Rangefinders and glasses.....an awkward love affair?

B

Bad Example

Member
Local time
9:45 AM
Joined
Sep 20, 2022
Messages
33
Location
Los Angeles
View My Gallery
Ok, so I went over to the Leica shop in W Hollywood yesterday and fondled a new M11. I had to leave pretty quickly since I was wearing shorts and found myself becoming quite aroused when "handling" that sleek wonder of obsession. Anyhoo.......I was able to focus and get a sharp image bye pressing my glasses up to the VF although it felt a little awkward. I am wondering how other four-eyed Rangefinder devotees handle this. Should I just get used to having a scratched up right lens? Is the diopter or Visoflex a solution?
Please advise......this used-to-be Leica shooter did not wear glasses back in the day w/ my MP! BTW- just ordered from Popflash....The waiting is the hardest part!
 
I think this is (partially) the reason I've stuck with Barnacks: I don't like 35mm lenses, and can never see the 28mm framelines in a 0.72 M finder, so I might as well have a smaller camera and pick a 28mm external finder I can use properly.

That said, even the Barnacks are a mixed bag, and the the right lens in my glasses is completely ruined. In order of preference:
  • Leica IIIf and IIIg: no scratching thanks to the design of the eyepiece, can use and see the included 50mm finder clearly.
  • Leotax T2L: can use and see the included 50mm finder clearly, but the finder has two screws that sit proud either side of it, so... scratching.
  • Leica II and III: can use and see the included 50mm finder clearly, but the eyepiece destroys my glasses.
  • Contax II and Kievs: can use the finder, but the eyepiece murders my glasses.
  • Canon 7: I can see all of the 35mm frame, but the eyepiece is a glasses-shredder - as is the little meter scale selector that they put on the back close to the eyepiece. Nice one Canon, you Idiots.
  • Canon IIIa: no eye relief, so can't see the edges of the finder at any magnification, and the eyepiece destroys my glasses.
Also, I had to stick O-rings onto the back of my Zeiss external finders and the VIOOH multi-finder; and as is seemingly standard, the rubber surround on the back of the VC 28/35 mini-finder went AWOL pretty quickly, so that's a glasses-destroyer, too.

...I really should cave and swap to contacts at some point.
 
After ditching the contacts that I wore for many years, I struggled with glasses with my Leicas. Besides being unable to see the 28 framelines, my glasses were getting trashed. The diopter is the way to go, but you may have to do the on-and-off shuffle with your glasses. I've just resigned myself to that, so it's either a neck cord for the glasses or a shirt with a pocket (risky if you bend over).
 
I thought the OP was saying he couldn't focus unless he really squashed his eyeglasses right up against the finder. Seeing the widest framelines, yes, definitely a problem with glasses, but you shouldn't need to be pressing up against the finder to see the rangefinder images.
 
Godfrey said:
I've worn glasses since I was in fourth grade and so have just gotten used to whatever I needed to when using a camera. RF, SLR, EVF ... all the same to me. Some cameras have more eye relief, which makes the viewfinder a little easier to use . Others take a bit more work.

I don't find it a big deal.

G
Click to expand...

Exactly how i feel about it......eye relief is about the last thing i consider. But I do love the Leica & Voigtlander accessory finders.
 
I have M3's, M6 0.72 and M6 0.85 and wear glasses. i do not have a problem with any of the viewfinders. I mentally know what each lens covers and use the viewfinder to center the field and to focus. 21, 28, 35, 50, 90 and 135.

Mark J
 
Having flexible frames helps. When I was using Leicas, I wore eyeglasses with Flexon frames. I don't recall ever having problems seeing the 35mm frame lines and the 28mm frames were easy enough to interpret their position although the entire frame lines were not visible.

I don't recall the Leicas scratching my lenses but the Kievs I have used, with their metal eyepieces, would eat plastic eyeglass lenses in short order. Today, I use Fuji X-Pros. No scratches...no problem seeing the frame lines.
 
I shot my 35mm Summaron for several years with my M2 and its .72 finder. It was certainly not ideal. Eventually I added a .58 body, which helped a lot (and is essential with the 28mm). More recently I started using diopters, which was just as much of an improvement all over again. With the 28mm, the .58 finder plus diopter is worth doing.

As far as scratching lenses, for me it depends on the camera. My M2, M4P and M5 have metal eyepiece rims, that practically guarantee scratched eyeglasses. DAG sells rubber/plastic covers for the eyepiece, neatly solving that problem. My M6, M7, MP, and M9 have a soft lining over the eyepiece, which serves the same purpose with those cameras.
 
I just got some new glasses, so my old ones have now become regular inhabitants of my camera bag. If I am out, planning to take photographs, my “shooting glasses” are the ones I’m wearing. Beside that, I am left eyed, so I manage to scratch the left lens, while I smudge he right one with the edge of my right thumb.
 
