Leica vs Bessa

[Abbazz]

If you buy the M4 and sell it in a year you will get back about what you paid for it. If you buy the Bessa and sell it in a year you will get about half.

I am sentimental (with my cash) too. 😀 😀 😀

No sentimentalism involved here, you only need good sense...

If you don't want to lose half of the value of your camera over one year, buy a second hand camera. You will be able to sell a second hand Bessa after one year for about the same price you bought it, just like a Leica.

Cheers,

Abbazz

 

[rxmd]

Put another way - In one corner a low production vintage Mercedes; In the other corner a blue Yugo. Its that different.

To the Mercedesphiliac all other cars look like Yugos, even the decent ones.

Philipp

 

[Stephen23]

For what it's worth I've just bought a R3M with the Heliar 50/f2 having agonised over the cost of a leica M7 kit. The first roll has gone through and it looks fantastic. Why pay the extra money for a few less decibels?
Street photography is all about balls anyway.

Stephen

 

[jss273nyc]

If you have the choice and the money....go for the Leica by all means! I'm not faulting the Bessa, i bought one and I liked it until it broke on me about a month after I bought it. I went to get it repaired and while I was waiting on delivery of a new one, I was lured by an M6 that happened to sitting in the shop. I have had no problems with my Leica and I know that I can sell it for as much as I paid for it which was $1200. ($600 after I returned the Bessa and got my money back.)

 

[like2fiddle]

I've owned the R3M and an M2. The R3M came first and I really liked it, except... arrived with misalligned VF, and after about six rolls of film went into endless film advance. I returned it and put the money into the M2. While I probably simply had a lemon R3M, my confidence was shaken. I have to admit that now that I've used an old Leica, there's no going back. In my limited experiece, everything about the M2 is smoother and quieter, from the film advance and shutter, to the lines of the camera body itself.

 

[kmack]

allow me to save you some time: there is no comparsion between a Bessa of any stripe and a legendary Leica M4. Never was, never will be.

Put another way - In one corner a low production vintage Mercedes; In the other corner a blue Yugo. Its that different.

I'm going to call BS on that. Very bad analogy.

Yes, the Leica is a much better built and sturdier camera but to compare
the Bessa to a Yugo is a little much.

If I were a professional photographer who was jumping out of helicopters and
shooting hundreds of rolls of film a month then the Leica would be the first
rangefinder camera in my bag. I'm a 50 year old guy who shoots 4 to 8 rolls
of film a month. The Bessa is just fine thank you.

I own an old Leica IIIf for nostalgic reasons. I have handled and shot a few
rolls of film through a M7. Nice camera, but not that nice IMHO.

Call me a barbarian if you wish...

 

[clintock]

I think the analogy car for the bessa line would be Infinity. You have the knowlege the cars are based on more pedestrian Nissan models, but they work so well that it's ok.

Yugo should be reserved for the Fed 5.

What would the Diamler Smart car be? A digilux?

 

[photogdave]

I have an M6 and M4. I prefer the M4 because I don't use the extra framelines the M6 has and I prefer to use an incident meter. The M4, in my opinion, is the last of the classic Leicas.
However, I really wanted a second "beater" body and was seriously looking at a Bessa, ran a few rolls through one etc., but the M6 came along at aprice I couldn't refuse. Otherwise I would have an M4 and a Bessa!

 

[rxmd]

I think the analogy car for the bessa line would be Infinity. You have the knowlege the cars are based on more pedestrian Nissan models, but they work so well that it's ok.

Yugo should be reserved for the Fed 5.

What would the Diamler Smart car be? A digilux?

And the Leica M[2..7] would be a 1950s Mercedes Benz. Nice car, exceptional build quality. You can even use it to drive from A to B, but most owners just have it standing in the garage. For the sake of completeness, it's a Mercedes with no seatbelts until the 1984 model (the 1971 model was shunned by consumers who thought seatbelts are for weenies). And with the new 2002 model you even get an airbag (which everybody else has had since the 1980s at least, while Mercedes drivers always said they don't need no stinkin' airbag). Ah, and to enter the car you have to screw off the roof. I'm beginning to like the analogy.

