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Shall I make the big step?


Simon...

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Simon,

 

I was not able to purchase my first Leica until I was in college and a professor sold me a M4-2 with a 50mm lens for $450 and I loved that camera until I sold it 2 years ago.

 

Before you go selling your current gear to purchase a Leica. I suggest that you consider posting some photos up here and also consider buying an old rangefinder - like an Argus C3. Before I bought my first Leica, I used my grandfathers old Argus rangefinder to decide if I would even want to shoot with a rangefinder.

 

That all said, I still shoot with my Leica's (both film and digital) and I also have a complete digital and film Canon system - for when the rangefinder won't work.

 

Also, as a student learning, I suggest that you purchase a Leica without a light meter inside of it. And get yourself a cheap light meter. You will learn how to read light faster and that will benefit you for the rest of your photographic life. If you can get a good deal on a M4-P I would suggest that you get one. They are built better than the M6's and also better than the M4-2. And while I know this is a Leica forum, Voigtlander makes good cameras and lenses that are compatible with Leica mounts.

 

Happy shooting.

-Aaron

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Hello folks

 

I'm a 16 years old boy from Copenhagen in Denmark. I've been photographing a lot the 3 and a half past years. I've begun mastering the manual techniques, and in my own apenion very well. For the past 6 monthes I've been shooting with a full manual Canon SLR from the '70s I borrowed from my grandmother and I've enjoyed it a lot!

 

So my question goes, I have over the years, that I've been photographing bought some automatic Canon gear including a L-lens. Now I'm thinking very much of selling it and buying a Leica M6, I have tried it a couple of times and every time it just blows my mind it's everything everyone have ever said it should be. I'm hooked. So do you people in here think that it would be a good idea to sell all of my also very loved Canon gear, and buy a M6?

 

In a word- Yes

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Simon,..... as a student learning, I suggest that you purchase a Leica without a light meter inside of it. And get yourself a cheap light meter. You will learn how to read light faster and that will benefit you for the rest of your photographic life....-Aaron

 

Hi Simon,

 

Aaron's advice is very solid and worthy of serious consideration. Yet go for a M2 or M3 and a light meter. It will be less money than a M4* or M6 and you will get more of the older, smooth mechanical precision that gave Leitz its reputation. M3 for a 50mm lens; M2 for a 35mm lens.

 

My 2 pennies, Thomas

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Somebody asked or suggested that I should post some of my photographs. So here is one of one of my good friends. Taken with an old fully manual Canon SLR, and developed in my bathroom :)

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

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...

 

I have a rule that I learned the hard way. Never sell gear to buy gear. Only sell gear you no longer enjoy or will no longer use. You will get very little money out of your existing equipment, something like 1/3 to 1/2 what it will cost to replace it later.

...

 

Eric

 

As Eric says - dont sell a camera you like and enjoy - you will only have to buy it back later in life.

 

If it is the M6 you want, then get it. IF you get anything else, you are simply delaying the point at which you buy it and you will have a period of your life which is "empty".

 

Ravi

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Yes, it's a nice picture with some atmosphere. Rangefinder focusing can be easier in low light than an SLR. Best way to combat dust is with a compressed air cannister.

Let us know what you choose...

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Simon,

 

that is a nice image, it brings me back to my high school photography days - the dust. I used to have a darkroom space that I shared with my father - but it was his workshop, sawdust, etc. once he even walked in on me and turned on the lights while I was loading film on to reels for developing. you would have thought all was ruined, but the photos turned out to be very interesting - they had a solarized look that i have never been able to replicate.

 

but back to your question about cameras. one major thing to consider when i look at this photo of yours is that rangefinders do not focus closer than 0.7meters sometimes you might get a lens that gets you to 0.5meters but in general you need to be a bit of a distance away. this is the main reason that i shoot with canon in addition to leica.

 

what's more, you might want to consider getting a 2 1/4 camera to supplement your canon system before you invest in a leica system.

 

btw, most of the time, you can rewash your film and re dry it and that might get some of the dust off. just don't forget the photo-flo.

 

happy shooting.

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SImon,

 

When I was 19 I bought a used M2 with a Summicron 50mm. It was a perfect choice then, and that camera has been a source of joy and satisfaction ever since. Over the years I added some lenses, a Visoflex, bellows, etc. Very few things in my life have provided me with as much satisfaction. I bought, a little later, an M3 which also is wonderful. But my M2 is - by a significant margin - the best camera I have ever seen or used.

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