rivercityrocker
Well-known
I hate when I get asked about my M2 .. "hey, is that one of those fake vintage cameras?" .. WTF?
Funny, I was shooting a concert the other day with my "fake vintage Dƒ" and someone asked me if it was a real vintage film camera.
hepcat
Former PH, USN
I concur with the other comments about the article and the shots in it, RCR. Well done!
I know what you guys mean about having to defend your purchases. I have four Leica bodies, and I have less invested in ALL of them than a new M9-P alone (or the latest flagship Canikons.)
One of the great things about being in my late '50s though, is that I absolutely confuse the h*ll out of people. My hair is past my shoulders (what hair I have left) and is quite dark yet, and wavy. I wear a trimmed, but full beard. I'm just as comfortable in levis and t-shirts as a three piece suit and tend to wear function-appropriate dress... but my age, hair and beard just causes people not to quite be able to categorize me easily, and I enjoy their curiosity and inability to put me in a box.
It also makes it easy to say: "oh, they're just Leicas... they get the job done," when asked. That also tends to shut down a lot of the other inane conversation that seems to come with folks who notice them.
You can't take your money with you, and you might as well be comfortable and enjoy what you shoot. I take the same approach with cars and bicycles.
I know what you guys mean about having to defend your purchases. I have four Leica bodies, and I have less invested in ALL of them than a new M9-P alone (or the latest flagship Canikons.)
One of the great things about being in my late '50s though, is that I absolutely confuse the h*ll out of people. My hair is past my shoulders (what hair I have left) and is quite dark yet, and wavy. I wear a trimmed, but full beard. I'm just as comfortable in levis and t-shirts as a three piece suit and tend to wear function-appropriate dress... but my age, hair and beard just causes people not to quite be able to categorize me easily, and I enjoy their curiosity and inability to put me in a box.
It also makes it easy to say: "oh, they're just Leicas... they get the job done," when asked. That also tends to shut down a lot of the other inane conversation that seems to come with folks who notice them.
You can't take your money with you, and you might as well be comfortable and enjoy what you shoot. I take the same approach with cars and bicycles.
rivercityrocker
Well-known
I might make it even weirder by doing this, but you just made me realize I hadn't uploaded any of the shots I talked about since I started moving over from Flickr to Tumblr, and because I enjoyed it so much I just wanted to share them with you now that I have uploaded them.Too bad I couldn't avoid the fence (do you call it that in english?), but like I said, really enjoyed shooting them: http://kennylovrin.se/post/70485681829/muay-thai-hua-hin-thailand-february-2013
We call them "ropes". Even up close they still get in the way.
Those are good shots! I really like the one with the young kid with the money in his mouth.
kennylovrin
Well-known
I concur with the other comments about the article and the shots in it, RCR. Well done!
I know what you guys mean about having to defend your purchases. I have four Leica bodies, and I have less invested in ALL of them than a new M9-P alone (or the latest flagship Canikons.)
One of the great things about being in my late '50s though, is that I absolutely confuse the h*ll out of people. My hair is past my shoulders (what hair I have left) and is quite dark yet, and wavy. I wear a trimmed, but full beard. I'm just as comfortable in levis and t-shirts as a three piece suit and tend to wear function-appropriate dress... but my age, hair and beard just causes people not to quite be able to categorize me easily, and I enjoy their curiosity and inability to categorize me easily.
It also makes it easy to say: "oh, they're just Leicas... they get the job done," when asked. That also tends to shut down a lot of the other inane conversation that seems to come with folks who notice them.
You can't take your money with you, and you might as well be comfortable and enjoy what you shoot. I take the same approach with cars and bicycles.
age is an interesting aspect, usually when i get snarky comments it actually from men that are obviously 20+ years older than i am. i am not super young (32) but I make enough to buy myself a leica (but it doesn't mean i don't feel the expense in my account balance), and i suspect sometimes older men have a problem with that.. even my dad who has been a mechanic all his life has a problem accepting that his son makes more than him by "sitting at a computer all day".
kennylovrin
Well-known
We call them "ropes". Even up close they still get in the way.
