Selling DSLR Outfit for an M - Any Regrets??

[.ken]

In the past couple of years I've went thru an intense buying and selling GAS with various SLR's and film cameras but have finally settled down to an M4-2, Bessa R and a GRD2. This setup seems perfect for me since I love film and the GRD2 is for the lazy days or when I use Flash. I've since then switched to GAS but for photo books! yikes!

 

[Dave Wilkinson]

My sollution here was a Nikon D40 body-to take my collection of 'F' glass, light and compact, and apart from separate metering and manual focus, works very well, and can be picked up for a very reasonable price now, and the rangefinders continue giving pleasure. I used to have a Fuji S3 pro - very nice, and earned me a little cash, but now a bit too bulky and heavy!.
Cheers, Dave.

 

[philipp.leser]

I have a Nikon D70s which I love to use whenever I want to employ remote strobes. Its wireless remote system for controlling the strobes is just excellent. I also enjoy playing with macro photography from time to time (table-top stuff mostly), and that's something only an SLR can do properly.

For everything else, especially travel, street and general party / snap-shot photography I love my Bessa R3A with wide lenses (40, 21).

I think the RF and SLR concepts compliment each other. If money is an issue, downgrading to a less expensive SLR is always a good option. Also, considering a less expensive rangefinder, like a Zeiss Ikon or a Bessa might be a good option.

Regards,
Philipp

 

[SuitePhoto]

Thanks guys! I like the idea of the Oly 4/3 for situations when I "need" an SLR. As it is now, I have no need/want to do any telephoto/wildlife/sports/macro work, so an SLR doesn't make much sense.

As for different rangefinders, my heart has been set on an M since I first held one a few years ago - which was a secondary reason for selling my original Bessa. I know that if I bought something different, it would eventually be sold in favor of a Leica. I'll need to get the bug out of my system before I can move on.

BTW - If anyone is thinking about selling their black 0.72 M6 or black 50mm 'cron, send me a PM. I'm officially in the market for a user in good condition.

 

[kshapero]

Get the M.

 

[Doug]

Bulk and weight and intimidating your subjects are unnecessary for a dSLR; for instance my Pentax K100D is quite light and compact. Avoid the big zooms, go with compact fast primes, and it's not any harder to carry and use discreetly than a Leica for instance.

I agree with the suggestion to stick with both types for their different strengths, and this can also be an economical choice as well.

 

[Ray Kilby]

re swapping

re swapping

i love range finders and much prefer them. They can be problematic if you work professionally, but even then they can produce the most amazing images. (Depending on your particular area of pro work.) But, they are simple, straight forward and a joy to use. One word of warning.... If you opt for and can afford an M8, then be aware that it has been a flawed product. (In my opinion.) Maybe now they have sorted out their problems, which I will not go into here, but you can look up the heated debates on this excellent website for that. But just be aware that there is the RD1 and the M8 and pixel 'size' like many other things are not the be all and end all!

So before you embark on this fabulous journey, make sure that if you do opt for the M8, be cautious and make sure you know what you may be letting yourself in for.


Ray.

 

[SuitePhoto]

i love range finders and much prefer them. They can be problematic if you work professionally, but even then they can produce the most amazing images. (Depending on your particular area of pro work.) But, they are simple, straight forward and a joy to use. One word of warning.... If you opt for and can afford an M8, then be aware that it has been a flawed product. (In my opinion.) Maybe now they have sorted out their problems, which I will not go into here, but you can look up the heated debates on this excellent website for that. But just be aware that there is the RD1 and the M8 and pixel 'size' like many other things are not the be all and end all!

So before you embark on this fabulous journey, make sure that if you do opt for the M8, be cautious and make sure you know what you may be letting yourself in for.


Ray.

Don't worry, I have zero desire for an M8. Maybe M9 or even M10, but as you pointed out Leica is a long way off from digital perfection. When they release a full-frame camera that can be shot at 1600 iso with low noise, I may re-think my position.

 

[rya]

I recently sold my Nikon D300 and such to buy an M6 and a scanner. I have not regretted it and will not. The DSLR showed me that my photography was about the process more than the end result and digital did not satisfy me.

I saved my Nikon primes because I plan to get a full-frame DSLR at some point. I won't get rid of the M, though. For now I picked up a Ricoh GRDII to use whenever I need a quick image.

 

[peter_n]

I would say get the M and downsize your dSLR (they can be awfully convenient for family snaps & suchlike). I recently got a small dSLR (my first) and a zoom lens and while I don't use it that much it has come in very handy for quick snaps.

 

[kchan]

Ditto

Ditto

I would just buy an inexpensive RF and keep my Canon stuff.

buy a 2A, 3A, or 4A and see how you'll like it after 6 months.

 

[sojournerphoto]

Only you can choose, but....

