Tips on shooting with an M9

[zlatkob]

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Consider the range patch also as the light meter for composition

 

Great tips in this thread, but I am not understanding this one. What does it mean?

[diogenis]

It means, that the area on that very center is what the light meter "sees" to decide on EV level. The photometer is located behind a lens in the camera that captures light reflections from that shutter stripe

[pelagia]

If you get interested in quick candid shots, it's will be helpful to learn how to "zone focus" the camera. Instead of using the rangefinder to focus on a specific distance, set the aperture, estimate your distance from the subject, and then use the distance scale on the lens to make sure your subject is in focus.

 

The next level to the zone focussing is -- let me name it -- the blind zone focussing. Learn the position of your focussing ring (especially easy with a lens with lever), say, at 1.5m, 3m, 6m, infinity. There are about four-five equal "steps" of distance zones on a lens. After a while you do not need to look at the distance scale on the lens, you feel the distance setting by hand (how far from, say, infinity you turned the distance ring). This of course applies to small apertures starting from about F/8 and smaller. At larger apertures you risk to be out-of-focus.

 

Tom

[Åmund]

 

(7) Learn 'stick shift exposure'. Auto is often right, but again, learn its limits. It may be a good idea to learn the camera on manual only, to get a real feel for the exposure system.

 

Lots of good advice, Lars, but could you elaborate a bit on this? "Stick shift exposure" was a new one for me!

 

Åmund

[diogenis]

I don't want to translate Lars, because I can't use his copyrighted signature in the end but I guess that he says that the camera's core functions, those that adjust f/stops shutter speed and focus must or can be manual. For exposure he means to begin by using it to fully manual. Auto still works but it sometimes misses exposure and needs some EV compensation dialed in, using the roller ring in M9. So whichever you choose auto with EV compensation or manual by turning the shutter dial and watching the leds, it's a "manual stick" camera.

[yanidel]

After using rangefinder cameras for about half a century, my concise advice is:

 

(1) Use the camera with one lens only at first. Learn that camera-lens combo thoroughly until you can previsualize the picture it will take, already before you raise the camera to your eye. This is essential, and close to the essential difference between a RF camera and a SLR.

 

(2) Always set the lens to infinity between shooting sequences. This way you will not lose time trying to find out which way to turn to focus.

 

(3) Compose with your feet.

 

(4) When you move in for the kill, establish in your mind exactly what you're going to focus on -- again, already before raising the camera!

 

(5) Train yourself to focus the rangefinder on different objects. There are about three different techniques -- split image, coincidence and contrast maximizing -- all suited to different subjects. Learn them all, and learn about their strong points and their limits.

 

(6) Remember Robert Capa's dictum: If your pictures are not good enough, you're not close enough! Capa did finally get too close, and trod on a land mine in Vietnam. But used with some regard for life and limb, it is still a good rule.

 

(7) Learn 'stick shift exposure'. Auto is often right, but again, learn its limits. It may be a good idea to learn the camera on manual only, to get a real feel for the exposure system.

 

And yes, shoot a lot. Have fun. And do read the manual.

 

The old man from the Age of No-Meters

All very good advices. Yet #2) always puzzled me. I have tried it but I feel that pre-setting ot the distance where most of your shots happen to be more efficient. For example, I am usually set on 2 meters with the 35mm lens and 3 meters with the 60mm. Depending where my subject is actually located compared to the base distance, I know which way to turn the focus ring straight way. Most important, it provides more quickness if you don't have time to focus.

 

As for #6), the advice is absolutely correct yet Capa's initial quote has been a bit re-interpreted over the years. By getting close, he meant being close to war front, meaning not staying with the nurses kilometers away from action like some war photographers did at the time. So no need to put your camera in your subject's face everytime, some distance can also be better at times

[jpattison]

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Amund,

 

Just in case you don't get it, he's referring to a motor car gear change, Americans say "stick shift" for the phrase "manual gear change", as opposed to "auto"

 

John

[Åmund]

Yes, I got it this time. And I now recall the reference to automobiles, a very apt one, I think. I am taking my first stumbling steps on the learning curve (or am I mixing my metaphores here?) for my new camera. The first efforts are of decent quality, but artistically rubbish. And yes, I try to do it manually.

 

Åmund

[diogenis]

All very good advices. Yet #2) always puzzled me. I have tried it but I feel that pre-setting ot the distance where most of your shots happen to be more efficient. For example, I am usually set on 2 meters with the 35mm lens and 3 meters with the 60mm. Depending where my subject is actually located compared to the base distance, I know which way to turn the focus ring straight way. Most important, it provides more quickness if you don't have time to focus.

Well if you have mastered this then surely it is faster. However, you still need time to check on distances then turn right or left, whereas you need only turn it left from infinity: that is, there is no thinking on it, just decide on composition, and fast moving of the lever (and it can be real fast if you do know where to turn) until it snaps into place.

[Bixi]

I would like to change no.3 to:

 

(3) Compose with your whole body.

 

There are some nice images of Bixi working this way.

 

Thank you dear Steve. I agree with you. If you compose with your whole body you can actually get into the image and become one with it. That's my idea of composing anyway.

 

Best,

Bixi

[lars_bergquist]

It means, that the area on that very center is what the light meter "sees" to decide on EV level. The photometer is located behind a lens in the camera that captures light reflections from that shutter stripe

This is not correct. The main light metering area is considerably larger than the rangefinder patch. It is a roughly sausage or zeppelin-shaped area with a width approximately that of the 75mm frame. That is more than three times that of the RF patch.

 

Film M cameras (M6, M6TTL, M7 and MP) have a circular white patch on the first curtain, covering an area with about this diameter. That was also the metering field of the Leicameters.

 

The old man from the Age of the Leicameter MR

[lars_bergquist]

All very good advices. Yet #2) always puzzled me. I have tried it but I feel that pre-setting ot the distance where most of your shots happen to be more efficient. For example, I am usually set on 2 meters with the 35mm lens and 3 meters with the 60mm. Depending where my subject is actually located compared to the base distance, I know which way to turn the focus ring straight way. Most important, it provides more quickness if you don't have time to focus.

Only if you completely discount the time it takes to make the decision and send the signal to your fingers. Your brain is not working at the speed of light; the procedure takes at least several tenths of a second. Unless you are using a long, long-throw lens, plus or minus a couple of millimeters means little compared to your internal reaction time.

 

As for #6), the advice is absolutely correct yet Capa's initial quote has been a bit re-interpreted over the years. By getting close, he meant being close to war front, meaning not staying with the nurses kilometers away from action like some war photographers did at the time. So no need to put your camera in your subject's face everytime, some distance can also be better at times

But of course. You must "be there", but "there" is not necessarily limited to the face of the main protagonist. What makes an 'action' picture interesting is usually that there is some kind of action (=interaction) in it. This is unknown to most press photogs, who think that the way to get an interesting picture is to stick a 180mm lens up the nostrils of some celebrity.

 

The old man who was there

[yanidel]

Only if you completely discount the time it takes to make the decision and send the signal to your fingers. Your brain is not working at the speed of light; the procedure takes at least several tenths of a second. Unless you are using a long, long-throw lens, plus or minus a couple of millimeters means little compared to your internal reaction time.

That's interesting way to look at it to which I have no sure answer. Don't you think our brain also "pre-sets" itself as we lift the camera to our eye ? Meaning if it knows the distance ring is set on 2 meters and the subject is at 5m, I would think that by the time the camera gets to my eye, my brain already knows inconsciously which way to turn the focus ring ?

[diogenis]

This is not correct. The main light metering area is considerably larger than the rangefinder patch. It is a roughly sausage or zeppelin-shaped area with a width approximately that of the 75mm frame. That is more than three times that of the RF patch.

 

Film M cameras (M6, M6TTL, M7 and MP) have a circular white patch on the first curtain, covering an area with about this diameter. That was also the metering field of the Leicameters.

 

The old man from the Age of the Leicameter MR

 

Aaah that's how you can tell...

You mean 7.5mm right?

[Jeff S]

You mean 7.5mm right?

 

Hope Lars won't mind another old man's intrusion...

 

No, I believe he's referring to the frame lines in the VF for a 75mm lens.

 

Jeff

[lars_bergquist]

Right, Jeff.

 

The old man himself

[lars_bergquist]

That's interesting way to look at it to which I have no sure answer. Don't you think our brain also "pre-sets" itself as we lift the camera to our eye ? Meaning if it knows the distance ring is set on 2 meters and the subject is at 5m, I would think that by the time the camera gets to my eye, my brain already knows inconsciously which way to turn the focus ring ?

Answering that question positively would take some sophisticated testing, and ditto time measurement. And how do we determine exactly when the lens is focused? But I do feel it is so. It is not a gut feeling (I use my gut for digesting food, not for thinking) but let us say that it is my hindbrain signalling me.

 

The troublesome old man

[diogenis]

Ah I got it. Thought he forgot a . lol

[snooper]

Hello everybody,

 

After extensive reading I finally decided to post on this awesome forum. As a quick introduction, I'm Antoine and I'm french. My M4P was stolen in Africa - Mozambique - back in 1983, with 3 Cron glasses, and I never got the money to buy another complete set of Leica gear.

 

So I ended up with an F3, later with all D something Nikon made, and when I was ready to switch from DX to FX the M9 came to save me ;-).

 

All this to say that back in the days, I could easily "street photo" almost every subject with the M4P and a 35mm. 30 years later, with the same glass on the M9, I feel very uncomfortable when I have to "get into the picture" to have a proper distance to the subject. 30 years later, I find the 35 mm very "intrusive".

 

I probably changed my own approach to the picture shooting by using the zooming capability of all the gear carried since the M4P was lost.

 

But also - and this is a question - is it possible that the whole world did change up to the point that people is not used anymore to have a photographer "this close" from them ?

 

Did the zooming era changed the relationship between the photographer and the rest of the world ? Or do I just need a bit of time to have the proper stealth feeling I used to have while shooting ?

 

For the time, I decided to stick on the 50 mm that I rediscovered. I feel much more comfortable with it when it comes to street photo.

 

Thanks anyway to all of you : it is a pleasure reading this forum and this is my opportunity to say it.

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[Hey You]

Snooper asked, "All this to say that back in the days, I could easily "street photo" almost every subject with the M4P and a 35mm. 30 years later, with the same glass on the M9, I feel very uncomfortable when I have to "get into the picture" to have a proper distance to the subject. 30 years later, I find the 35 mm very "intrusive". . . . . Is it possible that the whole world did change up to the point that people is not used anymore to have a photographer "this close" from them ?"

In my opinion, it's your state of mind. You are looking at this from the perspective of the photographer. Look at this from the point of view of the subject. The majority of cameras out there are of the point and shoot variety and the M9 resembles a point and shoot camera and not a DSLR. From the subject's point of view, the reason why you're taking an image up close and personal is that, like countless others, you're a crappy photographer with a cheap camera who has no idea about composition, and no idea that he /she is blocking the image behind them that you're really trying to take.