble with them, including Leica.

RE, 80/1.4, Neopan 400, Xtol 1+3, Rachel.

Marty

Nice portrait!🙂

Cool...the thing about the R system is the lenses. As tools, I cannot find anything that works better for me. In fact, the 80 Lux photographs are the ones that caught my eye because that is where I am headed. The inexpensive R bodies just happen to work for me within a non-existent budget. Nice surprise.

The bodies also happen to complement the M3 and I can work pretty much seamlessly with both bodies. Tried it with the Nikons and my brain doesn't switch back and forth well while working. So, on the latest projects, I have the M3 loaded with TriX for portraits and indoor photographs. The R4 loaded with ISO 100 film and primarily for outdoor photographs and close-ups.

So, if I win the lottery soon, that 80 will be a major tool for me.🙂 A shame that it represents something that I cannot afford at the moment.

 

[dave lackey]

When you think about it an original 5D with a couple of adapted R lenses would set you back less than a third of the price of an M9 body ... and it would have the IQ to match!

The only problem for me is, with about half of my projects, digital just doesn't work! For those that projects that do work with digital, I would prefer a Nikon body.😉

 

[Uwe_Nds]

...
So, if I win the lottery soon, that 80 will be a major tool for me.🙂 ...

For me too!
But until then, the Summicron-R 90 isn't too bad either. 😉

Cheers,
Uwe

 

[Freakscene]

Don't get me wrong, I had a nightmare with those cameras, but the lenses are sublime.

Marty

 

[dave lackey]

Don't get me wrong, I had a nightmare with those cameras, but the lenses are sublime.

Marty

Understood, and I would have given up on the second go around. The old saying here in the South is "don't let the same dog bite you twice!". 😉

But when one's work is film-based and the R lenses are the lenses of choice, what alternative is there to an R-body? One that works with the M-body and avoid left brain right brain conflicts? So far, I can't find a single problem with the R4 that I have and I appreciate it's compactness and quality build.

Hopefully there will be R bodies and R lenses around for quite awhile as my current project is at least a 5-10 year long effort. After that, I will be happy to just be around, let alone use film.🙂

 

[Freakscene]

Understood, and I would have given up on the second go around. The old saying here in the South is "don't let the same dog bite you twice!". 😉

I am determined to the point of stupidity. Sometimes it works, sometimes . . .

But when one's work is film-based and the R lenses are the lenses of choice, what alternative is there to an R-body? One that works with the M-body and avoid left brain right brain conflicts? So far, I can't find a single problem with the R4 that I have and I appreciate it's compactness and quality build.

There is no alternative; auto diaphragm and decent focusing screens are absent in all the other possibilities.

But if you have a camera that works well and reliably, don't worry about it. My current R5 might be the one I was looking for back then, but I'll probably never know.

Hopefully there will be R bodies and R lenses around for quite awhile as my current project is at least a 5-10 year long effort. After that, I will be happy to just be around, let alone use film.🙂

The lenses should last a very long time. As long as someone is working on them, you'll be able to keep the bodies working, and there's always an SL or SL2; they are practically indestructible.

Marty

 

[rpilottx]

R6.2 on the Way

R6.2 on the Way

I have a R6.2 and 50 Summicron on the way from Collectible Cameras in Phoenix. I thought about the M9 for awhile but honestly I just prefer film.

The 6.2 will join an M2, Nikon F (probably for sale) and blad. What are the killer R lenses between 24 and 200mm? I prefer primes.

 

[dave lackey]

I have a R6.2 and 50 Summicron on the way from Collectible Cameras in Phoenix. I thought about the M9 for awhile but honestly I just prefer film.

The 6.2 will join an M2, Nikon F (probably for sale) and blad. What are the killer R lenses between 24 and 200mm? I prefer primes.

Ah...the 6.2! Chrome or black? Would love to have one of those.🙂

Killer lenses have to be any of the Summilux lenses! But, then, I haven't found a prime that isn't superb. I would like to try the 35-70 zoom lens as it has great reviews too.

http://www.photoethnography.com/ClassicCameras/Lens-R.html

http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/895186