I have a couple of Canon dslrs (little and large) which both get used in different circumstances and a ZI that I use pretty well everywhere. I'm not really a long lens type by and large, so I don't have that excuse, but I find both systems useful. I also use the Ricoh GX100 that I bought and my wife claimed(!) when I can get my hands on it. I sometimes use my old AE-1 and Zorki 4k, but not that often if I'm honest.

It depends what you do, but I don't think I'd feel that shortchanged if I only had the ZI and 35 Biogon.

Mike

 

[johannielscom]

I gave up a Nikon D300 with a great set of lenses two months ago.

No regrets, except for the DC-Nikkor 135mm f2.0. But, it would have been useless without a proper body to hook it up to.

And, I switched to a digital M to keep my back straight, I developed some back problem over the past year, another reason to let go of the beloved DC-Nikkor, it was 900 grams on its own😱

More processing with the M8, but not too much. And used to digital processing since I scan my film shots.

When travelling light now, I fit the M8 in my jacket inner breast pocket and my tiny Komura and Kyoei lenses in other pockets. People cannot even tell I'm packing until I whip it out...😉

 

[amateriat]

I ditched my Main Axe SLRs some time ago. The thing is, (1) they were both film bodies, and (2) they were, for me, the best of the high-tech-drenched film SLRs at the time (Minolta 9xi). But I tired of the tech-heavy, AF SLR gestalt (and the stovepipe zooms, technically fabulous though they were), and chucked them for what I regarded as an appropriately tech-advanced M-camera (Hexar RF), and never looked back, even though an SLR did creep back into my life (I was gifted a black Olympus OM2n kit by a friend who needed to go AF due to squirrely-vision issues). I simply grok the RF experience much more than SLRs, and, even though I do shoot digital from time to time, I worked rather hard many years ago toward a hybrid film-digital workflow that worked for me, and this has been most satisfying in terms of both process and results.

Next stop: a used Contax Tvs I'm buying from FrankS, largely taking the place of a broken Ricoh GR-1 I've long neglected to have properly fixed. Depending on how I grok the Contax, it might be a while before the Ricoh gets sent out.


- Barrett

 

[CorreCaminos]

Get the M!

After decades of using a Nikon FE2, I bought a DSLR and used it for about a year. One day I just had enough of its automation and limitations. I sold it and all its spare batteries, chargers and memory cards and buggy software and got me some proper analog systems (H'blad, Leica M4, and Nikon F3).

At first I was a little concerned about the age of the cameras I was buying (the Hassy is from the mid-80s as is the Nikon; the Leica was built in 1969, when I was only 9 years old) but I have not had a single problem with any of them.

Getting back to film has been very satisfying and a lot more rewarding than shooting with the DSLR. I don't miss the convenience of digital at all. As a matter of fact, I actually enjoy the anticipation to see the developed images days, sometimes weeks, later.

 

[Graham Line]

A mentor of mine had a good solution to that kind of question -- put your gear into a box in the closet and then just take out what you need as you go and keep it somewhere else. At the end of a full year, you can safely sell whatever is left in the closet. a

 

[Fraser]

buy it if you want to

buy it if you want to

If you want a leica buy one everyone tries to justify new cameras to themselves and partners but when it comes down to it photographers like buying cameras. I'm lucky as a full time professional I have an excuse to buy cameras!

Having said that if I had to make a choice between keeping one of my Canon Mk111s or my M2 the M2 would be first to go!

 

[Nando]

I didn't sell my DSLR kit. It was stolen from me on a trip. I used the insurance money to start building an M kit. I didn't go straight to a Leica - I started out with a Voigtlander.

It's the best thing I've ever did! If it wasn't for (re)discovering rangefinders, I probably wouldn't be photographing right now.

 

[Out to Lunch]

The largest amount of money I have ever made out of a picture is USD 50. I am definitely not a professional photographer. I am passionate about my hobby though. I have just taken the hurdle you are still negotiating: I have invested a sum of money in 35mm range finders, yes more than one, and for the time being I'll keep some high quality Canon gear. I am presently living and working in the former USSR where everything 'film' poses enormous logistical challenges: where to buy film...where to get it developed...how to get it scanned. I still went ahead because shooting film, especially with the Zeiss Ikon bodies and an M7 gives me incredible satisfaction. There is an issue of 'object quality' about the camera bodies and lenses and there is the mistery of the wait between shooting and seeing.

 

[NathanJD]

I have just this last week sold off my Nikon D200 and my SB-800 flash plus my Bessa R2A all with the intention of getting an M system. i have some FSU cameras and a clutch of FSU lenses and decided it was time to get serious and so my M2 is in the post winging it's way to me.

i retain my Nikon D40 and beloved 50mm 1.8 for those digital SLR moments but i couldn't bare the thought of having my D200 sitting in my camera bag untouched and depreciating all the while.

The way i look at it is that in 1, 2 or however many years time if i really want to go back to digital again i'm gonna be able to pick up another D200 for a fraction of it's current value thanks to the constant upgrade culture prevelent in the digital market.