New Leica MPs and M-As difficult to find??

Andrea Taurisano said:
No, it's not. It's staying (for now) because it is a fabulous camera, smoother and with a much brighter finder than my M2 and M6. But other than that, I agree with Hamish on 35mmc.com who loved it yet judged it "underwhelming". Which is why I temporarely thought I could just as well keep the M2. These M cameras are just 50 shades of perfection anyway..
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The only remark i could find regarding "underwhelming" was the M10 review https://www.35mmc.com/06/07/2020/leica-m10-p-review/
 
Thanks for the link Andrea. In the end, the 'underwhelming' word is just a hook for a blogger. His last sentence is:
"The Leica M-A is now what it will always be, the perfect fully manual Leica rangefinder camera."
The one thing that caught my eye is that the price difference between the MP and MA at B&H is just $100.... & that's pretty cheap for a light meter. I hope you're enjoying your camera.
 
True, I should have nuanced it a bit. More correctly: Hamish opens his review by saying he was curious to find out whether the bloggers who described the M-A as underwhelming were onto something. He repeats a couple of times that he himself found it underwhelming, in the beginning. Then he gave it a bit more time and thinking and concluded that it's actually "the perfect fully manual Leica rangefinder camera".

What I meant is that I too felt it was underwhelming, but actually I bought it expecting pretty much that. Having used lots of Leica Ms, I knew already this M-A wouldn't have any new features or capabilities. But as Hamish, I too think it is a wonderful camera, that's why I decided to keep it. All in all, it's the pictures we take, that should overwhelm, not the tools we use to take them..
 
Last month I bought my first brand new Leica, after some 45 years of Leica use. I got a black chrome M-A from Leica Miami. (They still have a chrome one last time I looked.) It cost $5195. What a treat. I love how completely devoid of any signage. Just all black. I paired it with a nice VOIGTLANDER 50mm f/1.5 II M Vintage Line Aspherical in Black. Heretically speaking, they were made for each other. Relearning my Sunny 16.
 
kshapero said:
Last month I bought my first brand new Leica, after some 45 years of Leica use. I got a black chrome M-A from Leica Miami. (They still have a chrome one last time I looked.) It cost $5195. What a treat. I love how completely devoid of any signage. Just all black. I paired it with a nice VOIGTLANDER 50mm f/1.5 II M Vintage Line Aspherical in Black. Heretically speaking, they were made for each other. Relearning my Sunny 16.
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Yeah, I've seen your photos of it in a few threads. An absolute beauty. I'm waiting for my Nokton 50 to go with my black chrome M-A. I chose the VM, though, cause I actually like the "edgy" and stiff focusing ring that some users aren't so fond of. I'm also loving this camera. It's not to justify the price I paid that I say I've never ever had a M with a brighter and more contrasty finder & framelines, or with smoother advance & rewind. And that lovely matte black finish.. 🙂
 
Having a few M3’s and M6’s, after getting an M6 TTL I haven’t studied the new Leicas much. So, my viewpoint is about 20 years behind the present. I still see a mint M3 as a $500 camera and a mint M6 as $1000 because that’s what I paid for them - though I know they sell for more these days.

Looking at the MP, which apparently has been in production since 2004, and the M-A (2014), I have to wonder if there is that much of a difference or advantage in an MP over an M6 or an M-A over an M3.

The best argument is that buying an MP or M-A gets you a new camera, with warranty. From what I can discover, the viewfinders are nicer (better optics and reduced flare) and the body materials are nicer (at least nicer than an M6). I suppose that’s reason enough to buy one despite what I consider a very high price compared to their nearly equal predecessors.
 
kshapero said:
Last month I bought my first brand new Leica, after some 45 years of Leica use. I got a black chrome M-A from Leica Miami. (They still have a chrome one last time I looked.) It cost $5195. What a treat. I love how completely devoid of any signage. Just all black. I paired it with a nice VOIGTLANDER 50mm f/1.5 II M Vintage Line Aspherical in Black. Heretically speaking, they were made for each other. Relearning my Sunny 16.
Click to expand...

A new film M must be such a sweet experience. Congrats and enjoy!

John
 
Pál_K said:
The best argument is that buying an MP or M-A gets you a new camera, with warranty. From what I can discover, the viewfinders are nicer (better optics and reduced flare) and the body materials are nicer (at least nicer than an M6). I suppose that’s reason enough to buy one despite what I consider a very high price compared to their nearly equal predecessors.
Click to expand...

I had a M3, M2, M4-2 and now only a MP and Kanto M2. The biggest difference is the coating of the VF which helps with the flare. IMO it makes a pretty decently big difference. As nice as the MP is, it does not compare to the smoothness of advancing the film on my Kanto M2. Whatever Kanto did with that thing is pretty magical. Perhaps since the M2 has been well used and worn-in is the reason why it's as smooth as it is. Who knows though.
 
Just over one month and a few rolls into my Leica M-A ownership. It's an absolutely fantastic camera. No, it's not significantly better than a M2 or M3 in perfect working order, maybe not even slightly better if compared to a really excellent sample of either. But I'm 100% satisfied with my purchase. It delivers as expected or better on all fronts, except one: it didn't cure my GAS, damn. All those M2s, M3s, M4s you folks keep showing off just.. 🙂
 
Since you wonder.. Another month into my M-A ownership, two things have happened that made me reconsider it.

1. I came across a Leica M2 that was newly CLAd and that - without its previous owner even mentioning it - turned out to have an exactly as bright and contrasty finder & framelines as my M-A. Comparing them side by side under any light condition (including the ones that would make a RF flare), I see absolutely no difference whatsoever. I've earlier had 3 - 4 Leica M2s and 3 - 4 M6s, but this M2 beats them all and scores exactly as good as the M-A, from that point of view. I have no idea what upgrades are possible to an M2 RF (anyone?), but this M2 certainly had an upgrade, which didn't even reflect in it being particularly expensive. Needless to say, I bought it.

2. For Easter I spent a few days by the sea, in rainy and very windy weather. My plan was to shoot both the M-A and the M2. Worrying about getting sea water aerosol into my expensive M-A when shooting by the sea, I ended up keeping this camera well protected in a bag and having fun with the M2 alone. The series can be seen here. This episode alone made me also think that, as soon as things start opening up again after covid, I surely will be resuming my travels abroad (often in places where security is so so). Would I be picking my dream camera (the M-A) or again be choosing the M2 that's already a bit beaten up and costs much less than the M-A, for those occasions? There you have it.


Edit: Here it is..


20210418_075653-2.jpg
 
Love your series Andrea, the "hard" landscape near the sea, but I specially like the photo of the girl (your partner I guess) looking at the sea...love the mood!
 
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