Underwhelmed by the M3

[TaoPhoto]

Okay, I know that I'll probably be excommunicated from the Church of Leica and all, but I recently picked up an M3 and I really don't know why people love this so much. It's mechanically beautiful, the DS winder is butter smooth, the rangefinder is bright and on the money. Yet it's also heavy, and for all the mechanical goodness of it all, it's harder to load film, harder to set shutter speeds and the lovely viewfinder really isn't hundreds of dollars more lovely than the Bessa R2 or my Olympus OM-1n.

I just don't understand all the "M3 is the best camera in the world" hype. What am I missing? Why all the love?

(Mine will probably show up in the classifieds soon)

 

[SolaresLarrave]

"You have the right to remain silent, but anything you say may be used against you in the public court of opinion. You have the right to an attorney, and if you cannot afford one... may god help you in your dire hour of need, after saying such things about the Leica M3"

... said nobody, ever.

Yours truly also bought an M3 some years ago. I sincerely tried to like it, but I never managed to feel a passion for it simply because I'm not a 50mm kinda guy. I like wider lenses, so I'm in awe of cameras like the M2, all the M4 family and the M5s.

Best of luck with the sale and don't sweat too much about not liking the Leicas! 🙂

 

[Lux Optima]

Can anyone understand the true meaning of "love" anyway? Why not for a camera?

No one who will be interested in buying it from you will give you any pro - simply out of fear that you would rise the price.

(You are so right! It is worthless! No one really likes it! Not even me. Have already two M3. Just bought them for humanitarian reasons: Preventing mankind from a horrible fate... Maybe I will sacrifice myself again!)

 

[Ko.Fe.]

I sold my OM thing quick and some of my Bessa cameras went on sale as fast as OP M3 announced sale is going to be. I kept M3. I didn't find OM and Bessa as something worth to keep. I also see no difference in speed switch from M4-2, it is one finger switchable.

I'm just a rod, line, bobber, sink and hook guy, not downriger and sonar troller 🙂

 

[davidnewtonguitars]

It's the "soul". Other cameras don't have soul.

 

[furcafe]

Ha! Fortunately, camera ownership is not a religion (AFAIK 😀).

The M3 is a camera design classic but needs to be viewed in historic context. If you compare it to what was available in 1954 (just like the OM-1 in 1972) & consider how useable it still is today, you might be able to appreciate it more.

Okay, I know that I'll probably be excommunicated from the Church of Leica and all, but I recently picked up an M3 and I really don't know why people love this so much. It's mechanically beautiful, the DS winder is butter smooth, the rangefinder is bright and on the money. Yet it's also heavy, and for all the mechanical goodness of it all, it's harder to load film, harder to set shutter speeds and the lovely viewfinder really isn't hundreds of dollars more lovely than the Bessa R2 or my Olympus OM-1n.

I just don't understand all the "M3 is the best camera in the world" hype. What am I missing? Why all the love?

(Mine will probably show up in the classifieds soon, if anyone is looking for one)

 

[TaoPhoto]

Don't worry: pros for the M3 won't lead to price increases. I'll be happy if I can get something near what I paid for it. It might be nice, actually to understand why some love the M3 so much.

It seems every year or so I give the Leica M's another chance. I really wanted to like them, but I think it's a square peg/round hole kind of problem.

I'll put the camera and lenses in the classifieds and hope that I can get out of this year's experiment with minimal loss. I like to give rangefinders for sale a try here before resorting to ebay and similar.

 

[davidnewtonguitars]

So I was joking about the "soul". I build guitars and guitar guys are worse than camera guys about holy-grail seeking.

I see the whole Leica M-film line as a monolith, except for various features from model to model.

If the thing doesn't fit your hand, it is a no-brainer to move on.

 

[f16sunshine]

Take a picture you really love with that camera and it will be on!
Seriously... there are few machines that live up to their hype.
The M3 is not a Rolleiflex 😉

 

[flagellum]

I think it's just about what clicks. I hated my M3 and sold it, but am giving an M4 a try instead for the diff. viewfinder. But when I had it, I didn't find the M3 much better built than my Canon F-1, which I clicked with immediately. On the opposite end, I immediately fell in love with a 500cm I picked one up, despite not having run a roll of film through it yet.

Seems to me that the brand is quickly forgotten if you absolutely love a camera, but it will haunt you if you don't click with something prestigious/legendary/what-have-you.

