Leica LTM Some WW2 Leica history

[Mr_Flibble]

Here's a photo of Captain Herman V. Wall with his Leica, prior to the landings on June 6th 1944.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/D-Day_Wall.jpg
(source Wikipedia)

One of his photos from the landings itself, taken somewhere towards midday with re-inforcement waves coming in.

Months after D-Day Captain Herman V. Wall and PFC Harold Wordeman met in the coffee shop of an Army Hospital (Percy Jones Army Hospital in Battle Creek, MI) and started visiting each other regularly.

After a while the conversation went something like this:
Wall: Where were you?
Wordeman: Omaha Beach, Easy Red Sector.
Wall: What outfit were you with?
Wordeman: The Beach Brigade.
Wall: I photographed the landing of the Beach Brigade. Major Martin J. McEvilly of the Signal Corps sent copies of the photos I made. Come up to the ward, take a look and see anyone you know.

Surprise! Wordeman saw himself "Front & Center"

 

[Mr_Flibble]

Not sure how interesting this would be to some of you;

Reading through the Table of Organization & Equipment (TO&E) 11-37 for US Signal Photo Companies, dated 14 feb 1944, there is an entry for 12 Leica cameras.

Camera:
Leica. 12. 1 per combat asgmt unit (non-standard item)

Now that doesn't mean every SPC actually had 12 Leicas available to them. For example a TO&E could call for a number of goggles of a certain type (usually the latest), but usually stocks of older types were expended first.


Harking back to the "D-Day rescue" I talked about a few days back, here is a photo of "Detachment P" of the 163rd Signal photo company that photographed and filmed the sequence on June 7th 1944

1st Lt George A. Steck in the middle with a Leica camera.

 

[peterm1]

Late in April 1945 Capa was in Leipzig where famously he photographed one of the last US soldiers to be killed there. This is the story.

I cannot be sure he used a Leica on this occasion though. In fact I have a niggling suspicion he used a Contax but cannot put my finger on the reason I feel this. He is also pictured in the article with what looks like a Rolleiflex TLR but the date of that particular image is not provided. He is known to have used all of these cameras but it seems unlikely to be the camera used for the shot given the aspect ratio of the images made. Also he was in this location following a parachute jump with an air infantry unit so the gear he had with him was the gear he carried on that jump. His account of the jump talks of him strapping his cameras to his leg. Not a probable thing to do with a TLR.More importantly he reported that his Scotch supply was carried in his top pocket next to his heart. :^)

https://rarehistoricalphotos.com/raymond_bowman-sniper-1945/

https://www.democratandchronicle.co...tured-life-magazine-honored-germany/30409517/

https://www.theguardian.com/artandd...-beautiful-death-robert-capa-second-world-war

 

[Mr_Flibble]

Looks like Capa recorded it in both 35mm and medium format.

I'm reasonably sure Capa used nothing but Contax II cameras for 35mm work during the whole of the war. He casually mentions having two of them in "Slightly out of focus" during the Battle of the Bulge, when he was nearly apprehended as a spy.

I do know he upgraded from a Rolleiflex Old Standard to an Automat at some point between the North Africa campaign and the Normandy invasion.

 

[David Hughes]

Just for balance can I mention Gold, Juno and Sword beaches?

Regards, David

 

[Mr_Flibble]

Ian Grant's "Cameramen at war" is a good book on his experiences with the British Army Film & Photographic Unit from Normandy to Germany.

 

[David Hughes]

Hi,

Thanks; I've often wondered if they sent official photographers along when Operation Bagration was launched. There seems to be only one famous photo from that horrendous part of the conflict.

Then there's the Canadians, Poles, French and so on. I blame Hollywood...

And they are so keen on wars these days, so a reminder or two might do some good.

Regards, David

 

[Franko]

Google Lee Miller Henry Cartier Bresson to see one of my favorite Bresson pics. It shows L. Miller with Paul and Nusch Eluard when they reunited after the Paris liberation. The face of Nusch clearly shows the strain of living in occupied Paris and, indeed, she fell and died on a Paris street in 1946 of a stroke.

 

[Mr_Flibble]

We've likely all seen (and possibly read) "Das Boot", by Lothar-Gunter Buchheim.

Buchheim himself served as a propaganda photographer aboard the U96 during World War 2. He kept some 6000 negatives of life on the submarine.

 

[Mr_Flibble]

Just for balance can I mention Gold, Juno and Sword beaches?

Of course, the members of the AFPU were not issued 35mm cameras (except for movie cameras). So no Leicas for them.
But the civilian accredited photographers coming ashore on those beaches would've had them.

Funny thing that Grant mentions in his book is how towards the end of the war in Europe, they would drive their jeep into German villages claiming to be an advance party there to 'confiscate cameras for security reason'. I'm sure they got a few nice high-end cameras that way.
This continued until they ran into a German commander. He said he had a Panzer unit nearby that wished to surrender to the Allies. The AFPU men made up some excuse to get the heck out of Dodge then.
"It would only be fair for you to surrender to a soldier of a higher rank, we'll just go and get one! Kaythanksbye!" 😀