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M Macro


jaapv

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The photograph is superb.

 

The setup is the best I know of. I have the same thing (minus the ring flash) and I have never used or seen anything better. I think it is unfortunate that Leica has abandoned it long tradition of elegant and superbly engineered accessories that make the M (and screw series before that) an essentially universal camera.

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OK I will ask, what is each accessory? Does the Visoflex fits directly to your M9? Then what is the bellows part number/ name, please.

 

Next, what lens do you prefer with this setup?

 

The ring flash is what make and model # please. I have been looking for one and have been told by Leica dealers that not one exists that will sync with an M9. Maybe this one is always on?

 

Now how close/far to/from the subject must one be in order to make all this work well?

 

Did you add a bracket below the camera to accommodate the flash power source?

 

Do you ever use a cable release or it dos not fit when using a Visoflex?

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The rig is a standard Visoflex III with the prism finder, and a Leica Bellows II. I haven't seen the lighting thingumajig before, butt the letters say hama and it is clearly not a flash but a LED ring lamp. I cannot make out the lens, however.

 

In my younger days I was deep into macro with Olympus equipment, and then I experimented with Visoflexes, but they were not right for chasing running spiders, only the net-building species, which is not sport. And after some drastic surgery, and considering the dignity that befits my age, I don't crawl around on the wet ground much anymore, so I sold my Visoflexes. But they are useful in static, lab type conditions.

 

The old man from the Kodachrome Age

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I like the Hama ring light because lighting in macro is always a potential problem and white LEDs, which give a high colour temperature are fine providing you can set the white balance to handle it. The item is on the Hama web-site, part no 060183, £99.99, which sounds slightly greedy...

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All correct, folks. It is indeed the Hama, but I bought it on sale for 40 Euro :). The lens is the 135/4.0 TE, lens head on adapter 16558 (which normally comes with the Bellows II), which is my preferred macro lens. All pretty standard gear.

The whole system has a wide array of possibilities, with adapters for other lens heads, normal bayonet, Photar micro lenses, etc. There is a compendium (extendable lens hood) , extension tubes, etc...

It would be unaffordable expensive nowadays, I fear, so no wonder it was discontinued decades ago. Isn’t Leica’s obsession with retro-compatability one of the great plusses of the brand?

 

One of the advantages of the Hama LED ring is that you need not position it around the lens, you can hang it anywhere, according how you want to shape the light.

 

If one wants to do macro quick-and-dirty, the Visoflex will take any M lens that does not protrude into the body in it's standard mount, leaving out the bellows - less flexibility, but still fine macro results.

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