All I ever shoot on 0.72 rangefinders anymore is the 35mm focal length, and I'v used rangefinder + glasses for 25 years now. Don't put the camera in a case, as that will move it further away from the eye. Metal frames tend to more flexible than plastic. Tilting your head to the side can also improve eye relief, but all eyes, faces, perceptions are different, everyone's individualistic. Ha, ha, I actually see the frame lines better when using my less dominant eye, but don't shoot that way. You can purchase aftermarket rubber or plastic protectors for the rim of the eyepiece, but probably don't need it on a modern M.

The more you do it, generally the easier it becomes. You do have to roll your eye a bit to see the frame lines. If you learn how to see with the wider focal lengths, learn some tricks like with a 35mm lens the distance to the subject equals the horizontal coverage, ect., picture the image in your head before putting there camera to your face, it shouldn't be a big deal. Get close, and don't be too concerned about framing. Framing not a rangefinder's strong point even with glasses, and modern M's are a bit inaccurate with their frame lines anyway, at least at the distances I typically shoot.

I really learned the 35mm focal length on a rangefinder when I limited myself to using only that lens for 6 months. At the end of time, I din't want any others! Ha, ha, have 7-8 of that focal length with multiple bodies but generally only shoot 35's on 0.72 M mount cameras.

Just go out and shoot, shoot and shoot. It'll all shake out in the end.
 
I'm nearsighted, so I take my glasses off while using the Leica's. It's also a necessity because I'm normally judging the exposure by sight and since my glasses have auto-tinting they would make it hard to have any accuracy in estimating the f-stop. I did have a diopter made for my M4-P since I couldn't find one in the proper strength, but on the CL and IIIf I just go with the flow. My sight isn't bad enough that it affects composing a shot, except that I might miss some details that I don't notice until I get the film developed and scanned. If I had a digital M I would likely use the Visoflex most of the time.

PF
 
If you think 0.72 x finder is difficult, try it with a 0.68x finder (which from memory the M8 is). It caused me to quite fall out of love with the camera which until recently has been languishing in my storage closet. And that was after adding diopter and magnifier to the mix........ They help somewhat but still not enough in my view at least for me. (Incidentally it has never been my practice to use my glasses while focusing - I always slip them up to my forehead and then use my naked eye, relying on the diopter to help which it kind of does though it is not perfect.) I also have never been one to use the Leica diopter lenses - you have to buy a specific diopter to meet your requirements, and this assumes you know what you need. If you are buying online from the other side of the world, that can be a problem. Also these only come in half stop increments which is not always appropriate (what if you need 1/4 of a stop?) and also people's eyes deteriorate over time - hence the need to buy new diopter lenses periodically. And they are not cheap. You also cannot rely upon your reading glasses prescription - the Leica finder is set to mimic a scene which is further away than that commonly used by reading glasses so you also really need to recruit an eye specialist to help in selecting the correct diopter.

To get around this issue I decided instead to buy a corrective lens / magnifier from Japan Exposures store. This corrective lens / magnifier enlarges the image (more than one was available each with different x power these being 0.85x, 1.15x, 1.45x and 1.8x) and also they are completely variable between -3 and +1 in diopter power simply by turning a ring. So they kill two birds with one stone - diopter correction and magnifier. They are far from perfect but the best solution I have discovered. See page 2 of their web store site for viewfinder accessories. I am not sure if these fit the M10 - doesn't it have a larger diameter finder but maybe if so adapter is available? : Accessories :: Viewfinder (japanexposures.com)

One final point. In desperation and hating the thought of my Leica M sitting unloved in my cabinet I recently hit on the idea of also using an accessory finder in the accessory shoe to match the 50mm lens that I commonly use. (well, approximately - the finder is for 75mm lens and the crop factor on the Leica M8 increases the 50mm lens to a hair under a 70mm crop.) While of course this still demands that I focus using the RF (and my diopter magnifier) the clarity of the view through the finder is MUCH better for framing at least, and this helps tremendously with that aspect of my picture taking.
 
Dogman said:
Having flexible frames helps. When I was using Leicas, I wore eyeglasses with Flexon frames. I don't recall ever having problems seeing the 35mm frame lines and the 28mm frames were easy enough to interpret their position although the entire frame lines were not visible.

I don't recall the Leicas scratching my lenses but the Kievs I have used, with their metal eyepieces, would eat plastic eyeglass lenses in short order. Today, I use Fuji X-Pros. No scratches...no problem seeing the frame lines.
Click to expand...

I will look into the Flexon possibility !
 
Consider flip-up glasses. Back in the day you could buy flip-up glasses made for use by baseball outfielders, and have the lenses replaced with your prescription for normal viewing, then flip-up to "naked eyes" to use the diopter on the camera viewfinder. These days there are lots of baseball flip-up glasses, but they are mostly the very sleek wrap-around kind that may or may not have replaceable lenses for prescription. You could even look at vintage glasses that have the flip-up option..
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom