Struggling to fall in love with the M9

[roydonian]

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Gentlemen: My comments in post #109, above were not pointed at anyone in particular. "Roydonian" excerpted a few sentences to make a point, and that excerpt has begun growing its own un-designed, unintended legs.

 

Please read my complete comments before accusing me of not being in tune with this thread topic.

 

 

Good morning, Ken.

 

No disrespect to your original posting was intended. Your comments about the mindset of the sort of person I think of as the classic “camera club equipment bore” were very valid. We all know or have met someone who is convinced that he simply must have the new f1.2 10-500mm Hexa-Hexaflexagon lens but never gets around to taking any worthwhile pics, preferring to take photos of sheets of newsprint or even test charts.

 

We probably also know the person whose equipment is modest and unchanging but who turns out stunning work. (A guy who regularly won prizes at a camera club I used to go to in the early 1960s used equipment that would have been familiar to a Victorian-era photographer. He didn’t mess about with enlarging but contact printed directly from a full-plate-format negative. His idea of a good day out taking pictures was one in which he'd exposed a handful of plates.)

 

There are some on this forum whose postings suggest that we must all be ‘worthy’ of our Leica equipment by turning out artistic images or ‘shooting street’. But Leica is a broader church than that. There are probably some Leica users whose cameras stay firmly attached to a microscope, spectrascope, or similar item of hardware.

 

My own professional photography as a technical journalist is almost completely photos of record – the equivalent of “front view of the Leica S2”, “ rear view of the Leica S2”, and “closeup of the S2 bayonet mount”. All I have to do is position the object against an uncluttered background, and be able to set the exposure and focus correctly. (But perhaps two centuries from now I will make the day of some historian whose computer search of the archives of one of the magazines I write for produces imagery of the very artifact he is trying to study.)

 

 

 

Best regards,

 

Doug

 

(I was cooking last night’s evening meal and in my haste to complete my post and return to the stove for part two of a three-hour process I forgot to sign my posting…)

[delander †]

 

… My own professional photography as a technical journalist is almost completely photos of record – the equivalent of “front view of the Leica S2”, “ rear view of the Leica S2”, and “closeup of the S2 bayonet mount”. All I have to do is position the object against an uncluttered background, and be able to set the exposure and focus correctly. (But perhaps two centuries from now I will make the day of some historian whose computer search of the archives of one of the magazines I write for produces imagery of the very artifact he is trying to study.)

 

 

 

Best regards,

 

Doug

 

 

Doug,

I dont think you are doing yourself justice. I sometimes do this kind of photography. There is a lot of skill and experience in setting up the lighting. Almost everytime I do this kind of work I expect it to be a quick job only to find that there are reflections or other small annoyances which need to be dealt with.

 

Jeff

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The Leica Q3 is available for pre-order at B&H Photo Video and Adorama

[diogenis]

Bob, hi

It seems that your cases has escalated as much as it could

UK minister aims to reassure photographers: Digital Photography Review

 

Time to revenge those miserable people and ask for compensation for all that happened to you from them...

 

edit: also time to cash on it as well as a celeb... and all this to those nice policemen

Edited March 11, 2010 by diogenis

[Mark2]

the best thing to do is sell the M9 and buy a Canon 5D Mark 2 or a Nikon. Life is too short to force yourself to like something. Photography is a hobby, a hobby is something for you to enjoy. Not force yourself into it. Put it out for sale, buy a DSLR, live life to the fullest. Never look back

[James R]

When my M9 arrived, I put my D3 away for a while. There have been moments of frustration because I forgot to remove the lens cap, or missed critical focus. But, that is part of the learning curve. I mean the lens cap thing is just a little embarrassing.

 

The pics, when I execute the shot properly, are beautiful. The D3 has still not been out of its bag.

 

I did not try to like the M9, I tried to learn how to best use it. The camera has grown on me and I don't regret the purchase. The D3 will not remain in the bag, since it is a great camera, but, its new buddy will get the majority of carries.

 

Good luck in your decision.

[tdtaylor]

Like James, my D700 and D300 have not been in my hot little hands since receiving the M9. While the beginning was shaky (at times I felt like I was a novice photographer), after 7-8k shots things have become more comfortable, bordering on enjoyable, and absolutely enjoyable when I see the images. I actually went and used it for my work, documenting sites, which allowed me fairly concentrated, continual use- the reason for the high shot count. After all, I have 100's of thousands of shots on my Nikons, so no matter how I remember it, I did not learn my Nikons overnight.

 

In the coming months I will be shooting Crew Regattas, and the SLR and the big lenses will be coming out to play, but I now think I'll have a M9 over my shoulder for candids.

[fsantucci]

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Not so sure moving from a D3 to an M9 is the idea.

 

My D700 with a 70-200 2.8, at my sons basketball game is amazing, and the better choice for the job, as would the D3.

 

However (my opinion)my M6 w a 50 or 35 1.4 on vacation w the family can't be beat. I think the M9 is a proggression of the M family, into digital, using the same wonderful glass.

 

Is the M9 meant to replace a D3? I'm asking.

[Nikkor AIS]

The M9 will never replace the Nikon D3 at least not for me. Having the ability it use focal length from 8mm to 800mm is a option that the M system can't touch. Not that the M system isn't with out merit. I never understood why using one had to mean turning your back on the other and vise versa. If you ask me the two systems are a perfect fit to work in tandem , not one or the other. Asking one system to do what the other is best at diminishes both and gets the best out of neither.

 

 

Leica M7 and 28 Voigtlander 2.0 ASP on XP2

 

 

Nikkor 800 5.6 IF ED AIS on D3

[Colin Barnes]

Bob, you portfollio is superb and your pic with the wippet on the sofa taken with the m9 is fantastic.....i hope you stick with the leica, i cant wait to see some of your work when you are able to get out and about

[chris_tribble]

If you ask me the two systems are a perfect fit to work in tandem , not one or the other. Asking one system to do what the other is best at diminishes both and gets the best out of neither.

 

Couldn't agree more. I've just got back from a shoot in Switzerland where I was using the M9 + 28/50/90 and a 5D2 + 70-200 in tandem to document a series of meetings and debates with Swiss academics and parliamentarians on the issue of the minaret ban. the M9 and a good DSLR are dream combination of lens quality and flexibility. I could cover everything I needed to but still ensure that the system was realistically portable. If you're interested in the results visit: Our Shared Europe - a set on Flickr

[TacTZilla]

Many thanks Colin for your generous words.

They are most appreciated.

 

Regards

Bob

[scottygraham]

The M9 will never replace the Nikon D3 at least not for me. Having the ability it use focal length from 8mm to 800mm is a option that the M system can't touch. Not that the M system isn't with out merit. I never understood why using one had to mean turning your back on the other and vise versa. If you ask me the two systems are a perfect fit to work in tandem , not one or the other. Asking one system to do what the other is best at diminishes both and gets the best out of neither.

I certainly agree with what you are saying...In my fantasy world, I would own a D3X, a D3s as a back-up, and two M-9's with an assortment of lenses...and an assistant to carry everything for me. However, in the real world, us regular folks just don't have that option. The only way I can afford to get a Leica M-9 and ONE lens is to sell my existing equipment...I guess I could sell my car or my house, but I don't think my wife and kids would be too happy about that.

 

Hence the long discussion in many forums about the value of the M9 as most of us will be giving up our current DSLR's in order to get the M9, and that is not an easy decision for us that can't afford both systems...at least that is the situation I am in....do I want to give up the flexibility of my Nikon for the quality and portability of the M9?

 

One of the main reasons I want the Leica is to get rid of the bulk I carry around with me when I travel, yet maintain the quality captured. If I had both systems, wouldn't that defeat the purpose?

[gwelland]

One of the main reasons I want the Leica is to get rid of the bulk I carry around with me when I travel, yet maintain the quality captured. If I had both systems, wouldn't that defeat the purpose?

 

It most certainly would!

 

I have the two systems you quoted (D3x/D3s & 1x M9) and I find that if I travel with both, one or other of the systems ends up sitting in the bag back in the SUV or hotel room. I find that I'm either in Leica mode or Nikon mode, and VERY rarely both.

 

For almost all travel I find that the Leica is THE system of choice. However, I'm on a photo safari in the Kruger later in the year though and obviously you can guess which system isn't going to be the system of choice for that trip.

Edited March 15, 2010 by gwelland

[jaapv]

Especially the Kruger. Like most national parks, you are not allowed to drive off road - so take the longest focal length you can get your hands on! And a bean-bag

[gwelland]

Especially the Kruger. Like most national parks, you are not allowed to drive off road - so take the longest focal length you can get your hands on! And a bean-bag

 

There are times where an M9 & 135/3.4 APO-Telyt just aren't going to cut it, even at Sabi Sabi where we do get to go off road

[jaapv]

True, very true. Having said that, I have a considerable number of satisfactory Safari shots using a 135 on M cameras

[gwelland]

Jaap,

 

Having seen some of your shots I think that 'satisfactory' is a somewhat humble way of describing them. Talent and application go a long way and, from what I've seen, I think you'd come home with excellent shots with even a pinhole camera.

[Mark2]

Life is too short to force yourself to love something. In fact why bother afterall photography is a hobby. A hobby is something u do for fun. Why not sell your Leica to me? Let me ease your sufferings