M2 questions

[johnalex141r]

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Apologies if these questions are too basic; I have never touched a film Leica, and I don't know where I'd find one locally.

 

Looking at a the M2; do the frame lines automatically change, or is there a manual setting as in what the Bessa cameras seem to have?

 

I have the following for my M8; wondering how they'd work on an M2, esp. the 28?

 

CV 15, CV25, Leica 28/2, Leica 50/1.4, CV 50/2.5, CV 90.

 

I'm back shooting film, darkroom put back together, having fun. My M8 was broken for a while; now that it's back, I find that I'm still reaching for either a freebee Olympus 35RC or a MF rangefinder; I have good Leica lenses that are just sitting...

 

 

Thank you;

 

JohnS.

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[bill]

Apologies if these questions are too basic; I have never touched a film Leica, and I don't know where I'd find one locally.

 

Everyone has to start somewhere

 

Looking at a the M2; do the frame lines automatically change, or is there a manual setting as in what the Bessa cameras seem to have?

 

Yes, they automatically change. The M-mount tells the body what lens is mounted (see below).

 

The M2 only has framelines for 35-50 and 90mm lenses - that is one of it's great strengths since it gives an uncluttered view. You would have to go to an M6 classic and later before you have 28-90, 35-135 and 50-75mm frameline pairings. Towards the end of the M6 production run Leica introduced the .58 and .85 viewfinder magnifications alongside the .72 (which the M2 has) They lose the 135 and 28mm framelines respectively and are available in M6, M6TTL, M7 and MP bodies.

 

I have the following for my M8; wondering how they'd work on an M2, esp. the 28?

 

CV 15, CV25, Leica 28/2, Leica 50/1.4, CV 50/2.5, CV 90.

 

They will all work extremely well (they were designed for film, after all ), however as already said you will need an external viewfinder for the 28mm (I assume you already have ones for the 15 and 25). Alternatively you could guesstimate by using most of the whole viewfinder - you won't be too far out.

 

Again, I am assuming that you have M-mount adaptors for the CV LTM lenses if you were using them on your M8.

 

The M2 is a great camera - I have one myself - but remember that the youngest is 50-odd years old now so prepare yourself for paying for a CLA. Also remember that they are unmetered, so unless you are comfortable with Sunny-16 budget for an external meter too.

 

Hope this helps,

 

Bill

[wizard]

...You would have to go to an M6 classic and later before you have 28-90, 35-135 and 50-75mm frameline pairings. ...

 

Bill,

 

to the best of my knowledge, at least the 28mm framelines were introduced with the M4-P (and I believe that model also had the 75mm framelines). Since the Summilux-M 75mm lens was introduced in roughly around 1980, Leica had the wise idea to offer a camera body showing the appropriate framelines ...

 

Regards,

 

Andy

[bill]

Good point, Andy, I tend to forget the unloved M4-P. The M4-2 and M4 certainly lacked the 28 and 75mm framelines.

 

Thanks for the reminder!

 

Regards,

 

Bill

[Xmas]

Hi

 

The M2 is just like the M8 for frame lines they are selected automatically by the bayonet mount, and there is a lever to override the selection, but it is spring loaded to the bayonet selection.

 

If you were not using the thread mount CV lenses on the M8 you will need the correct adapters for the CV 50 and 90 or use an elastic band to hold the lever over, difficult with the 50.

 

The finder has two cut outs for depth of field estimation.

 

And there is a user manual if you google.

 

Noel

[thomasw_]

Hi John,

 

The M2 has a fervent fan base for good reasons; the foremost being the simplicity of the VF! The camera is so fantastic that I sometimes feel I prefer my 41ish year old M2 to my 2ish year old MP. But I caution you to consider that while the M2 works just fine using the entire VF as ~28mm FOV, the VF of the M2 was not designed with that focal length in mind. And if using an auxiliary finder for the 28mm bothers you because it increases the form of the camera, the M2 might not be for you. It all depends on just how much you want brightlines for the 28mm FL.

 

As many M2 users tend to shoot the classic 35 - 50 - 90 focal lengths, the VF becomes an framing extension of their eye.

 

The M4-P is an excellent alternative, but I find the framelines much more cluttered --- admittedly this is so in my MP, too.

 

Thomas

[chris_livsey]

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The uncluttered view extends to the lack of metering. No red lights to distract from the subject and encourage a half stop change when well within the latitude of the film (B/W).

 

Of course you can always take the battery out of an MP and get the same effect

 

You can of course buy an M2 and resell with little or no loss so you can "suck it and see" without financial penalties.

 

PS You will be amazed how wide that 15mm is in real life compared to the M8.

[Robert J]

The previous owner of my M2 had the M4-P framelines installed.