Thinking of purchasing film M body. Talk me out of it, please.

[jsrockit]

Agree on the SBOOI. I own two later versions with the mount mount/unmount side serrations. They are going for ridiculous money now on the bay. ~$250 and higher for mint examples although deals can be found. Crazy! But they are nice 🙂

$250 for what you guys are calling one of the best OVFs ever? Seems like a steal.

 

[pmu]

This is a sign! I decided to buy the M4P, it was a good deal. The next day I happened to find a partially shot roll of film that I had taken with my previous M4-P maybe ten years ago. So hey, I can finally finish the roll! And right after I made the deal, someone contacted me who was interested in trading one of my guitars for a M4 body...and we made the deal. The M4 will arrive hopefully tomorrow. Today I realized, I had also partially shot roll waiting that I had shot with my previous M4 in 2009 or so! So, I have now two rolls of film that were started over decade ago with particular Leica models and now I can finish them with the same ones. Those were the only rolls of films that were partially shot.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CXL725OK-t3/

 

[Range-rover]

I just purchased a M3 it's pretty bad, needs to be worked on and it will keep me busy in between Chemo stuff.

 

[ptpdprinter]

Does anyone buy new Leica lenses? It seems like Leica film camera owners buy Leica digital bodies and continue to use their old Leica and non-Leica lenses. Has anyone gone from shooting a Canon or Nikon SLR to shooting a digital Leica so they have to buy new lenses? I don't see too many posts from individuals who just bought a new (unused) Leica lens.

 

[f.hayek]

Does anyone buy new Leica lenses? It seems like Leica film camera owners buy Leica digital bodies and continue to use their old Leica and non-Leica lenses. Has anyone gone from shooting a Canon or Nikon SLR to shooting a digital Leica so they have to buy new lenses? I don't see too many posts from individuals who just bought a new (unused) Leica lens.

Sold off my collection of MF and AF Nikkors entirely. Bought a few QM2 Leica lenses when they used to sell them as such (imperceptable cosmetic defects to the barrel). Have one or two that I bought new ('demos') and one or two NIB but never at list price. You have to know where to look...

 

[bjorke]

100' spool of Tri-X from the local shop is now > $150

quod erat demonstrandum

 

[raydm6]

This is a sign! I decided to buy the M4P, it was a good deal. ...

I guess we didn't talk you out of it. 🙂

Congratulations on the new camera. Enjoy the M4-P!

 

[pmu]

I guess we didn't talk you out of it. 🙂

Congratulations on the new camera. Enjoy the M4-P!

M4-P AND M4 😀 You tried your best, thank you. I guess this is a sickness 😀

In all seriousness, I am anyway shooting with Fuji GFX and film SLR also, so I can use those when I feel that they fit better than M Leica.

 

[jsrockit]

I just purchased a M3 it's pretty bad, needs to be worked on and it will keep me busy in between Chemo stuff.

Bob, I hope all is going as well as it can be... and you'll work on that M3 and get it running again as always.

OP, wow you showed us... not only could we not talk you out of 1 M, you bought 2!

 

[Range-rover]

Bob, I hope all is going as well as it can be... and you'll work on that M3 and get it running again as always.

OP, wow you showed us... not only could we not talk you out of 1 M, you bought 2!

Well, the prices were right for the M8 and M3 and after all I went though in 2020 I decided what the heck
go for it, I enjoy the camera's and fixing them up.

 

[Range-rover]

This is a sign! I decided to buy the M4P, it was a good deal. The next day I happened to find a partially shot roll of film that I had taken with my previous M4-P maybe ten years ago. So hey, I can finally finish the roll! And right after I made the deal, someone contacted me who was interested in trading one of my guitars for a M4 body...and we made the deal. The M4 will arrive hopefully tomorrow. Today I realized, I had also partially shot roll waiting that I had shot with my previous M4 in 2009 or so! So, I have now two rolls of film that were started over decade ago with particular Leica models and now I can finish them with the same ones. Those were the only rolls of films that were partially shot.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CXL725OK-t3/

Wow enjoy your new camera's, I pretty much did the same but a M8 and M3, it's just a different way to photography, enjoy.

 

[agentlossing]

I found an perfect example of what annoys me with M rangefinder viewfinder inaccuracy. Attached is a photo taken with my normal shooting distance. Not close up, but pretty close. Can you spot that hook on the wall, right up corner? I am always super careful with the backround and I most definitely framed it out of the photo, but there it is.

SLR's, they don't feel good. My OM-1 takes fine photos, but I don't enjoy using the camera as a tool. M Leicas feel perfect.

I would say that the OM1 is an SLR that does have some soul. Many SLRs feel soulless but there was a special something to the OM1.

Untitled (33) by Andrew Lossing, on Flickr

 

[Range-rover]

I just purchased a M3, I know I'm not much help but it is what it is.

 

[qqphotos]

I do enjoy using my IIIg, and manage to keep it adjusted to the point where with my usual lenses I can almost always nail focus to my own (probably overly demanding) standards. I also have an M2 mostly used for wider lenses but focusing is a lot less reliable on that. At some point I guess I've decided that choosing to use a rangefinder is not a decision made on the technical perfection of the output, since if I want that I have a 60MP digital camera with inherently exact framing and focus.

 

[pmu]

It worked out pretty well, talking me out of getting back to M system. Now, all I have is M bodies and lenses 😀 Well, I do still have my OM-1, but I will never get ridd of it because it's my dad's old camera.

 

[bluesun267]

Lovely cameras! A trio to be proud of.

Since my earlier post about the IIIg, I got into Leica R. Ended up with 3 lenses and an R8 for pretty good prices (it required a little patience). Have the Elmarit 28, Summicron 50, & Summicron 90 now.

My general concerns about framing accuracy seem to echo yours.

And, like you I must have owned at least 10 Ms in my younger days--selling each mostly for $$ reasons: cycling through the regret & the re-buying...rinse & repeat.

Now I have a IIIg, Hexar RF, and R8. My own golden trio.

The big surprise for me has been the R8: A camera I loathed the first time I handled it over 25 years ago. And subsequently reveled in it being the butt of every bad Leica joke. It seemed to represent everything I hated about tasteless displays of wealth and post-modernism, and back then, it seemed to be part of an advance guard for the impending digital coup looming like a heavy and hideous hunchback on the horizon.

Well I'm glad I'm not that 20-something guy anymore (in some respects).

The R8 has been akin to discovering the Bee Gees and ELO after dismissing them as too cheesy and too commercial for so many years. (Well, I'm referring to EARLY Bee Gees.)

Despite the "97%" finder, I find the R8 absolutely as accurate as the Nikon F2. But with contrast and color that makes the F2 feel positively listless; R8 makes me want to take MORE pictures for the sheer beauty of the viewfinder image. This may not necessarily be a good thing, but it sure feels nice.

 

[jsrockit]

It worked out pretty well, talking me out of getting back to M system. Now, all I have is M bodies and lenses 😀 Well, I do still have my OM-1, but I will never get ridd of it because it's my dad's old camera.

Nice beasts!

 

[bluesun267]