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A double whammy festive year of two major M landmarks, the M3 (1954) and M6 (1984). What in your opinion is Leica cooking up for these jubilee anniversaries? I feel a special edition or two coming up…

This is my first forum post. Apologies if this is the wrong forum for my question--please tell me if I should post in another forum for this. I inherited my grandfather's doublestroke m3 and started to return to film photography with it. After reading lots of reviews, I bought a new Zeiss 50mm Planar f/2--it is generally reviewed as exceptionally sharp. I just got back my first few rolls of film think that the images all suffer from a softness. I know there are several variables at play here, but I wanted other opinions on how to trouble shoot this. The images were shot on Kodak Portra 160 and professionally developed. I scanned using my Epson v600 with silverfast 8, 3200 ppi. I also have a medium format camera and have gotten extremely crisp images using the same setup. The leica/zeiss images all seem soft to me. I'm wondering if this is 1) a focus issue, 2) some defect with the lens (purchased new over ebay from Japan), 3) a scanning issue, 4) this is normal for 35mm film scans and my expectations are biased by coming from medium format. I do no think the softness is due to camera shake because I'm seeing it in all images and they were mostly taken at a shutter speed faster than 1/125. thanks for any advice. Here is a sample image: and here is a 100% enlargment.

love their videos, they release the videos a week or so before the actual sale, which in this case in in the 1st week of January 24 https://www.kitamuracamera.jp/ja/event/onlinesale_2023_1226

After learning here about Milliput epoxy to repair missing vulcanite, I did a first repair yesterday on my M3. I'd put a kind of superglue along the broken edge while waiting for the epoxy to be delivered from the UK. For the repair, I cleaned exposed metal with goobegone and scrapped lightly with a small flat blade jewelers screwdriver. The Milliput mixes and goes on fairly easily wearing rubber gloves. I used a flat end of a chopstick that was moistened with water first for the coarse application and then used a wet cotton tipped ear swab to smooth it out. The attempt at making the textured surface was with metal dentist teeth cleaning tools -- which only sort of worked... Photos are attached. To try and avoid future vulcanite damage, I picked up two OEM leather cases on eBay and modded one so that only the body part is left on the camera. One side benefit, one that may not be the reason for a leather strap sewn into the inside of the case, is that I'm using it to hold the film box end. Rod

Newbie here, so still figuring out both my new-to-me M3 and this forum -- and enjoying the ride! I've been into 35mm film photography since the early 1970's (a long-gone Minolta SRT 101, a Rollei B35 I still have, and several Olympus OM's including the nicely kitted OM-1 I still use). But I've been looking at the Leica world for a while and a friend who just got an M6 planted and watered the seeds that became the M3 I got a week ago from a retail shop. The SS body (1047xxx) is in great shape and it came with a Summarit 50mm 1.5 and a 35mm Summaron 3.5, both of which appear clean and working well. I'm only on my second roll of HP5 and haven't processed anything yet, so can't say yet if (i) I know what I'm doing, or (ii) if everything works ok. The shutter is a marvel after the mirror'd SLR flop, and the rangefinder isn't hard to get used too (I hope)... The aperture ring turning in the 'wrong' direction is 'interesting'... A bit of the vulcanite chipped off because the camera bag I'm using was too tight, so I've taken the advice found on this forum and ordered some Milliput epoxy for a fix. I've also found two original leather cases on eBay, one of which I've modded to use only the part that protects the body. I've ordered a body cap and a spare lens cap on eBay and will try getting some UV filters at the local shop. And so it goes.

Those M3s look like they are going on a Christmas Tree. Ultra rare promotional photo of ELCAN, Midland (ON) from 1955.

Came to this promenade park last Sunday. Leica M3, Voigtlander 21/4, Kodak Vision3 5219

If you were given the choice between a Leica iiig and a Leica M3 which would you choose and why?

