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Why Leica?


elmars

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I dont have much interesting story how i connect with leica but i see you being critical with leica despite being a fanboy, i aint sure if i am, but definitely im a purist lol, and demanded leica to be always at their best

may be someday we chat over a cup of coffee, but one thing certain, leica is more than a tool to me 🙂

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Most people consider Leica a very impractical camera and kind of a toy for people with money, but I stick with Leica partially for purely practical reasons. I like to travel and take pictures and I never check in luggage. So, regarding cameras, my choices are pretty limited - it's either Leica or Fuji, and for me, Leica provides better image quality.

I also noticed that despite having other cameras for other purposes (Sony A7R3, Sony A1), I get more keepers with Leica Q/Q2 and now with Leica M11. I print my photos to hang at home, and most of my prints are from Leica.

And, finally, the experience of shooting a Leica camera is pleasant - I don't feel like I'm fighting the camera as it happens with Sony. I always feel in control. 

I am not a professional photographer. I do it for myself and as a way to relax. But I used to be a photojournalist long ago, and I think if I had to do it again, I'd prefer to use Leica for my professional assignments if I had a choice.

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Why Leica is meaningful to me

 

My Grandfather was an architect during WWII.  During that time, my ancestors were displaced by the ravages of the war, and work was impossible to attain.  My grandfather, walked from town to town scratching for any work to feed, shelter and clothe my mother and uncle.  During that time, his only way to make any money, was using his Leica to make pictures of portraits, families, etc.  

Because of Leica, I am most likely alive today.  I will always support Leica with eternal thanks, as an instrument for providing for my family during that time.

Yes, is this a sentimental tip of the hat…..of course.  And as such, I am honored to share this story with a company, by a company, that allowed my family to exist.

 

thank you Leica 
 

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45 minutes ago, Dsauro said:

During that time, his only way to make any money, was using his Leica to make pictures of portraits, families, etc.  

I am currently reading Ulf Richter's book about Oskar Barnack. He mentions that Oskar Barnack did the same thing during WWI, swapping pictures for food etc. 

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Why Leica? Short answer: size and stellar lenses of the M system. Long answer: I started photography in 1986 with a Nikon FG, a Christmas gift from my parents who had no interest in photography and certainly never even heard of Leica in their lives. Over the next ten years, I accumulated a lot of Nikon gear, several F2 camera and many lenses and shot a lot of Kodachrome 64. I sold everything to finance a switch to medium format (Pentax 67II) and Velvia 50 in 1998 because I was mostly interested in landscape photography at that time.

Five years later, I moved from a small town in Germany to London and needed a smaller camera to move around in the city. I bought my first Leica, a 2nd hand silver MP with a silver Tri-Elmar in 2005, because of its size and the reputation of the M lenses. I did not even bother trying an M camera before buying. I just knew it was the right camera for me. I also liked its simplicity including the absence of autofocus, which I never got used to. I was equally skeptical about the benefits of digital technology. I finally bought a Leica CL with M-Adapter L to give it a try. But I missed the rangefinder and the wide angle lenses and eventually bought a 2nd hand silver M10.

I am very happy now with M10 and MP (and the CL dedicated for close-up and macro photography with enlarger lenses). I also developed an interest in Leica's history, became a member of Leica Historica and added two screw mount cameras (II and IIIa syn).

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5 hours ago, Segal said:

Most people consider Leica a very impractical camera and kind of a toy for people with money, but I stick with Leica partially for purely practical reasons. I like to travel and take pictures and I never check in luggage. So, regarding cameras, my choices are pretty limited - it's either Leica or Fuji, and for me, Leica provides better image quality.

I also noticed that despite having other cameras for other purposes (Sony A7R3, Sony A1), I get more keepers with Leica Q/Q2 and now with Leica M11. I print my photos to hang at home, and most of my prints are from Leica.

And, finally, the experience of shooting a Leica camera is pleasant - I don't feel like I'm fighting the camera as it happens with Sony. I always feel in control. 

I am not a professional photographer. I do it for myself and as a way to relax. But I used to be a photojournalist long ago, and I think if I had to do it again, I'd prefer to use Leica for my professional assignments if I had a choice.

In line with what i experienced since i had my first M, other come and go, the M stays

im too comfortable with leica i probably go beyond just simply being a fanboy or militant or whatever ppl name it 😂

Edited by jakontil
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Quote

Why Leica?

 

 
In no particular order -
 
M cameras and lenses are:
Classically beautiful
Unique
Inspiring
Well designed and engineered
Of the highest quality
Enjoyable and relaxing to use
Small, portable and easily carried
Capable of producing phenomenal results (in the right hands)
Light in weight (except for my M-P 240)
Excellent for travel photography
Outstanding for documentary and street photography
Lifelong companions (if you are perceptive enough to not sell/trade them)
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For Me Two main reasons other than the first Professional Camera I shot at the Age of 12 was my Grandpa's M3. At the time I despised it and preferred my disposable Kodak's (of course because I missed focus and exposure). 

First Reason being In the process unification of the Emirates, H.H Sheikh Khalifa (may He rest in Peace) met the current ruler of the Emirate which I was born and raised In. The location chosen was my Grandpa's Café, and the Photo my Family owns and revere was taken using a Leica. The Second Reason (And maybe the most Important) is because I watched Euro Trip at a younger Age. If You are familiar with that Movie just a Heads Up (Pun intended): False Advertisement.

I could not afford One when I started taking Photography seriously. Hence, I bought a beat-up  X-Pro and used an M-Mount Voigtlander Lens (I still use It every once in a while and I Love It) . The first Thing I had purchased once I built Myself up was a 262MD and a 90mm Elmarit In Brass. I hate Myself for trading in my 262MD for an M10D (Although it is way better), and the Person who got it does not want to sell it back (I am patient, no One lives forever). Still own my Elmarit and It is the only 90mm Lens I use it needs calibration though (but first Leica please give me back my 28 lux Its been 3 Months for a loose focusing Ring. I dread sending Anything to Germany but that's a whole other Thread though). 

Santos.  

Edited by Santos
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I am a fanboy and wildly enjoy telling EVERYONE I use a Leica M. The look on their faces is priceless - a mixture of wonder, respect, awe and that "what an idiot" passive aggresive smile when they realize that you have to focus manually via a finder where you do not even see the effect of your lens' focal length and have to do so by putting two small window patches together. There is no shame in showing folks what you love. The bigger their 2.8 zoom, the more I enjoy sharing my Leica love.

My first Leica was a IIIc my dad gave me when I was 11. I just wish I hadn't sold it to finance a SLR. All I have left of it is this photo. My only *real* regret in Leitz Universe.

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Mainly for the lenses but there's no question a Leica M is an iconic camera for many photographers.   

I bought my first new film Leica in 2006, a Leica MP which has travelled widely with me.   I've used it to create many memories of places I've visited and people I've met along the way.  Time and past adventures continually add to the pleasure of using it.

My first digital M is an M10-R which I bought in November '21.  I had little interest in all previous digital M's for various reasons until the M10-R, which I think  makes a seamless and convenient digital alternative to my MP.   The two cameras are operationally and visually similar which is a significant reason I chose the M10-R over the M11, which does not appeal to me. 

In the time I've had my M10-R, it has been with me on two extended journeys; the whole of February '22 cycle touring and backpacking in Sri Lanka and July/August '22 cycle touring and camping through National Parks in Namibia.  It's proving to be a reliable and very capable camera for travel and I'm pleased with the output, but it is a digital camera with a finite lifespan that cannot rival my MP.  The main advantage of my M10-R for travel is that I have no concerns about my films being damaged by security scanners.

We have more travel plans arranged for 2023/24; trekking in Nepal, backpacking in India and cycle touring Botswana, Eswatini & South Africa and the M10-R will be coming too. 

You buy and use a Leica M with your heart, not your head and that's where the bond begins.

 

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I bought my first Leica, a M2 with Summicron 50 in the 1970's, replacing my Nikon SP.  To me, it was just a tool, but a nicer tool than my Contax and Nikon RF cameras.  Later I bought a few more Leica bodies.  Then I gobbled up an M8.2 despite what I read about it, and after thinking about it forever, an M10 right before Covid put an end to most of my activities.

To me, it's just a tool, nothing "special".  I don't get wrapped up in all the hype that I'm constantly reading.  Used properly, it helps me do what I want to do, but if I mess up, so does the camera.  My Nikons were better for sports photography, but the Leica seems to let me express myself and my feelings better.  I've just sold my two Nikon D750 DSLR cameras, and until I get back home I'm using my Fuji X100f.  Once I'm back in the USA, I intend to use the M10 as my daily camera, for whatever it is I want to do.

I've been watching all the Red Dot Forum programs, gaining lots of useful information I never knew before.  My goal is to use the M10 now, just as how I used the M2 a lifetime ago, thinking what I wanted, and (maybe struggling) to get the camera to do what I want.  Those forum shows have a goldmine of useful information.  I might even visit their store in Miami.....

(I've also got my M3 perfectly restored by DAG Cameras, and Don made it like new - I also want to start shooting that camera again, if I can remember what's what with film.....)

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Because they're perfectly weighted and very simple, ie just 2 choices for focusing being through either the rangefinder patch or hyperfocal calculation, then ISO, shutter speed, aperture, that's it, hardly any other bells and whistles.  What this means is responsibility is put on you and not the camera for image output.  This is obvious of course, but I only mention this because the upside for me is that said responsibility often results in better images than I could get with, say, an autofocus camera.  A bad picture is down to me and no one else, but a good picture, well that's also all down to me with little or no 'assistance from the camera' and for that, the sense of achievement is often very pleasing.

Edited by Ray Vonn
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After being a Canon user for many years (5D MIV, 1DX MII,EOSR, EOSR5) I personally got tired of all my work really looking like the masses. There's obviously editing techniques that one can apply to stand out but in the end it's a computer graphics picture. I  brought a Q2 to see what the Leica look was all about.  After uses it for a few weeks and having people tell my pictures look so pure I was convinced.  Sold the majority of my Canon gear and got the M11 as well. Went to a model shoot to really see if I made the right choice and needless to say I have. The editing of the files were so easy. Right out of camera for both Q2 and M11 was amazing.  The models were shocked that I returned the work so fast and was really pleased with the results.  Currently I'm using Voigtlander lenses but will eventually get all Leica glass. Am I a fan boy, yes.  In the end the camera is the tool. I just choose the tool that makes me stand out just a bit more.

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