enty Posted August 3, 2009 Share #1 Posted August 3, 2009 Advertisement (gone after registration) I pre-ordered Brian Bower's Digital Leica Book from Amazon UK back in March. I have received it today, so it is now shipping. Just in case anyone is interested. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted August 3, 2009 Posted August 3, 2009 Hi enty, Take a look here Brian Bower LEICA M8/8.2 book - now shipping in UK. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
jpattison Posted August 3, 2009 Share #2 Posted August 3, 2009 What do you think of it? John Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
enty Posted August 3, 2009 Author Share #3 Posted August 3, 2009 It looks OK at first glance, especially for someone like me who is new to Leica. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
enty Posted August 3, 2009 Author Share #4 Posted August 3, 2009 It looks OK at first glance, especially for someone like me who is new to Leica. I'll re-phrase that comment, it is excellent actually Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bill Posted August 3, 2009 Share #5 Posted August 3, 2009 Mr. Bower's book came in for a lot of stick here when it first came out. I, among others, pointed out that experienced M8x users were not the target audience. I'm pleased to see that it is proving valuable to new users. Brian's books (I haven't seen the latest) tend to be clear and well-illustrated, but they are not for expert users looking for a comprehensive vade mecum. Regards, Bill Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
adli Posted August 3, 2009 Share #6 Posted August 3, 2009 Mr. Bower's book came in for a lot of stick here when it first came out. I, among others, pointed out that experienced M8x users were not the target audience. I'm pleased to see that it is proving valuable to new users. Brian's books (I haven't seen the latest) tend to be clear and well-illustrated, but they are not for expert users looking for a comprehensive vade mecum. Regards, Bill I would say that Bower's book is a nice add on to Gunter Osterlohs "Leica M: Advanced Photo School". It covers the new equipment which is not covered by Osterloh, but it is in no way as complete as Osterlohs book. I would recoment reading Osterlohs book before Bower's. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
enty Posted August 3, 2009 Author Share #7 Posted August 3, 2009 Advertisement (gone after registration) Mr. Bower's book came in for a lot of stick here when it first came out. I, among others, pointed out that experienced M8x users were not the target audience. I'm pleased to see that it is proving valuable to new users. Brian's books (I haven't seen the latest) tend to be clear and well-illustrated, but they are not for expert users looking for a comprehensive vade mecum. Regards, Bill I think that is very fair comment - and it suits me as a novice Leica user. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BigSplash Posted August 3, 2009 Share #8 Posted August 3, 2009 I think that is very fair comment - and it suits me as a novice Leica user. Personally I think it is useful as a Leica catalogue of what is available new from Leica and how old items such as Visoflex can be used with it. There are obviously some great photos in it. I think it is lacking in these respects: 1 It does not excite the reader and identify what is so different about Leica M cameras. There is very little passion 2 There is no descriptions about composure, framing ( describing the various views on the viewfinder brightline frames) and seeing what other lenses could give in a particular scene. 3 It is a very factual, specification driven document that identifies the current lens offering etc but does not show and encourage the user to exploit these lenses as for example the older Leica and Leicaflex book ( Josef Makovec) does. 4 In my view it is what the Leica manual that came with the camera should have been, if the viewfinder chapter was improved. 5 For someone who knows about the M system and understand a little about digital photography it is very weak at a technical or practical level....Auto White balance, low light photography, high ISO settings, use of RAW and JPEG, colour balance setting and sensor cleaning are not covered at a level that I would have expected. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gfspencer Posted August 3, 2009 Share #9 Posted August 3, 2009 When I bought the book I wanted something that would give me some tips on using my M8. I was looking for something like David Busch would write for a Canon 50D. Bower's book was nothing like that. It was a good book to show off Leica lenses but 95% of the book could have been written before the M8/M8.2 ever came out. I looked at it several times and stuck it on the bookshelf. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bill Posted August 3, 2009 Share #10 Posted August 3, 2009 Personally I think... yada yada yada ...not covered at a level that I would have expected. You. Are. Not. The. Target. Audience. Regards, Bill Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
boilerdoc Posted August 3, 2009 Share #11 Posted August 3, 2009 Beautifully illustrated and a great description of the camera and hardware. If you want coverage of how to use the camera/software it won't help you. I bought it and quickly read through it. The tables about the lenses in the back were worth the reasonable price.... Steve Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
fursan Posted August 3, 2009 Share #12 Posted August 3, 2009 So could you or others let us know which book addresses the deficiencies yo mention. Thanks. Personally I think it is useful as a Leica catalogue of what is available new from Leica and how old items such as Visoflex can be used with it. There are obviously some great photos in it. I think it is lacking in these respects: 1 It does not excite the reader and identify what is so different about Leica M cameras. There is very little passion 2 There is no descriptions about composure, framing ( describing the various views on the viewfinder brightline frames) and seeing what other lenses could give in a particular scene. 3 It is a very factual, specification driven document that identifies the current lens offering etc but does not show and encourage the user to exploit these lenses as for example the older Leica and Leicaflex book ( Josef Makovec) does. 4 In my view it is what the Leica manual that came with the camera should have been, if the viewfinder chapter was improved. 5 For someone who knows about the M system and understand a little about digital photography it is very weak at a technical or practical level....Auto White balance, low light photography, high ISO settings, use of RAW and JPEG, colour balance setting and sensor cleaning are not covered at a level that I would have expected. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
