michaelbrenner Posted May 27, 2015 Share #1 Posted May 27, 2015 Advertisement (gone after registration) It was driving me nuts - sometimes the incorrect frame lines come up. Then I discovered that as one rotates the lens about the mount the frame lines change until the lens locks into place. Moreover, if one holds down the lens release button one can rotate the lense inside the mount so that any desired set of frame lines appear, regardless of which lens is actually in use. So, technically a frame selection lever, much lamented as missing on the M 240 and lauded on the the new M 246, is not really necessary with the work-around as described above. Granted having the frame selection lever is much more convenient, but I don't see it's absence as a huge drawback. Now that I've discovered this trick, I get along just fine without it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted May 27, 2015 Posted May 27, 2015 Hi michaelbrenner, Take a look here Frame Selection Lever Work-Around for M 240. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
MarkP Posted May 27, 2015 Share #2 Posted May 27, 2015 Then one forgets to lock the lens back in place. Next thing it's on the floor Nice idea but with practice you can estimate the other framelines. Having said that I would like the frameline selector back in the M240. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Livingston Posted May 27, 2015 Share #3 Posted May 27, 2015 Having said that I would like the frameline selector back in the M240. You have, it is in the M-P 240 But you are right, it should always have been there... As it should have been on the previous camera too... Paying the premium for the P version seems a little cynical to me to be honest. Hopefully any new M series camera should be the same as what has now become the P version (including the Leica script!) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bocaburger Posted May 27, 2015 Share #4 Posted May 27, 2015 The absence of the lever pissed me off no end at first. Then I realized after 45 years of using M's I could frame just about as accurately if there were no frame lines at all. Now that I'm used to it being gone, I don't miss it one whit. Seeing it return on the M-P pissed me off on a purely emotional level, made me cynically suspect it was all a plan hatched by their marketing department. But from a functional standpoint, I couldn't care less for it anymore. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjh Posted May 28, 2015 Share #5 Posted May 28, 2015 Even when Leica seems to have decided that the frame selector lever is back for good, I still think that the M (Typ 240) is a much cleaner design. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lct Posted May 28, 2015 Share #6 Posted May 28, 2015 The lack of frame selector will have been one of the rare drawbacks of my otherwise excellent M240. The next M body will have one hopefully. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
250swb Posted May 28, 2015 Share #7 Posted May 28, 2015 Advertisement (gone after registration) As with post #4 in all my years of using an M of some sort I've never used it. I think of it like the photographer with a zoom lens on a DSLR, constantly zooming in and out until something suggests itself to make a composition. Likewise with the frame selector lever, only it is also added by Leica to remind people of the lenses they don't have, and so increase sales. The mind's eye should be able to tell you which lens you need next, and especially for Leica leaving it off means there is less to go wrong. Steve Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mornnb Posted May 28, 2015 Share #8 Posted May 28, 2015 Even when Leica seems to have decided that the frame selector lever is back for good, I still think that the M (Typ 240) is a much cleaner design. Agreed, I don't see the necessity of this feature. If the lens you have on doesn't give you the shot you have in your mind, the frame selector lever won't help you. The camera has less clutter without the lever. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lct Posted May 28, 2015 Share #9 Posted May 28, 2015 The mind's eye should be able to tell you which lens you need next, and especially for Leica leaving it off means there is less to go wrong. Do you have blue "mind's eyes"? I must lack them (or it?) i'm afraid as in 30+ years of use, the frame selector has always been useful for me. YMMV. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted May 28, 2015 Share #10 Posted May 28, 2015 Never used it in four decades... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
rickp13 Posted May 28, 2015 Share #11 Posted May 28, 2015 It was driving me nuts - sometimes the incorrect frame lines come up. Then I discovered that as one rotates the lens about the mount the frame lines change until the lens locks into place. Moreover, if one holds down the lens release button one can rotate the lense inside the mount so that any desired set of frame lines appear, regardless of which lens is actually in use. So, technically a frame selection lever, much lamented as missing on the M 240 and lauded on the the new M 246, is not really necessary with the work-around as described above. Granted having the frame selection lever is much more convenient, but I don't see it's absence as a huge drawback. Now that I've discovered this trick, I get along just fine without it. i thought that lens coding was achieved through the code on the lens AND the proper frameline selection. what happens if the OP has a coded lens on a camera with the wrong frameline? it may not make a major difference to the photo, but who knows for sure? ps. i don't use the selector. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeicaFFM Posted May 28, 2015 Share #12 Posted May 28, 2015 oh... that's what this lever is for. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
M9reno Posted May 28, 2015 Share #13 Posted May 28, 2015 For what it's worth the early M3 did not come with a selector, so it's not an intrinsic feature of the M line in any way. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lct Posted May 28, 2015 Share #14 Posted May 28, 2015 My M3 does have a frame selector and so have my M4, M4-2, M6J and M8-2. The M240 is the ugly duckling there and i don't want another one in my backyard. Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/245581-frame-selection-lever-work-around-for-m-240/?do=findComment&comment=2823355'>More sharing options...
luigi bertolotti Posted May 28, 2015 Share #15 Posted May 28, 2015 Never used it in four decades... as for me, 2 or 3 times in 30 years... but was pleasant to see... together with the selftimer lever on the other side (which I DID use surely more times)and the rewind setting lever it made a well balanced look that gave the feel of a finely engineered mechanical device. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wda Posted May 28, 2015 Share #16 Posted May 28, 2015 I was very pleased to find the frame selector lever on my M-P 240 and do not consider it detracts from the design. Visually you hardly notice on the black version. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkP Posted May 28, 2015 Share #17 Posted May 28, 2015 You have, it is in the M-P 240 But you are right, it should always have been there... As it should have been on the previous camera too... Paying the premium for the P version seems a little cynical to me to be honest. Hopefully any new M series camera should be the same as what has now become the P version (including the Leica script!) Well I bought my M too early, didn't I ? The ongoing model upgrade game is indeed tiresome. Buy early and get the major now model benefits early, buy late and get the features that really should be available from the initial model release but at a premium. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
earleygallery Posted May 28, 2015 Share #18 Posted May 28, 2015 I think the main purpose of the frame selector was - on the M3/M2 - to bring up the 90mm frame lines when using a Leica Meter (which meters the area marked by the 90mm frame). I've never found a reason to use it personally - I know if I need a wider or shorter lens for a particular shot, but clearly others like to check the frames. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lct Posted May 28, 2015 Share #19 Posted May 28, 2015 From time to time yes. I sometimes hesitate between 75 and 90 for instance so i find it handy to have this little selector that i did use in the past for the Leica Meter as you say. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff S Posted May 28, 2015 Share #20 Posted May 28, 2015 I liked the lever when I started with Ms many moons ago. Over time, frame lines became second nature, and the lever went untouched. Plus, as I generally use only one or two lenses on a given outing, it's simple to decide without aid. Too many lenses distract for me. But having said that, I still enjoy the improved accuracy of the 2m frame lines despite the imprecise nature of RF viewing. Go figure. Each to his/her own. Jeff Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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