W
wlewisiii
Guest
Recently I had gotten tired of all my old beat up gear and all of it's myriad of failure modes - light leaks, shutter issues, etc. - and had been considering how to do somehting about it.
Then recently, a fellow had a box of Leicas fall into his lap. A number of M cameras and one old Barnack. He and I talk, bargained, tested & in the end negotiated a price we both felt was fair. It still took selling about 90% of my old cr*p to pay for it, but in the end I was the owner of a 1953 Leica IIIf and a 1953 Collapsible Summicron 50/2.
That early of a 'Cron was made with thorium glass which yellows over time. In a real sense it's a better lens for a collector than a user, a fact pointed out to me by Brian S. He and I talked about it for awhile & he's getting the Summicron while I have a very nice 50/2 Summitar, a couple of filters & enough cash to send the old girl to a needed visit to Youxin Ye's day spa.
In the end, i've got a nice old Barnack Leica and 50/2 lens to use. This is just about as good as old time miniature photography gets and I've still got my 4x5s & a folder for other specialized needs. So, am I done? Yes, I think so.
I've churned through a whole lot of gear over the past 5 years. Time to stop & take a whole lot of pictures instead. I can see, eventually (if I can afford it) adding a J-12 or VC 35/2.x & a Elmar 90/4 to it but that's all I can see anymore.
That's a nice feeling. :angel:
Time to go burn some film.
William
Then recently, a fellow had a box of Leicas fall into his lap. A number of M cameras and one old Barnack. He and I talk, bargained, tested & in the end negotiated a price we both felt was fair. It still took selling about 90% of my old cr*p to pay for it, but in the end I was the owner of a 1953 Leica IIIf and a 1953 Collapsible Summicron 50/2.
That early of a 'Cron was made with thorium glass which yellows over time. In a real sense it's a better lens for a collector than a user, a fact pointed out to me by Brian S. He and I talked about it for awhile & he's getting the Summicron while I have a very nice 50/2 Summitar, a couple of filters & enough cash to send the old girl to a needed visit to Youxin Ye's day spa.
In the end, i've got a nice old Barnack Leica and 50/2 lens to use. This is just about as good as old time miniature photography gets and I've still got my 4x5s & a folder for other specialized needs. So, am I done? Yes, I think so.
I've churned through a whole lot of gear over the past 5 years. Time to stop & take a whole lot of pictures instead. I can see, eventually (if I can afford it) adding a J-12 or VC 35/2.x & a Elmar 90/4 to it but that's all I can see anymore.
That's a nice feeling. :angel:
Time to go burn some film.
William
Last edited by a moderator:
