BerndReini Posted August 25, 2009 Share #1 Posted August 25, 2009 Advertisement (gone after registration) I own an M8, an MP, and I recently bought a silver M7 with a .58 finder and a motor drive. The camera is in like new condition, I've shot less than 10 rolls of film with it. I feel like with the M9 around the corner, I have to trim the fat, and I feel like that fat might be the M7 because the M8 will remain my main camera until I have the M9 in my hands and know it works the way it should. My M7 is beautiful and was not easy to find, but a Leica shouldn't be sitting on the shelf, what should I do? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted August 25, 2009 Posted August 25, 2009 Hi BerndReini, Take a look here Should I sell my M7?. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
noah_addis Posted August 25, 2009 Share #2 Posted August 25, 2009 Only you can decide...though it is a shame to have a Leica sitting around not being used. I'm facing the same decision myself. I have four film cameras (Two M6ttl, two MP (one of them a .85). And I don't use them. I'm not doing anything until I know what's coming. Depending on what the M9 is and how much it costs, maybe I'll just go back to shooting film. But if the M9 is anything close to what's being discussed, I'll likely sell the MP bodies. The M6s are not worth as much and are my first leicas so I'd be more likely to keep them. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_tribble Posted August 25, 2009 Share #3 Posted August 25, 2009 I sold one M6 TTL a couple of years ago, the M7 a month ago. I've kept one M6 TTL, but mainly as a sort of atavistic security blanket - I've not shot with film in 5 years. I'd tend to sell the M7 and either get an MP or an earlier M6 if and when I needed one. Your decision though! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BerndReini Posted August 25, 2009 Author Share #4 Posted August 25, 2009 Chris, I already own an MP, and will definitely hang on to it. The MP was my first Leica, and what a beautiful camera it is. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Sprow Posted August 25, 2009 Share #5 Posted August 25, 2009 I use my M7 very frequently (usually with Ektar 100) and find the prints very impressive indeed. Film slows me down a bit and the results show the effort. I use my M8.2 more than the M7, however. I will use the M7 as my "full frame" camera for at least a year after the rumored introduction of an M9 since I usually let Leica products "evolve" for a while to sort things out before jumping in. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kemal_mumcu Posted August 25, 2009 Share #6 Posted August 25, 2009 Don't sell unless you are not using it. Usage will become clearer in the next months if and when the M9 comes out. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BerndReini Posted August 25, 2009 Author Share #7 Posted August 25, 2009 Advertisement (gone after registration) Frank, I use the same film in my M7. Last week, I got a drumscan from an Ektar negative done at 300mb, which as I'm told is the resolution limit of 35mm film. The results were very telling. Compared to an M8 file at ISO320, upresed to the same size (24x16), the drumscan showed less detail and more grain than the M8 file. I am a big fan of film, and have spoken for Ektar in many threads, but I am now convinced that the M9 will kill 35mm for me. The main reason for me to go back to digital is this however: I shoot in the street, and things happen incredibly fast. I have caught myself thinking about whether a shot is worth taking with the M7, and within fractions of a second, the shot was gone. In these instances I knew that i would have taken the exposure with the M8. I really cannot afford this kind of hesitation in my style of photography. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BerndReini Posted August 25, 2009 Author Share #8 Posted August 25, 2009 Wise words Kemal. Thank you. This is why I am not selling the M8 either. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dcuthbert Posted August 25, 2009 Share #9 Posted August 25, 2009 I get pretty annoyed with myself that I don't use my M6 as much anymore. hopefully getting this 24 lux will change that, nothing can beat a roll of ilford or tri-x run through one Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Henry Posted August 25, 2009 Share #10 Posted August 25, 2009 Hi Bernd, My Leica dealer has said to me today (08/25) that there will no M9 ! In your place i will keep M7 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BerndReini Posted August 25, 2009 Author Share #11 Posted August 25, 2009 Your Leica dealer is wrong! Mark my words. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sdai Posted August 25, 2009 Share #12 Posted August 25, 2009 Like some have pointed out already, I suggest you to wait till the M9 announcement in order to make a better judgment. Whatever the M9 will be, it probably have little (if not none at all) effect on the resale value of a M7. In my own case, I'm certainly keeping mine (forever) because it's an a-la-carte built to my own like. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
scaryink Posted August 25, 2009 Share #13 Posted August 25, 2009 The M7 is still my favorite M. The little battery lasts forever and it has just the right automation for me. I also have an M4-p which is essentially an MP. Its great but I use the M7 more. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jplomley Posted August 25, 2009 Share #14 Posted August 25, 2009 Even if an M9 were announced tomorrow, there is still a place for B&W film as part of a street photographers arsenal. Since the automation in the M7 most closely parallels that of a digital M, my inclination would be to sell the MP and keep the M7. Curious if your MP is also a 0.58 VF and if this critical for your shooting success? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BerndReini Posted August 25, 2009 Author Share #15 Posted August 25, 2009 Jeff, please take a look at my website. I shoot color exclusively for my street photography. I do some portraiture in black and white but with larger formats. I shoot with my left eye, mostly using 35mm lenses, which is why I got the .58 finder. The M7 is a great camera for how I shoot, I just feel like it will be the one most likely to be replaced by the M9. That is of course unless the m9 takes a different lens mount. In that case, I will sell all my Leica gear. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
earleygallery Posted August 25, 2009 Share #16 Posted August 25, 2009 Frank, I use the same film in my M7. Last week, I got a drumscan from an Ektar negative done at 300mb, which as I'm told is the resolution limit of 35mm film. The results were very telling. Compared to an M8 file at ISO320, upresed to the same size (24x16), the drumscan showed less detail and more grain than the M8 file. I am a big fan of film, and have spoken for Ektar in many threads, but I am now convinced that the M9 will kill 35mm for me. The main reason for me to go back to digital is this however: I shoot in the street, and things happen incredibly fast. I have caught myself thinking about whether a shot is worth taking with the M7, and within fractions of a second, the shot was gone. In these instances I knew that i would have taken the exposure with the M8. I really cannot afford this kind of hesitation in my style of photography. Sounds like you have already made your decision? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jplomley Posted August 25, 2009 Share #17 Posted August 25, 2009 Was that drum scan oil mounted and was the negative's image content high frequency detail? Have you tried drum scanning a transparency for comparison? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Sprow Posted August 25, 2009 Share #18 Posted August 25, 2009 Bernd .......interesting. I have my drum scans made by BWC here in Dallas and the perceived resolution / sharpness from Ektar 100 easily exceeds that from my M8 files. This shows up when they make 13"x20" 's from each. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jplomley Posted August 25, 2009 Share #19 Posted August 25, 2009 and the perceived resolution / sharpness from Ektar 100 easily exceeds that from my M8 files That has been my observation as well, albeit with chrome film. hence the reason I asked if it was oil mounted. With a PMT detector such as that used on a drum scanner, in combination with an oil mount, there should be very little noise at all from a 100 speed film. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff S Posted August 25, 2009 Share #20 Posted August 25, 2009 The main reason for me to go back to digital is this however: I shoot in the street, and things happen incredibly fast. I have caught myself thinking about whether a shot is worth taking with the M7, and within fractions of a second, the shot was gone. In these instances I knew that i would have taken the exposure with the M8. Why the hesitation with the M7?...because you're afraid to "waste" film? Seems to me, once you're on the street, the mentality should be the same. I owned 2 M7s, and my street methods with the M8.2 have not changed materially. Jeff Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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