Afraid of using the M?

[enboe]

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A few thoughts on levels of protection for your M10:

 

1)  Insurance - your foundation for protection from loss.

 

2)  A screen film + a UVa Type II filter for the lens - enough to keep basic scratches off the softest parts.  This is what I usually use for all but the roughest conditions.

 

3)  A half case - keeps the baseplate from scratching.

 

4)  An ever-ready case or small bag - for when the going gets rough, or Disney World on a summer day.

 

Eric

[Anika]

Which lens or lenses did you get Anika? Did you buy new?

 

hello :-)

bought all new M10 and Summilux 50mm, got used 35mm Summicron but think of changing to the new version and get 28 Elmarit to have a nice set. Maybe I will forget the 35mm and 28mm and move to Summilux 28mm, so two lenses for everything or 3 lenses to choose from (50 + 28 Lux) or (50 + 35 + 28) - maybe having small lenses (35 and 28mm) would help me to get used to the camera more then the first option.... just its so tempting to have both as Summilux. 

 

Thank you for all your comments and kind words, I really appreciate the help and knowing I am not alone with this "problem" help to relieve, really helped. Its like outing, hello I am Anika and I have a problem with Leica..... where no problem really exist. I will post when my new Leica M10 gets really "used" and gets the "used" look. ;-)

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[pedaes]

 'They fit like a glove'

 

Sorry, Albert, not any Luigi cases I have had. Now, Arte di Mano if you want the glove fit ( but the cost is an oxymoron with this thread ).

[pedaes]

hello :-)

bought all new M10 and Summilux 50mm, got used 35mm Summicron but think of changing to the new version and get 28 Elmarit to have a nice set. Maybe I will forget the 35mm and 28mm and move to Summilux 28mm, so two lenses for everything or 3 lenses to choose from (50 + 28 Lux) or (50 + 35 + 28) - maybe having small lenses (35 and 28mm) would help me to get used to the camera more then the first option.... just its so tempting to have both as Summilux. 

 

Thank you for all your comments and kind words, I really appreciate the help and knowing I am not alone with this "problem" help to relieve, really helped. Its like outing, hello I am Anika and I have a problem with Leica..... where no problem really exist. I will post when my new Leica M10 gets really "used" and gets the "used" look. ;-)

Anika, welcome, but with that sort of budget I think you are teasing us.

[Eric1]

This worries me about America. I get the impression it’s more dangerous than other Western countries. Makes me not want to visit particularly. That and all the guns.

I would say America is 99% safe. There are a lot guns but there mostly in the hands of criminals and rednecks. I have never felt threatened in America but most major cities here have places that attract bad people, ie known touristy areas and places where the divide between rich and poor is high. No country is absolutely safe, you just have to be smart and pay attention to your surroundings.

[Ko.Fe.]

Always wear it on the neck stripe, if camera is in the bag, never take the bag from your shoulder. 

Best way is to get insurance on it. Depends on country and regulations. Some places are very easy to obtain and it is not expensive. 

 

I have same experience after getting new M-E with new Summarit-M 35 lens. Now closer to one year left after getting it, I still can't justify of using it for street photography. I'm only using it for family pictures and rarely for casual hiking. Took it for long hike only once, one of the button on the back has slightly  worn out white paint now after it.

 

I purchased M8 for street and else, but it was limiting me with crop factor (hard to get affordable lens for 35 FOV). I could only imagine how more pressuring it is to go out without insurance with M10. 

 

The only real relief I have is in using of film Leica. But then it needs CLA. So, I'm often using just FSU film camera (low cost, self serviceable) and small digital P&S. I really miss small Panasonic based Leica zoom lens cameras for it. They don't make them anymore... Those cameras where like 100$ but zoom was wide and fast. And image quality was nice under good light with visible Leica made lens character. I have Canon P&S now and it is nowhere near for image quality....

[adli]

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Buy insurance and stop worrying. I carry my camera all strange places at all times of day and night. Never worried about the camera.

[Anika]

Anika, welcome, but with that sort of budget I think you are teasing us.

 

 

why is the budget too high? I will not buy more lenses getting two or three - and yes, I saw the billiard table full of cameras in other post - I am far away from this, never intend to invest more then I should, just want the one, the best one - with nice set of lenses - if I get Summilux, I will not get summicron or elmarit. If I get both small 35 and 28, the option for Summilux 28 is gone.  

