Longtime Leicaphile finally owns Leica glass: a first (long) post

[Doctor Zero]

For many years I longed for a Leica. I had it all worked out: M6 classic, 50 summilux, 21 Elmarit and 90 Elmarit. I would buy it when I thought my photography had reached a level where I would have earned a Leica. So I waited, and waited, and waited. And then I stopped being a student, started earning decent money (well - in as much as academia is decent!) - and spotted a bargain online. Not just any bargain, either. The Leica-lens: 35mm 'cron, 4th generation. Common sense and thoughts of earning a Leica through improved photography went out the window. I bid. And won!

A week or so later it arrived. An innocuous looking box. Wasn't sure if it was what I hoped it would be. I was listening to heavy emotional stuff, Wagner's Lohengrin, when I opened the box. I nearly dropped it when I saw what it was. Sat down and when I finally stopped shaking, held it in my hand. My first piece of Leica glass. Focussing silky-smooth. Aperture distinctly clicking every half stop. No scratches, smears, no nothing. Just perfect.

[Leica-afficionados may not want to read the next paragraph]
I stuck it on my tattered Bessa R2. Anybody know how to glue back the rubbery stuff?
[Leica-afficionados can look back now]
It fit like a glove. I couldn't wait to put some film through it.

Work sort of took over for a while, but I had a holiday in Poland, ideal for a testrun. Some of the pictures are in my user gallery:
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost/showgallery.php?ppuser=3050&cat=500
There will be more.

The pictures are too small to see the quality. And the pictures aren't that great (remember the bit about earning a Leica I mentioned?). So I'm not sure why I've uploaded them, but hey.

Techy bits: well I'm really bad at writing down what settings I used. Film was Kodak High Definition (200 asa). The wedding pictures were all taken at night, inside, using available light: probably f/2 or f/2.8 by 1/15s or so. Considering the amount of bisongrass vodka I had - I'm pleased they came out the way they did!
The other pictures (to be uploaded as of 18 Sep) were out and about, mostly the old town (which isn't old).

Comments welcome. No longer a Leica virgin so I can't even ask you to be gentle 😉

Where do we go from here? Hm I dread to think...

Doctor Zero (it's a long story)

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[jaapv]

Ha! Bitten by the GAS bug eh? My advice: take your computer and run,run a long way from
1.This forum 2.E-bay 3.Any site incorporating the word "Leica" and never return! It will save either your bank-account, your marriage, your social life or even all three of them! 😀 😀

 

[merciful]

Shoot black and white with that glass, man.

 

[SolaresLarrave]

Following steps are

1. Get a good yellow filter. We're talking GOOD. as in Leica or B & W (the latter are more affordable), and some real B&W film. Or at least the chromogenic kind.

2. Start fantasizing about another lens. No, wait, it's not a fantasy... You DO need another lens. In a perfect world it'd be a Summilux 50 but you can settle with a Summicron, right?

3. Why not... just declare to the world that life is too short, you work hard and need to play hard, and heck, with digital nobody will care if you tout your film gear around, so you get a Leica camera.

Welcome to the club where academics, social workers, computer whizkids and other assorted professionals meet and speak the same language: rangefinder cameras! 😀

 

[Doctor Zero]

black and white

black and white

Jaapv: bedankt voor de welkomstgroet en waarschuwing 😉

Everybody else: yup, I'm originally from Holland but have wandered extensively.
My love for black and white is being rekindled! I agree that this lens cries out for it. An order for film will go out soon - the only problem is finding a dark room I can use, which surely is half the fun of black and white. I was offered the use of one where I work, but only during working hours. Academia is flexible, yes, but I don't think I could get away with not working at work, under my boss' nose! Oh, no, wait, that's where I'm sending this from.

And the Leica a la carte programme has tremendous appeal. It's an investment, of course. For my kids (if and when I get them). It prevents them from having to ever buy a camera. No, really. Honest. Sigh... 🙄

Doctor Zero

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[richard_l]

Doc, maybe you will miss half the fun, but the C-41 black & white films are excellent and can be processed wherever you have your color film processed.