Notable Leica M Photographers

[drewbarb]

Mary Ellen Mark is another great photographer who at least used to use Leica M cameras. She may still do so.

 

[John Lawrence]

Ralph is my favorite M shooter! Tri-X and Rodinal! Plus one for Ralph Gibson.

Ralph Gibson is one of the (few) photographers whose work I never tire of seeing. His books are among the most spine-worn in my library, and no matter how many times I go back to them, I always find something fresh in the images.


John

 

[Jamie Pillers]

You need a middle initial to make it work... K?S, HCB... Could work, give it a try. 🙂

 

[Tobin31]

I had a chance to spend the afternoon with Robert Frank last year

and the experience was nothing short of amazing.

He was gracious, welcoming and had wonderful stories. I brought along a copy of the Americans expanded edition and as he went through it he smiled and reminisced about some of those moments. He talked about rangefinder photography and how it just seemed to “fit” him. He played with my Leica M8 and was amazed to find that it felt similar to his M6. When I asked him what he thought about digital photography he replied “Its great, a camera is a camera its what you do with it.”

I cannot even put into words what it was like to spend time with one of the world’s most influential photographers. I got to take a quick portrait of him before leaving and as I went to my car he told me to “Keep looking……keep making photographs.”

Photo info: Leica M8u 35mm 1.4 CV mc at 500th, 1.4 iso 320

Cheers,

Tobin

 

[Erik van Straten]

Koen Wessing, Dutch photojournalist. He died a few weeks ago at the age of 69. I've met him once in the photography class of the Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam in 1974, just after his return from Chili where he made a fascinating reportage of the last days of president Allende.
His pictures of China made in later years are just great. He only used an M-Leica with a 35mm lens and he printed the whole frame, only B+W.

Erik.

 

[ferider]

I had a chance to spend the afternoon with Robert Frank last year

Amazing Tobin and thanks for sharing. My favorite photographer.

One more name for the OP: James Nachtwey.

 

[braver]

If I had to pick one, Garry Winogrand.

 

[braver]

Eh, can't really leave it at one though can we. Most recent discovery: Jeff Mermelstein. Love his 9/11 work, and his book Twirl/Run is just plain fun.

 

[raytoei@gmail.com]

+1 on Salgado

 

[softshock]

When I think of HCB with a Leica, I think of the III over any of the other cameras he has used...

 

[MISH]

Tobin
what a experience spending time with Robert would be, but to come away with that photograph.... outstanding

 

[gnuyork]

two of my favorites: Elliott Erwitt and Ralph Gibson.

 

[gnuyork]

By the way, Dave - Elliott's work is at Jackson Fine Art in Buckhead. I was there for the open and talked with him. We have mutual friends.

 

[leicashot]

Hasn't this thread come up a million times yet? How abou most of us? We all shoot Leica and are (somewhat) 'notable' 😉

 

[biakalt]

has anyone mentioned Ragnar Axelsson? i love his images from Arctic and Iceland

http://www.rax.is/

I believe Saul Leiter shot with Leica too, can anyone please verify?

 

[nksyoon]

There's a pic here of a camera believed to be Burrow's, recovered from Laos.

http://theonlinephotographer.typepad.com/the_online_photographer/2008/04/four-photojourn.html

 

[ckuang]

Nick Ut, famous for his photo of the girl running down the road in vietnam after the napalm bombing.

 

[swoop]

I don't think I've achieved legendary status but I use a Leica M9 daily for news coverage and have used a Leica M of some variety (M7 and M8) since I started working for a small magazine in Milwaukee, WI in 2007.

Some images from the week all with M9.

Story links

http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2011/02/11/a-sewing-machine-repairman-in-winter/

http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2011/02/09/mr-met-the-first-sign-of-spring/?mod=smallbusiness

http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2011/02/11/anybody-want-to-buy-the-staten-island-ferry/

 

[Mister E]

40 years ago yesterday (4.10.71), Larry Burrows of LIFE, Henri Huet of AP, Kent Potter of UPI and Keisaburo Shimamoto, freelance, were killed when the helicopter they were in was shot down over Laos. I freely admit my own bias here, Larry Burrows singularly impacted my own photographic vision more than any other. To me there was none better, regardless of cameras used.

This photo was made a couple of days before his death. I don't know the attribution of this photo, it was last distributed by a wire service on the occasion of the internment of the remains of the the four photographers at the Newseum in Washington, DC.

I just finished Lost Over Laos. You meant 2/10/1971.

 

[_goodtimez]

The Master of the 21SA : Jean-Loup SIEFF