Single Hammer Theory

I got my M2 when I was 16. But my Swedish long nose pliers I bought myself when I was 12. They fit perfectly in the hand, fall open just right, close tip to tip perfectly, cut or strip wire perfectly. My son now borrows them to restring his guitar. He always returns them to the bottom right hand drawer.

Maybe you're wrong about the M though. A visoflex will fit on an M2.
 
Timmyjoe said:
No offense taken, but since the title of the thread is "Single Hammer Theory", and I'm the one who started the thread, I think my writing about the metaphor with the single hammer is kind of the point of the thread.



Okay, I'll bite. Comparing the new Leica M to the Leica M9. The analogy is the same. The Leica M9 was a purpose built rangefinder camera that did not try to be a DSLR, did not try to use any glass save the fine Leica M glass, did not try to shoot video, did not try to emulate a P&S with it's LCD screen used for focusing and framing, and was built to do one thing, take great pictures on a superior digital chip (the CCD, that few other cameras were using) with an optical rangefinder viewfinder. Plain and simple. It wasn't an attempt to build a "do it all" camera like Sony and Fuji were doing. And I respected that.

The new Leica M appears to be an attempt to compete against Sony and Fuji with DSLR capabilities, Optical viewfinders, Focus Peeking, Video, GPS, P&S style framing and focusing, etc.

That's a "do it all" camera in my book, compared to the purpose built M9.

Best,
-Tim
Click to expand...

Yes but the M9 is not exactly as pure and purposeful as you suggest. Even with the M8 many were asking for an all mechanical digital like the epson RD1.. and a true purist wouldn't need a screen nor the lens correction programmed into the firmware... they even added a snap shot mode. Still, compared to any other full frame digital the new Leica will still seem purposeful. I've had an M8 and now have an M9 and I see the added features as welcomed advancemnt. If any of the new features compromised the functionality compaired to the M9 I would agree with you but it seems they just advanced along the same philisophical lines not departed from it. Then again if the new sensor turns out to be a dud... then I'm an idiot and I apologize.
 
No apology ever necessary as we are talking opinions here, and everyone's opinion is equally as valid.

I wish everyone who buys a new Leica M the best of luck, and I hope they use this new tool to create the images they imagine. For, after all, these cameras are just tools, like my hammer.

This particular camera is just not my cup of tea, (or camera philosophy).

Best,
-Tim
 
Tim wrote: "My whole point is that a "do it all" camera can't do any one thing as well as the purpose build camera that was built to do that one thing, just like the "do it all" hammer that I talked about in my original post."

Let me add a few points from my own experience:

- Hotshoe EVF: Used on the Nex-5N.. Very delicate, for careful use. If gets a small hit, the mount breaks.. Be more careful when its "extended" for waist level shooting.. Each time to put the camera back into bag, take it out, otherwise you never figure out how it got broken.

- Adapter for R-lenses: Focus wide open, then stop down to shooting aperture, then wide open again. All manual.. A cumbersome operation to take a picture. (On some AF cameras there is at least "focus confirmation" feature in the viewfinder to assist with a LED light or symbol indicating the correct focus has been reached while the user trying to focus manually even in stop-down apertures. I use my Leica-R lenses on the D800E via Leitax adapters with this feature. However no such feature is available on the new M.)


BTW, almost all R-lenses show their age on hi-resolution sensors as they were designed originally for film.. My tests have indicated that -outside of the Apo lenses- very few can offer comparable performance like the modern lenses. Additionally they are quite heavy, large in size.
 
This is a case of "damned if you do ... damned if you don't!" for Leica.

You can't please all of the people all of the time.
 
I now realize that I have the most expensive Leica M ever made and which has depreciated faster than any previous Leica M. But still I'd do it all again. I've wasted a lot more money this year on much more futile matters.
 
...the ol'swiss army hammer trick.;)

I'm looking forward to seeing how their new sensor performs. It has some claimed imaging characteristics that, if true, could give the new leica M a perceptibly unique imaging identity among the FF alternatives.
 
Timmyjoe said:
Sure they could, lower the price of the Leica M9-P to $2999. :D
Click to expand...

No, a large part of the current buyer base would complain that this makes the Leica too accessible to the hoi polloi - like people are now complaining that live view makes focusing too easy and that rangefinders should require a learning curve, lest they be too accessible for the uninitiated who don't appreciate their subtleties enough.
 
I would largely agree with your analysis Tim .
There is little to differentiate this new M from a host of other offerings save the cache of the brand.
However it seems that the majority of the public don`t share the values which you espouse.
I`m not interested in whats being offered although I`m not especially feature averse.
In some respects the new M doesnt go far enough for me.
I can`t see the point in buying an expensive digital camera without AV .
Its like buying a car off Fred Flintstone :) .
But then I`n not that wedded to manual focus.
I`ll use my M2/3 for what they do well and my GRD for what it does well.
 
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