Philipp

 

[ronnie_retro]

FWIW here's my $.02 -

The Bessa is a nicely made camera, with built in metering and an electronically controlled shutter; most every post I've read has praised the results the meter provides. I find the small compact size handy and convenient.

The alignment of the focal plane with the lens mount is excellent; I read a magazine review (sorry I don't recall the name - Luminous Image??) last summer where the very high resolution 75mm Leica lens was shot wide open. Results were every bit as sharp on the Bessa as on the Leica box. Your images will be indistinguishable with either camera, except for the advantage the exposure system provides in the Bessa. That in mind, the Bessa was conceived of as an affordable alternative to a Leica, and is made accordingly.

I agree with inaki tho - if you are looking to enjoy luxurious machinery and have the pocket book for the extra $$, check out the Zeiss Ikon. It's viewfinder is superb, the shutter release has a million dollar feel and the shutter sound exudes precision.

If budget is an issue I'd go with the Bessa - you can pick up a very nice lens for the $600 difference.

Oh Two - great tag line!

 

[netzspannung]

This is an eternal thread, omg

Just get a leica, you know you will someday... Why pay twice. I've got a Bessa R2, and the shutter sound is really bad - not much different from my old Nikkormat. Otherwise it works great and looks great too. I'd swap it for a cheap leica, but I can't find any 😉

 

[luketrash]

I've said it before in other threads, but to me Leicas are like BMWs and Bessas are like Volvos.

They both nice, and both do the same thing, but one is boxy and ugly and takes a special person to appreciate it. And I can afford to drive used Volvos...

 

[jan normandale]

I've said it before in other threads, but to me Leicas are like BMWs and Bessas are like Volvos.

They both nice, and both do the same thing, but one is boxy and ugly and takes a special person to appreciate it. And I can afford to drive used Volvos...

Luke, based on a recent shot of your driveway you are definitely a Volvo guy. I think that's pretty rebellious especially in the mid West ;- ) (joke)

 

[back alley]

think...'swingback'...then think 'bottom loader'.

think one handed film change, then think 3 handed film change.

think brand new with a meter, then think 20 to 50 years old and maybe no meter.

 

[PlantedTao]

Great Points

Great Points

think...'swingback'...then think 'bottom loader'.

think one handed film change, then think 3 handed film change.

think brand new with a meter, then think 20 to 50 years old and maybe no meter.

I think that is why my next camera to replace my Bessa R2 will be a ZI...those above points really appeal to me.

 

[ERV]

In the past I've said that "a Leica is like a Porsche 911, classic design, built for speed and nothing else." (garcia, pg 211)
Anyway, lots of good ideas here.
An m4 is a nice camera, however if I were to go the Leica route I would go for the more expensive M6 or the less expensive M2 or a M4-2 even.
A CLA of an M2 by Youxin Ye is very reasonable and fast.
A Bessa is fine for the street, however if you want to take it inside somewhere and be discreet, that's a different story.
I had a bessa T before I bought my M6, however it was also the reason I bought an M6.
Don't get fixed on models, buy what you can afford and save for film!
Great lens choice!

 

[5nap5hot]

Thanks all. I am going with the M6 ;-)

 

[photogdave]

go M4 go M4 go M4 go M4...

 

[FrankS]

Thanks all. I am going with the M6 ;-)

Good choice. Later you can get an M2 and an M3 to experience the classic Leica feel wihout spending the big bucks that the M4 commands. 🙂

 

[Flyfisher Tom]

Seriously, the M6 is easier to load than any other camera I own.
But then I need two hands for all of them 🙂

Roland.

I agree with Roland, the M6 is very easy to load once you get over the newness of it relative to swingback. It is not as difficult to load Ms as people suggest or think.

Use two hands and no one says you can't use your teeth to hold the bottom plate 😉