I could use the money for a nice car maybe, but I prefer my Volvo :-)

[Aperture 2]

Dear Anika, my suggestion: take an insurance for your camera.

There are policies that cover all risks, you will feel better.

[arno_nyhm]

i had the same problem. but then i found out: it's all just in your head.

 

i just realized: how often did i loose any camera ever? never! how often did i drop any camera ever? never- at least not fatal. how many cameras were stolen from me? none!

 

who are the people that steal our cameras? they are living on the edge of society and may be of minor intellectual capability. they would steal any camera regardless of the question wether you use x100 of first generation, M8 or M10. they just are not capable of making a difference.

 

it is no higher risk to take out the M10 than it is to take any other camera with you.

 

just relax. and if you can't: get an insurance. just for sure. but you´ll never need it. that's why they are so affordable.

[TheVanguard]

Hello,

I had Leica X before and adored it, now I got (finally) my M10 and.... I am afraid of using it.

Its hard to describe, but I just feel handicapped carrying such an expensive camera.

I am thinking of loosing the possibility to sell it again - I know its silly.... but how you manage it?

I look at it the other way, I have had cameras and lenses I have sold in a practically new condition that I have hardly used. They were a waste of money.

 

I hope my M10 ends up scratched, dinged and well worn, that way I know I have used it, enjoyed it and Got every last pennies worth out of it!

[otto.f]

Hello,

I had Leica X before and adored it, now I got (finally) my M10 and.... I am afraid of using it.

Its hard to describe, but I just feel handicapped carrying such an expensive camera.

I am thinking of loosing the possibility to sell it again - I know its silly.... but how you manage it?

I bet you have the chrome version. I think the chrome version is in fact less susceptible to wear than the black version.

Your feeling is quite irrational as you seem to be aware of yourself because the M10 is much much sturdier than your X. And the first standard digital M that's weathersealed.

On this forum there are already a few users who describe that their M10 has fallen about a few meters down on stone without any damage. Maybe you should be more afraid of your lens than of your body. I use a less expensive 35 Summicron 35 iv on my M10, because the whole package is lighter then.

Start with shooting pictures at home, then in your barn, then in your café/bar/restaurant, then in the theatre (it's quite silent), then in the park, then in the streets and at last the popfestival.

Edited August 18, 2017 by otto.f

[Al_OOF]

I think the solution is not insurance, half case, screen protector or other ... the question is the difference between the object we buy and the purpose for which we buy it. The second must be dominant on the first. We can also have all these protections but the object can still intimidate us. We have to shift "the weight" and the attention to the use. Let's throw the guilty feelings away (if there are any), forget the cost (the money has already gone...); we have taken it to love ourselves and be happier !

[Martin B]

Even I don't own a M10 (or any other digital M), I will jump in here: I learned my lesson when shooting last year with my M6 in Germany, and I heard a guy calling me out from several meters away saying "wow, look, this is a Leica!" distracting me and getting all attention around me. This was exactly what I would have liked to avoid when shooting with my rangefinder camera. Turned out the guy was just curious and also a photo enthusiast - but it made me aware that the red dot is a potential attraction point for thieves and worse characters. Since then I have all my Leica cameras taped with black gaffer tape as earlier suggested in this thread - on the Leica dot and the Leica letters. Since then, nobody ever asked me again or expressed interest in the camera - the M series now blends in perfectly with similar looking mirrorless camera models. I also observed cultural differences in behavior - I am mostly shooting in the US, and here the brand name Leica and Leica cameras are much less known and barely stand out than it is in Europe and especially in Germany (I don't know how it is in other countries).  

 

Yes, Leica camera gear when recognized as such sets a sign - and unfortunately in my opinion not often a good impression to others. A Leica shooter is a potential target, and we better are prepared to reduce the risk as much as possible. Blending in as described above is one good way, another is by using older and less mint/more used up looking lens and camera gear. With Leica film cameras and also potentially with the monochrome digital Ms, I found that by adding a dark yellow or orange filter on the lens itself this also removes the recognition of the Leica name written on the lens. 

 

Saying all of this you can likely imagine that I am not the fancy sports car, BMW, Audi, or Mercedes car driver either. I just don't like to get attention in public. 