I recently was given a Leica M3 and in my first role, the photos appear to have double and triple exposed by accident. Most negatives have no space in-between them and the edges have overlapped. The photos don't overlap the sprocket holes. Has anyone else experienced this or have any suggestions on how to fix it? Or do I just have to get it serviced? Whilst shooting there was no odd feeling whilst winding the film on, it was all very smooth. I did a test with a dud roll of film by setting the camera on Bulb mode, While the shutter was open I drew out the frame onto the negative with a pen, wound the film on, and repeated this until the role was done. In this test, all the photo frame lines came out perfectly and none of them overlapped. I'm baffled as to what occurred in my initial role. Photos are of Glasgow, Scotland

I am a long-term M3 and Rolleiflex shooter, and for black and white am more than happy making prints in the darkroom. Shooting color on film is also fun, but developing and scanning, for me at least, isn’t. And I’ve been wanting to have the experience of shooting digitally with my M lenses for a long time. So last week I took the plunge and bought a used M10R. I got the silver version and am struck by how much it looks and feels like my 1960 M3. The simplicity of the camera makes me happy — I was concerned about being overwhelmed with menus — but I’m sure I have much to learn about getting the most out of the camera, about post-processing, etc. (It renders black and white beautifully too, but I won’t put aside my film cameras). Do any other film shooters have advice or experience to share about their transition? Any thoughts are welcome.

I've had several problems with my M3 including shutter bounce which have been mitigated but not eliminated by a CLA. All of them were manifested in VERTICAL defects visible on the negatives and so were consistent with an abnormality with the shutter opening as the vertical opening is moving across the frame. This recent defect is HORIZONTAL and appears as an overexposed band on the top of the image (bottom of the negative) and the the bottom of the image, although only the defect at the top of the image is clearly visible here. It occurred about three times on a 36 exposure roll and neighboring frames shot at the same speed did not have this defect. It does not appear to be a light leak because the overexposure does not extend past the frame. Any ideas??

I'm not sure whether I've had bad luck with getting lenses to fit on cameras, or if this is a common problem with the M system. My first Leica combo was an M3 SS with Summicron 50 V2. Since the body and lens shipped together, there was no problem getting them to mount. Next, I purchased an Ultron 28 f2. The lens fit into the mount, but I couldn't get it to click into place. Took it to a repair shop, and the owner basically got the lens to fit through brute force - said Voigtlander QC wasn't great and that this was basically to be expected. I used the lens like this for a couple of months, but it would often "unclick" itself somehow, so I eventually traded it for a LTM Skopar 28mm. Same thing happened with the first adapter - couldn't get it it to click in place. Went back to the shop, and was given a replacement that 'magically' worked without problems. Recently, I traded the M3 for an M4-P and, lo and behold, neither the adapted Voigtlander nor Summicron will even fit into the mount, let alone click. Thus out of 6 total Lens/body combos (2 bodies and 4 lenses/adapters), 4 have been faulty. I'd simply put it down to a service error or wear and tear, but the fact that this has occurred between unrelated lenses and bodies makes me skeptical. Has anyone had a similar experience? Am I doing something wrong?!

I prefer to take pictures on overcast days for a variety of reasons. Unfortunately, by definition that means that there is a threat of rain. I take along a zip lock bag so that if it starts raining, i can protect the camera. How concerned should one be about surface water on a film M? Any other clever ways to protect them from this threat?

About a year ago, I had my M3 CLA'd after sporadic shutter problems caused results like the overexposed bar in the first example. After about 10 rolls of film, the "bars" are back, (happening once per roll in the last couple of rolls) along with the over exposed "bar" at the far right of the frame shown in the 2nd example which I believe are limited to exposures made with 1/500th or 1/1000th of a second. The latter problem can actually be seen by dry firing the camera as a bright "slit" on the right edge as the shutter is closing is observed through the open back. My question is should this be happening so soon after an CLA? Is there something inherently irreparable in the shutter mechanism?