Those are good shots! I really like the one with the young kid with the money in his mouth.
Thanks! I remember clearly shooting that as I had to be very quick when he was just stopping by, and I saw it on the screen and I thought to myself "I am happy with that!", but then I realized I missed focus quite a bit when I viewed it on my computer... But who cares..
EDIT:
I just realized we call them "ropes" in swedish as well, but the swedish word of course.. I wonder where I got "fence" from, as it doesn't make any sense at all in Swedish either.. hehe
hepcat
Former PH, USN
I look pretty cruddy most of the time so nobody ever accuses me of being a "rich Leica snob" (at least not in person, on the interwebs all the time). But the thing that burns me up is when I get called a "hipster". One of my first cameras was a Ricoh 35s rangefinder. And that was over two decades ago. If anything, I'm like the godfather of hipster. Too old to be a hipster, but the hipsters have stolen my style!
You're too young to be the 'original hipster.' I bought my first rangefinder setup in 1973. I was shooting 1/4 mile dirt track stock car races at night under the lights on HS Ektachrome 160 with an (even-then-antique) early-cold-war-vintage Canon IIF and an 85mm Serenar f/2!
Of course, 'hipster' wasn't invented then. The guys I was shooting with all just thought I was a masochist or something. They were shooting with Nikon Fs in those days. From our perspective today, they weren't a lot more technologically advanced.
hepcat
Former PH, USN
age is an interesting aspect, usually when i get snarky comments it actually from men that are obviously 20+ years older than i am. i am not super young (32) but I make enough to buy myself a leica (but it doesn't mean i don't feel the expense in my account balance), and i suspect sometimes older men have a problem with that.. even my dad who has been a mechanic all his life has a problem accepting that his son makes more than him by "sitting at a computer all day".![]()
I was able to retire at 55, and my youngest son started working that same year, right out of college. He too "sits at a computer all day" and his starting salary was only a couple of thousand dollars less than what I made when I retired! I couldn't be more happy for, or proud of him.
Good on ya!
kennylovrin
Well-known
I was able to retire at 55, and my youngest son started working that same year, right out of college. He too "sits at a computer all day" and his starting salary was only a couple of thousand dollars less than what I made when I retired! I couldn't be more happy for, or proud of him.
Good on ya!
that's good, i probably sold my father a bit short there, i don't think he has an actual problem with it, but it gets commented on now and then.
k__43
Registered Film User
Funny, I was shooting a concert the other day with my "fake vintage Dƒ" and someone asked me if it was a real vintage film camera.![]()
rivercityrocker
Well-known
You're too young to be the 'original hipster.' I bought my first rangefinder setup in 1973. I was shooting 1/4 mile dirt track stock car races at night under the lights on HS Ektachrome 160 with an (even-then-antique) early-cold-war-vintage Canon IIF and an 85mm Serenar f/2!
Of course, 'hipster' wasn't invented then. The guys I was shooting with all just thought I was a masochist or something. They were shooting with Nikon Fs in those days. From our perspective today, they weren't a lot more technologically advanced.
The fact that I have full-sleeve tattoos usually gets me lumped in hipster group. I got my first tattoo only a couple of years after getting into photography. Right around the time the hipsters were being born.
helvetica
Well-known
One of my first cameras was a Ricoh 35s rangefinder. And that was over two decades ago. If anything, I'm like the godfather of hipster. Too old to be a hipster, but the hipsters have stolen my style!
The first camera I purchased was a Holga around 2005 - years before hipsters became a thing, or the world was introduced to "Lomography" and Urban Outfitters. I always got a laugh that I had the gold standard of hipster photo gear before the hipsters thought it was cool. Does that make people like us... proto-hipsters? Hipster-prime?
rivercityrocker
Well-known
Thanks! I remember clearly shooting that as I had to be very quick when he was just stopping by, and I saw it on the screen and I thought to myself "I am happy with that!", but then I realized I missed focus quite a bit when I viewed it on my computer... But who cares..I guess the focus being on the money instead of the eyes works as well in a sense.. But it wasn't what I intended, haha.