Edited August 18, 2017 by Martin B

[Tailwagger]

The value of equipment is with image it makes. Its certainly what compelled me to choose a Leica over anything else in the first place.  Presumably, it played a role for you as well. If you dont use it, or limit its use only to situations where there is certainty, than you've come nowhere near maximizing the value returned for money spent.  That said, there's an important notion in amateur racing, where insurance is many thousands a year and the deductible runs to 50%, that if you cant afford to walk away from a balled up chassis, you shouldn't be racing.  Its certainly not lost on me that when I'm out with my standard, single camera klt (M10, Summilux 75, 35 and 21 SEM + battery and visoflex) that I'm carrying close to $20,000 on my shoulder. When I take a second body and additional lenses, its only goes up from there.  If it were all to be lost, I'd be gutted, but it wouldn't be the absolute end of the world. 

 

While we all love our Leica's to distraction, I doubt  any here value them over their own life or that of their loved ones or friends.  Do we confine them or ourselves to quarters so that no possible tragedy can befall us? Or do we go about our business and when we cross the street, we look both ways and trust that the traffic around us will obey the stop light? If you take reasonable precaution, dont treat the gear cavalierly, you can get more than your money's worth back, and still have something others would be happy to buy. Just look at the thousands of images on these pages and the price of used gear advertised at the bottom of them. In the worst case scenario, you can lose a lot, but then there are innumerable far worse tragedies that can overtake you. Live life, make photographs, bask in the joy of creation, not the fear of its loss.

[TX400]

Are people more worried about theft/vandalism or accidental damage? I'm more worried about getting mugged for a nice-looking camera.

[willemr]

Are people more worried about theft/vandalism or accidental damage? I'm more worried about getting mugged for a nice-looking camera.

I'm worried about neither, but doesn't mean that I'm not careful.

There's still a greater risk in slipping, falling and dying in the bathroom than getting mugged over my camera (or whatever expensive item I have).

[LocalHero1953]

i had the same problem. but then i found out: it's all just in your head.

 

i just realized: how often did i loose any camera ever? never! how often did i drop any camera ever? never- at least not fatal. how many cameras were stolen from me? none!

 

who are the people that steal our cameras? they are living on the edge of society and may be of minor intellectual capability. they would steal any camera regardless of the question wether you use x100 of first generation, M8 or M10. they just are not capable of making a difference.

 

it is no higher risk to take out the M10 than it is to take any other camera with you.

 

just relax. and if you can't: get an insurance. just for sure. but you´ll never need it. that's why they are so affordable.

You've been lucky. I have dropped cameras and lenses a number of times - I can't remember how many because most haven't resulted in damage: one lens to be rebuilt, one cracked lens hood, one misaligned rangefinder.

And I've had two cameras stolen: once from a river bank while I was swimming, in what I thought was an isolated area, and once from hold luggage on a long flight.

 

But I agree that insurance is the answer. In the second theft case, the cameras were in the hold and not in the cabin with me because they were insurable and insured; my cabin baggage was filled with irreplaceable business papers.

 

When I've had insured stuff stolen, it has been upsetting to lose things that you have forged a bond with over time, but I've quite enjoyed the free hand its given me indulge GAS all in one go without having to think about where the money comes from. 

[Steve Ricoh]

Are people more worried about theft/vandalism or accidental damage? I'm more worried about getting mugged for a nice-looking camera.

Well, in London there's an increasing number of acid attacks - with life changing injuries as a result - the perpetrators are after mobile phones, watches, you name it, anything valuable with a 'retail' value.

 

You have to admit the Leica M is a lovely looking camera with that nice bright red dot set against black paintwork (I'm sure the silver looks nice too), it's easy to imagine how you could fall victim. And it's not the loss of the camera that's the main concern, it's those life changing injuries, possible blindness, that no insurance can cover. Three acid attacks are reported every week in London; in 2016 there were 454 and more than 100 in the first four months of 2017 (obviously we're only part way through the year, but the total number could easily exceed last year).

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[Tailwagger]

Went into Boston this morning for a few reasons related to this thread. First, I finally gave into to temptation and bought a 50mm Summilux BC. Second, as the Leica Store is two blocks from the common, despite the potential for violence, I wanted to peacefully stand with those aligned against the forces of hate in this country. Third, though I rarely shoot people or street, I wanted to capture a few images from the event.  It would have been easy to succumb to fear of violence as witnessed in Charlotte last week, certainly given a brand new lens.  Spoke with many people with diverse backgrounds and views.  and despite being amidst a sea of superzoomy CaNikons, I met a pair of younger gentlemen shooting with Leicas as well.  Was an amazingly positive experience and entirely due to Leica photography.