Hi all, Just had my M6 CLA’d due to a light leak around the shutter curtains. They are demonstrating some curling and leave a light leak when a frame is left in the gate for too long. The tech replaces the baffles among other things but I can still see a bit of light at the edges when shining a bright light. He claims that is normal and his other Leicas also have this. Can anyone attest if that is true by checking your shutter curtain edges when shining a bright light inside? much obliged Boe

Hi all, Just had my M6 CLA’d due to a light leak around the shutter curtains. They are demonstrating some curling and leave a light leak when a frame is left in the gate for too long. The tech replaces the baffles among other things but I can still see a bit of light at the edges when shining a bright light. He claims that is normal and his other Leicas also have this. Can anyone attest if that is true by checking your shutter curtain edges when shining a bright light inside? much obliged! Boe

I recently bought a one-owner M3 DS with a DR Summicron from an estate in Chicago. The camera and kit are absolutely lovely. The only issue is that the vulcanite was flaking off with every time it was handled. I finished peeling it all off, mostly with my fingernail, and cleaned the remaining adhesive off the body with acetone. I ordered a dark blue leather replacement cover from Morgan at cameraleather.com. He was responsive and helpful and I had the new leather in my hands in about five days from the date of order. Exceptional service! And the leather... oh my... it's gorgeous. Total install time was about ten minutes, and that with me trial-fitting it and figuring out how I was going to do the install. It went perfectly. it was simple and easy. And I think it looks amazing! My first M body was an M3 in 1974 that I promptly traded back in for an M2 that developed a severe case of fungus when I lived on Guam. Since then I've had an M4-2, M4-P a couple of M4s and another M3 or two (and an M8 and M9P.) My vision got so I couldn't focus the M4-P/M8/M9P well any more so I sold them in 2016. A conversation with a friend recently about the 1:1 finder in the M3 and the differences from the later finders got me to wondering if it was different enough that I could still use one, and much to my surprise, I can see the focusing patch quite well in the M3. It pleases me to have an M again.

Thanks for the help…two questions. What can of black paint to use and recommendations for smoothing out a bit of grit on the bottom plate. Blessings and thanks James

Hello friends, I seem to have an issue that is not entirely rare. The cloth focal plane shutter curtain seems to stutter, or even bounce. I have searched this issue prior, and I guess "bounce" does seem to be the syntax for this certain phenomenon. I have included a clip of the shutter at 1/500 from a slow-mo video I attempted to take on my phone. I also scrubbed the video and took a screenshot of every frame that contained the movement of the shutter in the video. And to my surprise, by looking at the past two frames, the shutter does indeed appear to "bounce". The shutter seems to travel the full distance, with the second to last frame capturing the almost fully relaxed shutter. But then the last frame shows a larger gap of light appearing again. Not ideal. I noticed on a couple photos I took, a bar of overexposure on the right side of the frame. Since this issue is well documented and the solution known (CLA baby) my purpose for cluttering this forum with a much too common ailment was to possibly learn what could cause this? To make this already long winded post windier; I purchased the camera from Shueido Camera back in March 2022. It was supposedly CLA'd before sending out. The camera did come in, visually, absolute pristine condition. The first test roll I shot didn't seem to have any issues. But then I went on a 10 day trip to Iceland. Almost none of the photos I took in Iceland had the bar, but with overcast, cloudy days, I was most likely shooting at 1/250 and lower. (From what I understand this issue comes alight mostly at 1/500 & 1/1000 (increased tension for high speeds?)) Upon returning to the land of America, I shot some random pictures around me to finish off my last roll from Iceland. Almost all the photos exhibit the nefarious white bar of sadness on the right edge of the photo. Now, this is Florida, during midday, in summer, so one could assume almost every photo I took was at 1/500 and 1/1000. Could the Leica's foray into the land of Fire and Ice been too much for it's old bones? Could the 10 days of constant cold (I camped for the duration of my stay, so my new buddy did not spend much time in a comfy, first class, heated environment) affected this old tools mechanism, summoning the frosty ghost of over exposure? Thanks for even reading this phone typed, mental diarrhea. I know I have to get it CLA'd, but it is just simply a bummer that a camera would need a second CLA in one year. I'm hoping to figure out how this may have been caused so I may avoid bringing this problem back in the future. MOV_HFR_120F_20220723012348~3.mp4

