Ordered a Leica m8 tonight / Magnifier question

[animefx]

I ordered my first true Leica just hours ago, the Leica m8! I own a Leitz Minolta CL, but I don't quite consider a "true" Leica camera.

I see comments on dpreview and some other sites saying "who would order a Leica m8 / m8.2 in 2011?" Well, I think lots of people would, including myself! Some of the photos I've seen taken with this camera I still prefer over the 5D Mark 2 and other DSLRs. I don't care that much if the m8 has more noise and other issues, I like the "look" it's capable of and have lusted over an m8, m8.2, or m9 for quite sometime now... I'm buying this on credit (6 months no interest) but I have no other credit card debt so I'm able to justify it. I paid $2450 (US dollars) off eBay and in near mint condition (from what I can tell).

It will come on the 28th of this month at the earliest according to eBay, so I'm anxious waiting for one. For awhile I'll only be using my 40mm f/2 rokkor-m which I'm comfortable with anyway. I think once I pay the m8 off I'll probably opt for the 28mm f/2.8 elmarit-m ASPH and then the 75mm summarit or 50mm summircron (currently undecided).

What can I expect vs. my CL? I know the obvious ones, but I'm hoping it is a little easier to see the rangefinder patch and the after image to focus, sometimes it disappears completely over my subject in the Leica CL, and in any kind of light.

One thing I'm not knowledgable about at all are magnifiers... I assume these are the little eye pieces I see on top of the rangefinder? How exactly do they work and what do you see when looking through them? Do you see a much larger rangefinder patch? Is the after image clearer or somehow magnified? If this is the case, I'm not sure why people don't use them more since it could help you achieve critical focus... What would be the downside?

 

[peterm1]

These are small round lenses that screw into the eyepiece (which has a standard thread mount across all leica M cameras). They are not like the "goggles" that are used to adjust the rangefinder when using near focus lens for example.

Get one from Japan Exposures (link below). Especially if you need diopter correction as well (i.e. if you need glasses.) The reason is that the JE ones, while principally designed as magnifiers, also have infinite diopter adjustment from -3.0 to +1.0 and thus avoid the need to go through the problem of finding the correct diopter for your eyes.

Their magnifiers come in 3 strengths depending on whether you are primarily a wide or a long lens shooter. Of course a magnifier increases the apparent / effective baseline length of the camera's rangfinder by the same amount as the magnification and thus increases focussing accuracy - an issue especially with longer lenses. I initially bought a magnifier from another vender but had to exchange it for the JE one as my eyes were too blurry to focus accurately enough even with the extra magnification. Hence my love of their built in diopter adjustment which kills both birds with the same stone.

http://www.japanexposures.com/shop/index.php?cPath=43&sort=2a&page=2

 

[f16sunshine]

i had the original 1.25 and it was great on the m8. Easy to loose was my problem. Even with some teflon tape on the threads it came off and is now gone. Now I have a 1.35x from JE. I put a tiny drop of nail polish on the thread. The disputer threading is a bit fiddly. You screw it in or out for adjustment. Lucky for me my vision is perfect. The adjustment though kept moving randomly. The easy fix was a tiny spot of hot glue on two places. not it's perfect and works quite well. 50 and 75 are easy to see. 35 is a bit out of view but fine in use. The 90 lines are a bit bigger but still small. 28 is near worthless. Enjoy your M8 🙂

 

[rodl]

+2 for Japan Exposures. Just be aware that in order to purchase one for use in the US, you will have to declare that it will not be used on a rangefinder camera. This is due to Leica's patent restrictions which are attempting to sell you their overpriced models which doesn't work as well. Once you order from JE, you will get it very quickly as they are very prompt in shipping.

 

[jaapv]

A magnifier is just that, it magnifies the viewfinder image to make focussing more accurate. For most lenses on the M8 that extra accuracy is not needed, unless your eyesight does not match the view/rangefinder.
Magnifiers have drawbacks too. You lose angle of view and the outer framelines, you lose light and you lose contrast.
The contrast on the Leica magnifiers is much better than on the JE ones, which makes them easier and more effective to use. The diopter adjustment is less practical on Leica as it is an (expensive) screw-in lens.

In general it is wise to get the diopter adjustment of the camera in order BEFORE you decide you need a magnifier. Visit your local optician and use his try-out lenses to determine the correction lens you need to see the RF patch optimally. In 90 % of the cases you will find you do not need a magnifier for exact focussing if you use the correct diopter correction, in fact you will find it easier to focus without the contraption than with it.

 

[ramosa]

With my M8, I tried out the Leica 1.25 and 1.4 for use with a 50mm f1.4 and 80mm f2.8. I decided to return both, as the potential benefit didn't seem worth the need for more stuff to fiddle with. That's just my experience, tho.

 

[jamato8]

I use a 1.15 at times and it works well. I still have plenty of view area but for 135 it helps some. Most of the time I don't use anything and I am fine, even with the 135 f4.

 

[Adrian Nasti]

I own the Match Technical 1.25 magnifier which also incorporates a rubber eyecup. It remains on the camera at all times given that my widest lens at the moment is a 35 Cron. It works well and I havent noticed any loss of resolution in the viewfinder as a result. They are also good value in comparison to the Leica magnifiers which are quite frankly too expensive.

 

[gfspencer]

i had the original 1.25 and it was great on the m8. Easy to loose was my problem.

The magnifiers come with a tether now. So far I have managed to keep up with mine.

I have both the 1.25x and the 1.4x. I can focus without them but they are somewhat useful if I want to see what I am shooting a little better.