efftee Posted August 3, 2009 Share #13 Posted August 3, 2009 I am surprised it took so long for you to get the book in the UK; it's been available most everywhere else for quite a while now. I personally think that some reviews and criticism had been unfair -- it is not meant to be the missing manual. Granted that most of the information could be found for free online and other marketing paraphernalia, the time and effort it saves you to scour the depths of the Internet and visits to Leica stores to amass this information, is well worth its price of ownership. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gfspencer Posted August 3, 2009 Share #14 Posted August 3, 2009 You. Are. Not. The. Target. Audience. Regards, Bill Bill, I thought I was in the target audience. I'm familiar with Leica in that I've had an M6TTL since they first came out but I wanted to know something more about my new M8. So Amazon comes along and tells me that this book is "the definitive guide to using the magnificent Leica M8 digital camera". IT IS NOT! It is a nice book with some nice photos taken with different Leica lenses. But those photos could have been taken with any Leica . . . even my M6. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BigSplash Posted August 4, 2009 Share #15 Posted August 4, 2009 So could you or others let us know which book addresses the deficiencies yo mention. Thanks. The Leica and the Leicaflex....by Josef Makovec 1962 Fountain Press Ltd. This is a superb book that has passion for the Leica, and addresses photo composition, viewfinder selection .and so on. It is available secondhand on ebay and Amazon.. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marty Posted August 4, 2009 Share #16 Posted August 4, 2009 A welcome suggestion but this, as well as other film books, will have its own deficiencies for M8 shooters. Also some topics like composition, exposure, colour management etc., are covered more satisfyingly in their own books. I do feel that we are missing a book that covers Leica film and digital, or perhaps I have missed it. I don't think the M8 in itself warrants a whole book of its own unless perhaps it covers all of the internals as well. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ashwinrao1 Posted August 4, 2009 Share #17 Posted August 4, 2009 Just in time for the M9 Sorry, I just ....had.....to..... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpattison Posted August 5, 2009 Share #18 Posted August 5, 2009 There are some basic typo errors, such as saying the power switch is under the shutter speed dial. Also he recommends shooting sRGB and not adobeRGB (which is better) saying this is only for professional image processing using colour calibrated working environments! This show the target audience he was aiming at. IE those who will be using S mode on an M8.2 John Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
photogen Posted August 5, 2009 Share #19 Posted August 5, 2009 I was so excited when I saw this book advertised back in the early part of the year, just as I had purchased an M8.2. The order finally arrived yesterday. What a disappointment, I found it unbelievably superficial. you could glean as much, or probably more information from reading Leica adverts. Some of you clever guys out that there that post such useful information should get together and write a book. Regards Jo Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wda Posted August 5, 2009 Share #20 Posted August 5, 2009 I am a long-time Leica M-user going back to my M3 etc in the 1960s. I have also enjoyed the priceless contributions made by knowledgeable members of this forum and the Leica Fellowship in the UK. So, in total, by the time Brian Bower's book arrived I had a reasonable level of control and understanding of my M8. Nonetheless, when my copy arrived yesterday I found a big chunk of my day was spent reading selectively and being inspired by his extremely fine pictures. Did I learn anything new? I did pick up a few thoughts on equipment selection and a first analysis of some of the illustrative photographs also inspired me to try a fresh approach to some subjects. There were a few typos which caused temporary confusion such as the caption on Page 15 bottom left which shows an old Summaron lens but is described as a Summicron. But gremlins do creep in to wreak local havoc. I cannot explain why the graphic designer removed a key component from the M8 shown on the front cover and elsewhere. Where has the viewfinder selection lever gone? Pages 128-129 were really useful to me because I hadn't seriously thought of using my old BOOWU-M copy legs and Summicron lens together with my M8 for close-up photography. I thought the accompanying illustration of the Leica M watch was stunningly good! Once I have completed my first reading, I am sure I will find other pearls of wisdom. I suppose my major constructive criticism would be this: if I had been writing the book I think I might have allocated at least a long chapter on unifying Leica M rangefinder photography with digital media capture. I know that particular twinning is not unique to Leica, but there is widespread belief that the way the M8 captures digital data is different and generally better than with other cameras. Some discussion of the alternative ways to exploit and capitalize on this phenomenon would be widely appreciated and strengthen the appeal of the book. I would retain the useful end reference material, but possibly sacrifice some of the early historical pages to make space for my suggested additional material. In summary, I think that Brian Bower's book is a welcome contribution and a fine stimulus to user enjoyment of the Leica M8. I think it is an attractive package more than worth the price equivalent of a few photographic magazines. Like my other Leica books, I am sure I will often take it off my shelf for further indulgence when there is no time, opportunity or light for actual Leica photography. Finally, I really cannot understand the American publisher's dalliance in delaying publication in the United Kingdom by so many months after it was published in the USA. Do Lark Books not understand how quickly digital books become dated? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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