IXMOO Adventures Ive recently discovered a couple of IXMOO cartridges in one of my fathers old camera bags. Ive managed to successfully load same (using an aged "Computrol" bulk film loader) and managed to get both the loader and my M3 to close the lightproof cyclinder successfully. Sadly when I developed the film from my first outing there are very fine scratches on the non-emulsion side of the film. Reloading with conventional horrible plastic casettes eliminates the problem so I'm concluding that the scratching has something to do with the poor IXMOO (rather than the film back or any other part of my developing process). Problem could happen either in the loader or camera but im guessing its the loader as the bottom plate on the M3 locks the IXMOO open and the lower edges of the slot "feel" smooth (albeit the scratches are very fine). Any ideas or suggestions would be hugely appreciated. I love the way the IXMOOs are constructed and it would be wonderful to be able to use them. Film is HP5+ pushed to 1600 using ID-11 and hypam). Many thanks........... T

I have a 28mm Elmarit ASPH and was wondering which analog film bodies it is incompatible with? I believe the red dot fouls the lens release on the M3 is that right?

A few years ago, I bought a used (obviously) M3 from B&H in nyc. Armed with a little bit (ie dangerous) amount of knowledge, i knew enough to check the alignment and accuracy of the rangefinder--it was and is perfect--and the general look and feel of the camera, which was clean and smooth operating. It is a single stroke model with a high (above 1m) S/N. I treated myself to a brand new Zeiss 50mm f 2.0 Planar and ran a couple of rolls through it to check the shutter accuracy and focusing. I was satisfied that the camera was up to snuff and I still have and enjoy the camera. But I don't think it is what it appears to be. While it has a single stroke mechanism with the telltale longer advance lever, it has the "buddha ear" strap lugs, the older style film reminder and the decimal shutter speed dial--(1/10th, 1/100th). However, the rangefinder patch has the depth of field "notches" which I understand came later. And what may be a clue--the bottom plate appears to be new but seems to be OEM. Has anyone encountered a camera with this combination of features? I am guessing that this was the work of a skilled repairman who cobbled the camera together from spare parts, complete with a salvaged top plate with a high s/n and bottom plate. Fortunately for me, the camera works beautifully and I am happy with the results. Thoughts?

Hi, I’m new here. I am using Canon DSLR and Nikon F3P film camera. I understand that a Leica camera won’t make me a better photographer, but I like the feel after tested the Leica camera at Leica store, and I love the experience of controlling light by myself. I started from DSLR then move to film, my F3 explore my vision of “how to exposure work”, but relying very minimum of the electronic parts inside my F3 (basically just a light meter). With all the reasons (maybe excuses), I am decided to become one of the Leica member. Last week, I saw a good deal of 50mm f2 rigid, and my finger acted to quickly and accidentally make up the purchase, now it on the way. I hope I can have some of your suggestions here to help me to pick my first Leica to start my Leica journey. Currently, I am considering M3, M4 and M5. Based on my search on the web, M3 is legendary camera, M4 is more modern, M5 is cheap & bulky. is there anyone who used or owned these camera and probably can give some advise to me? I planned to get one film Leica only, afterwards, I will invest into digital Leica. Thank you very much.

Leica M3 Sumicron 5cm APX400 in Rodinal

is this manual actually from 1959 ? https://photographysgoldenageii.wordpress.com/2019/02/08/leica-m3-service-manual/