maclaine
Well-known
Last year I got my first M (an M4) in a trade + cash for my Bessa R3A. I thought it was great, but soon I felt as if the lack of a meter was really hampering me (oh, the things we can rationalize), and thought that it was Zeiss Ikon or bust. So, I sold the M4, bought a ZI, and have been using that for most of this year.
Well, at some point, I read a post from someone on this board that said something to the effect of "Don't ever sell a Leica. You'll always regret it and end up buying another one." As Holden Caufield might say, truer words were never spoken. The ZI is a fantastic camera, of course. But I realized a built in meter is not really the be all end all for cameras, and that elusive, occasionally scoffed-at notion of the "Leica feel" was something I genuinely missed. No matter how hard I try to convince myself otherwise, I can't shake the feeling that the ZI is just a bit more delicate than I'd like it to be, whether that's true or not.
Anyway, I thought I'd try something new instead of just buying another M4. I originally thought an M4-2 or M4-P would be nice, as I'd like to have a black Leica. I also thought an M2 would be really nice, as it's just so damn simple and no nonsense. A light-tight camera, well built, the end.
I kept my eyes peeled here for a good deal, but didn't see much of anything I thought I needed to jump on. I decided to do a nationwide Craigslist search, just to see what was out there. I ended up finding a gentleman in Pittsburgh (retired pro) with an M2, old Leitz yellow and red filters, and three screw mount lenses, a 50mm f/3.5 Elmar, a 35mm f/3.5 Summaron, and a Canon 85mm f/1.9, all for a really great price and with a flight case thrown in for good measure. I got in touch, we chatted a bit, and it turns out he is the second owner, having bought it from another pro in the '60s when that pro moved over to a Nikon F. The guy had done some work for Life magazine, photographed presidents, and some other cool work, all with this camera. I'm a sucker for history and cool personal stories, so that made me even more excited.
The camera arrived today, and I couldn't be happier to have a Leica M back in my hands. The serial number dates it to 1964. It's definitely used, but the mechanics seem to function perfectly. It's missing a bit of vulcanite, but nothing crucial. It also has the quickload kit installed, which the seller didn't mention, as well as an aftermarket rewind crank that makes rewinding ultra speedy. Another plus. There seems to be some yellow crusty stuff in the viewfinder, though. I can't see it when I look through it normally, but if I look through the front of the viewfinder, it's creeping in from around the edges. Is this a problem I should have someone look at?
The 50mm Elmar seems to be one of the oldest types. No serial number, "11 o'clock" infinity stopper, looks like it's made out of nickel, uncoated. This is my fourth 50mm lens for Leica mount, so I don't think it will get much use, except for "special effects". The 35mm Summaron has probably the smoothest aperture ring of any lens I've ever used. I'm not a big 35mm guy, and I have a really nice Nikkor 35mm f/2.5 that I like, so I might end up selling this one. We'll see. The Canon is SO HEAVY. Wow. It's in great shape, though, and I'm curious how it will compare to my CV APO Lanthar. If the images are comparable, I might opt to keep it for the speed alone. Again, we'll see.
So, in conclusion, it's good to be back. I'm going to keep both the M2 and the ZI for a while and try to calm my buying and selling down. The ZI needs the rangefinder aligned and the rubber grip replaced anyway, and now I can keep shooting while it's out for service. Still, when it comes back, I can't guarantee it will get the same use it did before I got the M2. I don't see myself selling the M2, and I have future delusions of getting it painted black and having the M4 style film loading mechanism installed. If I'm going to have an M, I might as well have it my way, right?
Well, at some point, I read a post from someone on this board that said something to the effect of "Don't ever sell a Leica. You'll always regret it and end up buying another one." As Holden Caufield might say, truer words were never spoken. The ZI is a fantastic camera, of course. But I realized a built in meter is not really the be all end all for cameras, and that elusive, occasionally scoffed-at notion of the "Leica feel" was something I genuinely missed. No matter how hard I try to convince myself otherwise, I can't shake the feeling that the ZI is just a bit more delicate than I'd like it to be, whether that's true or not.
Anyway, I thought I'd try something new instead of just buying another M4. I originally thought an M4-2 or M4-P would be nice, as I'd like to have a black Leica. I also thought an M2 would be really nice, as it's just so damn simple and no nonsense. A light-tight camera, well built, the end.
I kept my eyes peeled here for a good deal, but didn't see much of anything I thought I needed to jump on. I decided to do a nationwide Craigslist search, just to see what was out there. I ended up finding a gentleman in Pittsburgh (retired pro) with an M2, old Leitz yellow and red filters, and three screw mount lenses, a 50mm f/3.5 Elmar, a 35mm f/3.5 Summaron, and a Canon 85mm f/1.9, all for a really great price and with a flight case thrown in for good measure. I got in touch, we chatted a bit, and it turns out he is the second owner, having bought it from another pro in the '60s when that pro moved over to a Nikon F. The guy had done some work for Life magazine, photographed presidents, and some other cool work, all with this camera. I'm a sucker for history and cool personal stories, so that made me even more excited.
The camera arrived today, and I couldn't be happier to have a Leica M back in my hands. The serial number dates it to 1964. It's definitely used, but the mechanics seem to function perfectly. It's missing a bit of vulcanite, but nothing crucial. It also has the quickload kit installed, which the seller didn't mention, as well as an aftermarket rewind crank that makes rewinding ultra speedy. Another plus. There seems to be some yellow crusty stuff in the viewfinder, though. I can't see it when I look through it normally, but if I look through the front of the viewfinder, it's creeping in from around the edges. Is this a problem I should have someone look at?
The 50mm Elmar seems to be one of the oldest types. No serial number, "11 o'clock" infinity stopper, looks like it's made out of nickel, uncoated. This is my fourth 50mm lens for Leica mount, so I don't think it will get much use, except for "special effects". The 35mm Summaron has probably the smoothest aperture ring of any lens I've ever used. I'm not a big 35mm guy, and I have a really nice Nikkor 35mm f/2.5 that I like, so I might end up selling this one. We'll see. The Canon is SO HEAVY. Wow. It's in great shape, though, and I'm curious how it will compare to my CV APO Lanthar. If the images are comparable, I might opt to keep it for the speed alone. Again, we'll see.
So, in conclusion, it's good to be back. I'm going to keep both the M2 and the ZI for a while and try to calm my buying and selling down. The ZI needs the rangefinder aligned and the rubber grip replaced anyway, and now I can keep shooting while it's out for service. Still, when it comes back, I can't guarantee it will get the same use it did before I got the M2. I don't see myself selling the M2, and I have future delusions of getting it painted black and having the M4 style film loading mechanism installed. If I'm going to have an M, I might as well have it my way, right?
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