EDIT:
I just realized we call them "ropes" in swedish as well, but the swedish word of course.. I wonder where I got "fence" from, as it doesn't make any sense at all in Swedish either.. hehe
Sometimes focus takes a backseat to "feel". Look at the old Magnum photographers work. It's not all sharp. Some of my favorite photos from Gene Smith are blurry. Like his pic of Thelonious Monk.
Some fights have fences. MMF fighters are in a cage. I've had to shoot through those. Luckily at f/2.8 they're pretty invisible close up.
The first camera I purchased was a Holga around 2005 - years before hipsters became a thing, or the world was introduced to "Lomography" and Urban Outfitters. I always got a laugh that I had the gold standard of hipster photo gear before the hipsters thought it was cool. Does that make people like us... proto-hipsters? Hipster-prime?
Man, I had a Diana and Holga in 1994. I out-hipstered you...
So, who among us had a Fuji Pet in the 60s? They would win the ultimate proto-hipster prize. eek
http://camerapedia.wikia.com/wiki/Fujipet
goamules
Well-known
Remember that old motorcycle slogan, "You meet the nicest people on a Honda..."?
I've found with my cameras, "you meet the rudest people when you have a Leica."
I've found with my cameras, "you meet the rudest people when you have a Leica."
micromontenegro
Well-known
Folks, for Barnack's sake, I stopped using Dianas around 1977 ;-)
KevinS
Established
The few times I've gotten comments while out shooting landscapes has been when I'm using a telephoto lens (usually white). I guess people equate a large lens with expensive, and they're not far off. I just answer somehow and move on.
"Seeing as you have nothing better to do, check out my latest article.
"
http://www.dpmag.com/how-to/shooting...k-a-white.html
rivercityrocker - Great article. I'm hoping one of my two boys will get interested in photography, but I won't be pushing anyone to go professional as I was. Your article is a great way to feed some interest as it is clear and simple, but with enough technical info to make the reader want to try out a technique. Thanks for the link.
"Seeing as you have nothing better to do, check out my latest article.
http://www.dpmag.com/how-to/shooting...k-a-white.html
rivercityrocker - Great article. I'm hoping one of my two boys will get interested in photography, but I won't be pushing anyone to go professional as I was. Your article is a great way to feed some interest as it is clear and simple, but with enough technical info to make the reader want to try out a technique. Thanks for the link.
dfatty
Well-known
Seeing as you have nothing better to do, check out my latest article.
http://www.dpmag.com/how-to/shooting/knockout-black-a-white.html
5 out of 7 of the images was shot with a Leica.
Don't want to derail the thread but just wanted to mention that I enjoyed this article also. Thanks for posting it.
Snowbuzz
Well-known
Remember that old motorcycle slogan, "You meet the nicest people on a Honda..."?
I've found with my cameras, "you meet the rudest people when you have a Leica."
I found a film blog by a gentleman in Edinburgh (very nice blog) who actually identifies Leica users on the street. He then runs up, photographs them with his "vintage" contraption and posts their respective photos on his said blog. He does this to embarrass them. I might add that the Leica users do look startled, confused, embarrassed. I suppose that's his intent. Do Leica users deserve that? I don't know. Maybe some.
I have to work in Edinburgh in January so I hope he doesn't spot me.
Anyway, love your article and photos rivercity!
I found a film blog by a gentleman in Edinburgh (very nice blog) who actually identifies Leica users on the street.
Can I have a link?
Moto-Uno
Moto-Uno
Strange as it seems, but when I'm out with the Frankencamera on the end of a tripod, everyone notices,but absolutely no one remarks! And really,who cares?
Peter
Peter
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