All Plastic Leica...

[flakes]

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Does Leica make an all plastic camera?

The reason I ask is that there are so many metal detectors that block access to photographable events.  I'm not talking about concerts.  I am talking about legitimate photojournalism events.  For example the detention camps on the border.  Government events in more authoritarian nations. That kind of thing.

Leica used to have a reputation of being on the forefront of photojournalism, so I was just wondering if it produced a kind of camera that would be able to go to get images in places other cameras cannot.

[jaapv]

No, rather the opposite. Leicas are more like all-metal. Although, you could look at a Leica Sofort.  

[Gobert]

Luckily not

[wattsy]

I don't think there are any 100% plastic cameras – as far as I know, there has to be some metal content (even if it is just the wiring/circuits) to make a camera work. I suppose an all-plastic, manually wound 120 (or 35mm using a plastic film canister) film camera might be a possibility might do the job. Some kind of Holga with all the metal parts inside replaced by plastic or ceramic might be the answer.

[sleepyhead]

I remember reading a sci-fi novel decades ago, I think it was Neuromancer by William Gibson, and one of the main characters carried glass knives as weapons in order to evade metal detectors. 

So I think your all plastic camera can probably at least have glass lens elements.

🙂

[wattsy]

1 hour ago, sleepyhead said:

I remember reading a sci-fi novel decades ago, I think it was Neuromancer by William Gibson, and one of the main characters carried glass knives as weapons in order to evade metal detectors. 

So I think your all plastic camera can probably at least have glass lens elements.

🙂

There was a film with Clint Eastwood (and I think John Malkovich) where the villain had a ceramic gun that enabled him to evade metal detectors. I've no idea if the engineering/science behind that idea is complete nonsense or mostly nonsense.

Edited July 4, 2019 by wattsy

[M9reno]

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For better or worse, the kind of servants of the state charged with monitoring photography tend to be utterly clueless about film equipment.

Just to give you an example:  a few weeks ago I was standing on a mountain top in a country where military installations are absolutely not to be photographed.  I had a IIIg and 21 Super Angulon with me.  The servant of the state standing dutifully by my side pointed to bases, antennas, etc. at three cardinal points and warned me that photography in any of those directions was strictly prohibited.

At the same time he was insistent, almost in a show of hospitality, that I photograph in all directions *in between* those cardinal points.

Of course with a 21mm lens, it made little difference.  I went ahead, pointed my camera in the directions ordered, and took my landscape photographs.

A similar situation exists in museums etc where "professional photography" is prohibited.  I've never encountered a situation where a Leica is considered "professional," not even the M-P versions.

Even better, make a habit of using any Leica film camera and, to most of the hoi polloi, you are using some kind of outdated toy.

Edited July 4, 2019 by M9reno

[frame-it]

12 minutes ago, wattsy said:

There was a film with Clint Eastwood (and I think John Malkovich) where the villain had a ceramic gun that enabled him to evade metal detectors. I've no idea if the engineering/science behind that idea is complete nonsense or mostly nonsense.

in the line of fire

http://www.imfdb.org/wiki/In_the_Line_of_Fire

 

 

[a.noctilux]

We used two Leica Mini [ mini review here (not me) ]

when motorbike travelling my wife used to have one in her pocket, while other Leica gear was carried in less easy acces.

Those Leica Mini could be as "plastic/light" as possible even delivered quite good/decent images.