New Battery? New Camera?

[derleicaman]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

Always working on something, but my creations are for the LHSA. Now they are so backed up from Covid and new products, so nothing on the horizon.

[Advertisement]

The Leica Q3 is available for pre-order at B&H Photo Video and Adorama

[Jeff S]

On 6/8/2021 at 1:51 AM, Steven said:

Sometimes, before I go to sleep, I fantasize about selling every gear I own to fund an MP3, make it my only camera body and keep one lens only, and live happily ever after. 

Seems like the worst nightmare for the reigning forum GAS champion. At a minimum, you’d want five redundant copies... and then you’d have to exit LUF, stop searching the net and never again enter a camera store. 😳

Jeff

[Jeff S]

23 minutes ago, Steven said:

Correction: Expressive/outspoken GAS champion. There are some forum members/heroes whom I want to be like when I grow up, as far as GAS is concerned. They just dont speak outlaid. Different level. 

I wrote reigning forum GAS champion.  Others  have far more Leica gear (as enumerated in some older threads), but this title goes to the person who entertains almost daily here with shifting lust for the holy grail gear of the moment, which can apparently arise based on a couple of gushing posts from other forum users. And, as typical of past champions, the contrarian self-description of minimalist gear tastes/goals fuels the entertainment.  Past forum champions also tend to be new to the Leica experience.

Jeff

[roma]

It’s the exact opposite of what Leica executives and experienced users have been preaching for generations now. Stick to one camera and one lens if you want to be any good with an M. 

[M11 for me]

I wonder what body and what lens that would be. 

I might take a Q2 for that reason. With the new "Super Resolution" function od Adobe I would not hesitate anymore to use the Q2 even with 75mm crop (equivalent angle of view). 

But on the other hand you mean of course ONE LENS. that is then NOT a Q2 I presume.

[a.noctilux]

@Steven very nice description of owning is different than using.

Having choices (good/right choices) can be a long, very long learning process.

 

Since decades, that "searching for right tools" can take some times, and even some pleasures to do that.

In my view, it's a lonely quest and would never be duplicated anyway.

[mmradman]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

3 hours ago, Steven said:

 

at the end of the month I’m leaving on a trip for 6 weeks. I’m going with one body + one lens. That’s it. 

Six weeks away and no camera gear backup???  Crazy!!!

What happens when child spills fruit juice or some other beverage over the lens/camera, happened before, or it falls on the floor and bends beyond use, use iPhone as backup camera?

[mmradman]

52 minutes ago, a.noctilux said:

@Steven very nice description of owning is different than using.

Having choices (good/right choices) can be a long, very long learning process.

 

Since decades, that "searching for right tools" can take some times, and even some pleasures to do that.

In my view, it's a lonely quest and would never be duplicated anyway.

As a more affordable option to choosing right tool, it is kind of GAS,  I have been doubling and trebling lately on my hammers and screwdrivers.  

I learned  that standard "Philps" cross-head screws are better unfastened with JIS [Japanese Industrial Standard] screwdrivers.

[a.noctilux]

GAS is good for industry and running economic 😇.

...

A joke of course.

[LBJ2]

1 hour ago, Steven said:

It depends on my trip. When I am travelling, I usually have a vision of what I want my photos to be..... I have a couple trips planned in the next months: 

- A romantic weekend with the wife only in Rome: Leica MP + 8 elements and a few rolls of Portra. It will be the perfect kit, to not be glued on the camera the whole time, and get some film photos that I know in advance my wife (and me) will love. 

- One month in Miami with my family this summer: I'll bring my M10R, it doesn't get in the way, I'll be out for long hours, day and night, and won't have to worry about which film to bring. For lens, I'll bring the one that can do it all: the pre asph 35 lux. Vintage look wide open, modern when stopped down, small, perfect FL, perfect for day and night... Easy.... 

- At the end of the year, I am travelling to Burma with the sole purpose of taking photos and discovering a new place: SL2-S + 28 Lux. Can do it all. Bright days with no filter, extreme low light, photos, videos, etc... Nothing I can't do with that kit. 

I reached a point where I enjoy having different things to play with, but I naturally know what to take with me when I leave the house, without ever regretting what I did not bring. By the way, in 15 years of photography, I have NEVER brought out more than one lens with me on a photo walk, and I will probably NEVER do it. 

