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M Camera made by Zenit


Leon_B.

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A very interesting product from a design and business collaboration point of view. Could sharing product technology while retaining a strong individual identity be the way forward? Who says globalism doesn't work!

I assume that was a rhetorical question, rather than an attempt to lead the thread into forbidden political territory ;)

Edited by LocalHero1953
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Without an EVF and with the enormous lens covering most of the OVF window and such a shallow depth of field I should imagine that this combination will be almost unusable. I used to use the CV 35/1.2 on my M but it was never ideal and this will be even worse

 

If the lens was called 1:1/35mm Noctilux Asph. nobody would care for  mundane practical considerations you mention.

 

Look at the dicussions here about the 75mm Noctilux.  

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You might be right, Yer great bánánach, :D but I was more wondering how close the relationship is and whether Leica would allow Krasnogorsky to use its vigorously protected six-bit coding system to apply similar adjustments to Kragnogorsky's lenses.

 

Pete.

 

Pete, you need to take a trip to Russia where you will be regaled with photos of the, often bare chested, President in hunting, shooting and fishing poses. There is even a television series featuring those exploits. His much more demure looking 'predecessor' Dimitry Medvedev, now Prime Minister, is a Leica fan and is often seen with an M or an S. The Zenit M camera is, as many have pointed out, an M240 chassis with a new suit of clothes. The really interesting piece is the 35mm f1 lens. I did mean what I said about 6 bit coding. As a collector I would never add six bit coding to any lens and my Jupiter 3 lens works quite fine without it. Any software fixes given by the six bit code can be added in seconds in Lightroom. I am sure that all will revealed when I am in Wetzlar next week with the LHSA group. 

 

William

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Not sure who is going to buy this, the tech in the M240 is already a generation behind and can be had on the used market for less than the new price of the Zenit.  Yes, one is new and one is secondhand but I'm pretty sure the Leica will hold its value better than the Zenit.

 

They would have sold a boatload had they based it on the M10.  Hell, they would have probably sold a boatload had they based it on the M9.  But the M240?  I don't think so and I own an M240!

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A seasoned dPreview reporter states that Leica will manufacture the camera at Wetzlar. He makes no mention of a limited run of 500. He spoke with company representatives.

https://www.dpreview.com/news/9034303849/photokina-2018-hands-on-with-zenit-m

Some almost fifty years back I worked for Philips making 'DDR vacuum cleaners'. They made a copy of their Dutch offering, small design elements changed and a new logo on the outside but everything the same. These went to the DDR state shops for the elite and would cost 20% more than the EU shop items.

A run of 500 bodies? Times have not changed much?

 

Leica already announced a stop of the production of the M240. Even, if Leica were to 'install' the existing production line in Russia (like the Zeiss was once re-located there) still this would make sense, it could be a reliable partnership, why not?

The CL was a failure because of the low RF magnification (sloppy focus) and probably also a less good viewfinder. This 'new' design should not suffer from such a set-back.

 

I do not see a big problem to leave out the 6 bit stuff all together. There are enough wide lenses that do not need a 6-bit, as proof for instance my M-Rokkor 28. And new semi-retrofocus lens designs should fit the microprism structure well. (The M240 sensor design leans a bit towards adapting R-lenses I once read.) 

I can guess that there might be a sensor volume agreement, with Kaufmann reportedly having (had) a stake in the supplier. 

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We live in the electronic age. Selling on the internal electronics makes good sense if there is a market, especially those which are older because they have a limited product life. Good for Leica.  And if it sells well its even possible for a new M mount to be actually built in Russia might be an option.

 

I'm intrigued by a statement about Firmware. I just wonder if there is simplification here - a reduced software (no 6-bit, less JPEG option - or none - and so on would make the model unique despite it utilising the same internals.

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I don't think anyone saw this one coming. It was well known that Leica had been talking to Zenit but I think most expected a Zenit version of the SL camera. As Andy says a few posts back, this camera appears to be, for all intents and purposes, a "Zenit" special edition by Leica, and at €4-5,000 inc. lens, seems like good value.

 

I presume the motivation behind the camera is to help promote the lens. Without the camera, the lens is just another slightly eccentric Russian lens, not dissimilar to something that Lomography might sell in their shop. With the camera, it all seems more interesting. That said, there is something a bit weird IMO about the existence of this product. Presumably the tie-up with Zenit is for some wider strategic benefit and this M body and lens is only of more symbolic value? Either that or there's a kompromat involved.

Edited by wattsy
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Without an EVF and with the enormous lens covering most of the OVF window and such a shallow depth of field I should imagine that this combination will be almost unusable. I used to use the CV 35/1.2 on my M but it was never ideal and this will be even worse

 

People seem to buy the Leica Noctilux.

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Why would you not just buy an M240 for not much more in price?

 

Mostly for nostalgic reasons. I am Russian, born in the USSR.  I live and work in Russia. My first camera was Zenit 3m. The second camera was FED-5V and since 1974 I have been shooting the rangefinders. I bought my first Leica in 1995-96 and still have several film Ms and one digital Leica M, the M9. 

 

I have been resisting the temptation to upgrade my M9 for several years and the Zenit-M looks nice enough to own. I do not need it, my m9 works well for me and I am happy with it, but I thought Why not and pressed the preorder button. The unique lens makes it a nice limited edition. I understand that it is outdated, but I am happy with my s2-P and it is ancient as well. 

 

Yevgeny

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