 

[AlwaysOnAuto]

Don't feel bad. I inherited mine and once it was cla'd I put a roll thru it. Couldn't figure out what all the hype was either. Besides being heavy, it wasn't very easy to hold IMO, until I put a grip on it, but, even then it wasn't as easy to hold as say my D7000 which is quite a bit heavier.
The one thing I've come to appreciate about it, even though I haven't used it since that first roll, is how quiet the shutter is and how free from vibration it is. All good points in my book, but it still doesn't out weigh the cost of film/developing/printing enough for me to justify using it more. (sigh)

 

[Range-rover]

You should of purchased a M4 more modern feature's and all.

 

[johannielscom]

...

(Mine will probably show up in the classifieds soon)

Sell it.

I bet it'll be less than six months before you regret it.

There's something weird about classic Leicas. Even when you think you don't need them and you sell them and are happy they're gone, they come back to haunt you.

Addiction doesn't cover it. It's more an affliction that you can't shake. An infection.

I suck at shooting rangefinders but they still call me like Sirens...

must.resist.must.resist.must...

 

[flagellum]

There's something weird about classic Leicas. Even when you think you don't need them and you sell them and are happy they're gone, they come back to haunt you.

Addiction doesn't cover it. It's more an affliction that you can't shake. An infection.

This is definitely true, to an extent. Though I'd argue it's mostly the hype generated around Leicas, rather than anything intrinsic to the cameras themselves. That hype is what made me end up getting another one, because I felt like I was missing out on some experience. But I'd argue that you could just as easily come to terms with not liking Leicas and live happily with whatever works better. Might not be an easy process with most outside media sources telling you it's the pinnacle of all things photography, but it can certainly be done (especially if you have a camera you're already loving/secure in using).

 

[Michael Markey]

I first bought an M3DW ,then an M2 and fairly recently an M4.
Like furcafe says you have to view them in their historical contex.

I think that you`re trying too hard to see something in them that just isn`t there.
Stack `em up dispassionately against any number of modern alternatives and they just aren`t as versatile a tool.

For 80% of what I do they aren`t practical but I`d never sell mine.
Once in a while when I want to do some simple straightforward photography there isn`t anything better.

 

[Richard G]

Okay, I know that I'll probably be excommunicated from the Church of Leica and all, but I recently picked up an M3 and I really don't know why people love this so much. It's mechanically beautiful, the DS winder is butter smooth, the rangefinder is bright and on the money. Yet it's also heavy, and for all the mechanical goodness of it all, it's harder to load film, harder to set shutter speeds and the lovely viewfinder really isn't hundreds of dollars more lovely than the Bessa R2 or my Olympus OM-1n.

I just don't understand all the "M3 is the best camera in the world" hype. What am I missing? Why all the love?

(Mine will probably show up in the classifieds soon)

A man after my own heart. I will be your attorney and won't charge a cent. Of course, I won't be able to get you off, but I think I can reduce your sentence. Or play chess with you most evenings if I am in the next cell.

The M3 is sort of capable and almost as good as an M2. What horrified me when I held one and looked in the viewfinder is those awful rounded corners of the fabled M3 50mm frame lines. I didn't drop the camera but I put it down very quickly and patted my camera bag in which the vastly superior M2 was sitting. The truth is, the M6 blows both out of the water and might be the best Leica ever. But I do love the M2 50mm frame lines. And the 35mm frame lines. Oh, sorry you won't have seen those in your camera, and nor will anyone else with an M3......

 

[Graybeard]

Okay, I know that I'll probably be excommunicated from the Church of Leica and all, but I recently picked up an M3 and I really don't know why people love this so much. It's mechanically beautiful, the DS winder is butter smooth, the rangefinder is bright and on the money. Yet it's also heavy, and for all the mechanical goodness of it all, it's harder to load film, harder to set shutter speeds and the lovely viewfinder really isn't hundreds of dollars more lovely than the Bessa R2 or my Olympus OM-1n.

I just don't understand all the "M3 is the best camera in the world" hype. What am I missing? Why all the love?

(Mine will probably show up in the classifieds soon)

If you find it necessary to ask the question you may, very well, not understand the answer.

 

[Erik van Straten]

I bought my first M3 in 1979. It is still my favorite camera. I use mine only with 50mm lenses. But then, I only use 50mm or 35mm lenses. For 35mm lenses I use an M2 or an M5.

Erik.

 

[TaoPhoto]

If you find it necessary to ask the question you may, very well, not understand the answer.

That is almost certainly true. The question requires a language and culture I don't know. Too bad Duolingo doesn't offer a course for it.

 

[taemo]

I'm one of those that loves the M3, it is made of heavy brass, 50mm frame line difficult to see with glasses, no quick spool load, takes forever to rewind and remove film, and I don't shoot with it often either, but there's something unique and special that attracts me to the M3.

I've shot with most film SLRs (OM, Ai-S, FD, Pentax, Minolta) and the SLR that I'm most attached to now is the Pentax ME Super or MX.