You wrote, "I'll bring my M10R, it doesn't get in the way, "  Did you buy the M10-R again? Sorry I haven't been keeping up. If so why? Last I remember you didn't seem very happy with the M10-R and 40MPs. 

[LBJ2]

30 minutes ago, Steven said:

Yes, I bought it again, for the second time this year, and not the last time this year, if you know what I mean 🤪🤔?!!

I bought it again because I fell in love with a lens, the Summilux 35 Pre Asph V1. It's a 41mm filter thread and I did not find, for a long time, any ND filters for it. I like to shoot this lens wide open in bright day light, which is not possible with the M10P. It is possible on the M10R, as the base ISO is at 100 instead of 200, and there is a 2/3 stop of latitude with highlight recovery. This is the only reason why I re upgraded, not for the pixels. 

The first time I bought it, I was upset at the motion blur. It was a new camera and I kept zooming in to see the new level of resolution ! To fix this, I just stopped zooming in. The motion blur is here, I just don't look at it. 

I am now very happy with the M10R. 

Okay ! Happy ending then. Life is indeed wonderful when we look at the whole picture. 

[derleicaman]

Putting together a kit for a particular trip is always part of the fun. When we used to travel with the kids when they were little, I had a very different kit than I do nowadays. Sometimes, this is dictated by if I am reviewing a lens for a Viewfinder article for instance. Then that lens has to be taken into account.

My most useful and versatile kit always includes the WATE, don't leave home without it! I have the MATE as well, but don't always take it. For years, my 35/1.4 ASPH was my go to, lately I am enamoured of my 35/1.4 pre-ASPH or 35/2v4. I always take my 28/2.8 ASPH. Then for a 50, I will have either the CV 50/1.2 Nokton or my 50/1.4 Summilux ASPH BC. Some times I will have the 75 Summarit, but usually a 50 is more than enough. For me, this kit covers pretty much anything I would encounter for a weekend or a once in a lifetime trip like our Med Cruise a few years ago. I know a lot of you will say, too much gear! Well, that's why I love the Leica system, small and relatively light with very high performance. It all fits into a mid-size FOGG bag or a Brady Small Ariel Trout.

As I said, half the fun is decinding on what kit to take. As a life-long user/collector I sometimes take along a wild card from the collection, such as an original Thambar or Summarex! That's pretty rare and does weigh me down, but sometimes you can't resist! YMMV

[Aperture 2]

Steven, you said it is a M10 that is coming.

And we know that this new M10 needs a new battery type.

=> It means that the power consumption is higher.

=> it could be linked  to with:

- the viewfinder (hybrid optical and EVF)

Or/and

- the rangefinder (replacement of the complex mechanical one by an electronic system)

The limited edition could be like the first introduction of the LED-frames...

The name could thus be:

- M10 HVF (for hybrid view finder)

- M10 ERF (for electronic rangefinder)

The body can be in Ti or Milled Al or something like that...

Just guessing

 

[LBJ2]

On 6/10/2021 at 3:27 AM, Steven said:

I think both ways are valid. 

Stick to one camera and one lens: become the master of your gear to enable you to remove it from your creation process… you become one with your camera (been there, done that) 

Explore the infinity of tools at your disposal: open the opportunity of endless creative avenues for yourself (discovering Leica has enabled me to do this). 
 

i dont think there is one way that is right and one that is wrong. Both work, at different moments of ones life. It’s ok to be curious and experiment. Executives, experience users and dinausors don’t always know it all. Sometimes, being curious is necessary for progress. 
oh, and please don’t give me the speech of Van Gogh and Monet didn’t care about which brush they used bla bla bla. Not only they cared, nor they would have been able to accomplish their visions if they hadn’t chosen the right tools. They just didn’t have a forum to discuss it publicly. 
 

as far as I’m concerned, I mix both ways. I like to buy lenses and collect them. It’s fun. But I use all of them. And if I leave on a trip on a photo walk, I’ll always only take ONE lens. The one I master the most (at the moment). I’m not slowed down by gear, but I still like to explore new stuf. 
 

at the end of the month I’m leaving on a trip for 6 weeks. I’m going with one body + one lens. That’s it. 

