My M4-2 and Sunny16 (Thank you RFF!)

[ibrando]

About a mont ago I stumbled upon RFF while researching my Yashica Electro35 GTN. I found the forums to be full of information about my fun little RF. While reading through the forum I kept taking the odd peak into the Leica M forum.

Looking back on it, I believe this was the fatal mistake that killed my wallet.

So after many hours of reading I take the plunge and buy my very first M (M4-2) this month. It’s a late serial number run so I don’t think I have one of the bad M4-2’s. It seems to work perfectly. Shortly afterward I bought a a couple of lenses from the classifieds here on RFF (Thank you again Dave!).

First let me say that I have never used such a nice camera before. I literally feel like I have been using this camera for years, something that has never happened with my past cameras, digital or film.

Thus begins the next chapter of my photography.

I’ll be honest, I was a little apprehensive to invest so much into a fully manual, meter-less, camera system. I thought really? No meter? I have never not shot with a meter, but I was soon assured it was not as hard as it sounded by reading many posts here on RFF.

I found the sunny 16 rule.

I thought it could not be that easy, but I was willing to give it a try. Wow. I shot 2 rolls of film using nothing but the sunny 16 rule. One roll B&W, one roll colour. So far it seems to work fantastic. I’m very impressed with the results, I can tell the difference between a 5.6 day and an 11 day. 🙂

You can view some shots here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/brandonphillips/sets/72157601682711511/

Thank you RFF members! I could not have done it without you...

Next up... Developing B&W at home!

Cheers,
Brandon.

 

[rpsawin]

Brandon,

Nice work. I especially enjoyed the b&w shots. The Sunny 16 Rule certainly is a reliable guide. The more you practice the easier exposure calc's become. And by developing your own b&w film it will open a whole, broad range of possibilities to you.

Best of luck,

Bob

 

[cmogi10]

Enjoy your M, it's an addiction!

 

[RayPA]

Nice work there. I like the cat shot, and I usually don't like cat shots (even though I just posted one in my gallery). Even though you are enjoying the sunny 16 rule, my recommendation is to add a good meter to your kit. It's another purchase you won't regret having made. I use the sunny 16 rule too, but I always carry a meter and use it quite often.

 

[ibrando]

Thank you RayPA,

I have a rather old, but still accurate, Gossen Luna Six 3 in my bag. It needs new batteries. I use it indoors and in low light situations with my Rollei35S.

I wanted to take a few rolls without using it just to see if I could "guess" the exposure.

Thank you for the comment on M.C.'s shot. 🙂

Cheers,
Brandon.

Nice work there. I like the cat shot, and I usually don't like cat shots (even though I just posted one in my gallery). Even though you are enjoying the sunny 16 rule, my recommendation is to add a good meter to your kit. It's another purchase you won't regret having made. I use the sunny 16 rule too, but I always carry a meter and use it quite often.

 

[Todd.Hanz]

nice shots, esp. for guessing the exposure!

Todd

 

[ibrando]

Thank you all for the kind comments. I'll be sure to post more photos as I get them developed. Even more when I figure out how to do this at home. 😉

Cheers,
B.

 

[xayraa33]

M4-2s are great Canadian made cameras.

 

[markinlondon]

Nice, Brandon, the cat is particularly impressive for a "guessed" exposure.

Cheers,

 

[ibrando]

Thank you markinlondon,

I was shocked when the prints came back. I opened the lens right up to f2 and guessed at the 1/125th. I figured that at f2 there was a lot of light coming in, and there was reflection from the blanket, I didn't go overboard on the shutter speed. I also took another shot at 1/60th just in case.

I have found I can hand hold 1/60th with no shake, 1/30th, that's another story. 🙂

Cheers,
B.

 

[shadowfox]

Brandon, good pictures!

You are one of a few people here on RFF who went from never hearing about it, to falling in love with the Sunny-16 rule 🙂

Some people don't seem to grow to like it.

Keep on using the rule, soon you'll know what manual exposure settings to use in different indoor lights, your DSLR-equipped-with-bounced-flash friends will ask you for advice. 😎

 

[Chimera]

Hi there,
I just placed a bid om a M4-2. What do you mean with bad individuals of the M4-2. What serial-nrs are they and what problem have they got?

Best R /Kim

 

[ibrando]

Hi Chimera,

Throughout my research into the M series I found a couple of sites that mention possible problems with the 1 468 001 - 1 482 000 serial number range. They note that these were some of the first runs off the Midland (Canada) line and individuals have reported issues such at the film counter not working and general workmanship of the cameras. My M4-2 is 1 500 xxx and seems to work perfectly.

These links should give you a good idea of the M4-2:
http://nemeng.com/leica/016b.shtml
and
http://www.cameraquest.com/mguide.htm#M4-2%20and%20M4-P

Cheers,
B.

Hi there,
I just placed a bid om a M4-2. What do you mean with bad individuals of the M4-2. What serial-nrs are they and what problem have they got?

Best R /Kim

 

[Chimera]

Thanx a million. The One I'm interested in has the not wanted ser.nr 1480594. Darn...but It's in great shape though, with boxes and everything. And it's as new (mint condition).

 

[Xmas]

If the M4-2 is not in collectors condition it will be ok, if it is collector and you use it you may need to have the 'teething' faults fixed, but they are not bad faults, since you can nearly get two M4-2 for the same USD, stretching things a little. And they are in black. they are a good buy if you want black, and want an early model, without metering.
It is easy to adjust the M4-2 range finder.
Even a M2 will wear out components, mine is pretty new inside, none of the replacement parts are origional M2 parts long gone decades ago.
Stigma is ok if it gets you a camera cheap, you pay for a Gucci bag...
Noel