One camera one lens. Very wise advice offered and practiced by more than a few notables over the decades. This approach can not only help fine-tune the art/skill of photography particularly when first starting out and as long as one chooses the right focal length, but it also insures one can afford the other basic necessities in life regardless of skill level, at the same time 😉 Starving artists take note! 

OTOH, I would be miserable with just one focal length and there are just so many deliverables you can put together at one focal length no matter how much resolution these new sensors allow for cropping multiple compositions in one frame. The right tool for the job, does not mean one tool for all jobs. 

I will say however, when I am out for fun its rare that I bother to change a lens even though I always bring along two lenses. 

[LBJ2]

On 6/8/2021 at 1:12 PM, derleicaman said:

It certainly has become unobtanium. I am amazed at the pricing on certain Leica things these days. Unfortunately, the price just keeps going higher.

Thank you for complementing my "team", which would be me, myself and I! 🙂 I work with the folks at Leica and dream these things up. Then I work with them to get it done and it becomes a reality. It is not an easy process. The Black paint camera took 4 years to happen, with Leica initially not being very cooperative. The Hammertone took about 2 years. The most difficult thing to get right was the Hammertone finish, of course. The MP3 was actually the easiest one of the bunch. By that time, Leica was in somewhat desperate straights and in need of a revenue generator. I took advantage of this and really pushed them on this one to get everything I wanted. This one only took about a year. As noted, the elephant ear lugs were the most difficult thing for them to do on it. We also looked at a meterless, more pure version, but I figured if people were going to use the camera they would appreciate the meter. I also got pushback on the lens. The 50/1.4 ASPH was fairly new at the time, and they didn't want to divert production for a special model. Somehow, I convinced them it would be in their best interest to do it. Now it is a "regular" limited edition model.

For the most recent special edition for the LHSA, initially it was going to be a Monochrom MD 262, but the advent of the M10 killed it off. Se we went ahead with the 50/2 APO Retro design which was intended to be in the kit. Ironically, I was told at the beginning of that project that we could not do the Retro 50/1.4 ASPH. I laughed and said that was very interesting. They asked why I was laughing. I said, because I was the one that came up with that lens and you're telling me we can't do it. Good thing they were willing to do the 50/2 APO, otherwise it would have killed off the whole project if we had just gone with the Monochrom.

So with all of these "specials", I pushed for something unique and different, not just engraving. Some of those things became "normal" for future Leica products, such as the black paint finish. When I requested it, it was a lost art, and in the end they hired it out to a firm in Austria. Also, the "Black Dot" was my requirement for this camera too. Retro version of the 35/2 Summicron ASPH done special for the Hammertone. As noted, the special features and lens for the MP3, and now the 50/2 APO Retro lens.

You wrote "I pushed for something unique and different, not just engraving"

This is a very interesting story. Thanks for posting. I don't envy your position having to convince engineers and product managers to design something outside of their original plans, but apparently you figured it out and probably have many more tales of what it took/takes to achieve even one success against such a force of nature. Bravo to you and apparently your near miraculous power of persuasion to not only change an engineers mind, but a whole company of engineers! 

[derleicaman]

34 minutes ago, LBJ2 said:

You wrote "I pushed for something unique and different, not just engraving"

This is a very interesting story. Thanks for posting. I don't envy your position having to convince engineers and product managers to design something outside of their original plans, but apparently you figured it out and probably have many more tales of what it took/takes to achieve even one success against such a force of nature. Bravo to you and apparently your near miraculous power of persuasion to not only change an engineers mind, but a whole company of engineers! 

Thanks so much for your comments! FYI, I just did a Instagram interview with Brad Husick on the International Leica Society's (LHSA) site on Wednesday. If you are on Instagram, you can see it

[setuporg]

On 5/29/2021 at 7:44 AM, pedaes said:

Leica is expensive - end of discussion

As Robbie Williams said, 

Party like a Russian -- end of discussion!

 

[setuporg]

On 6/10/2021 at 12:27 AM, Steven said:

Stick to one camera and one lens

Last time I checked, an M takes only one lens (it's not a stereo camera).  At a time.

[Advertisement]

Hallo,

Look here: Leica M