[Leica] Re. Is the issue of camera noise over-rated?

[Peter Klein <pklein@2alpha.net>]

B. D. wrote
> . . . I came to a startling realization - we tend to grossly over-rate
> the need for "silence."

> Yes, the unobtrusiveness of the Ms is great. But first off, they are
> not nearly as silent as we think they are. Yes, if there is any kind
> of background noise, the "click" disappears - but so does the whine of
> a single SLR.

Welllllll. . . I attended a couple of chamber music concerts this weekend,
with Leica in tow.  We're having a Shostakovich festival in Seattle.
In addition to the DSCH, we're also being treated to a fair amount of
Soviet and post-Soviet avant-garde music.  

I can tell you that with the Leica, I feel fine shooting during passages
when I wouldn't *dare* shoot with my OM-2.  And the OM-2 is a relatively
quiet SLR.  As a reformed bassoonist myself, I think I have a pretty good
idea of what would or wouldn't bother me if I was on stage.

During part of Sunday night's Seattle Chamber Players concert, the
ensemble's flutist sat next to me (he wasn't playing in the second half of
the program). He remarked afterwards that I "did a really good job" of
shooting without anyone noticing. That made me feel good.

My secret is that I use a Leica, and I try to shoot when the shutter sound
will blend in with the music or be masked by it.  The trick is to find a
moment when the shutter won't be heard that *isn't* a downbeat or a loud
accent, because that's when you're most liable to get motion blur.

I think you're right, B.D., that often camera noise will be treated as
background noise and not be noticed.  Let me add that the public is so
used to the whine of motor-driven cameras that a single-shot camera may 
attract much less attention.  

But there are times when a Leica is best because it is quieter than
anything this side of a leaf shutter.  And unlike an SLR, the noise is
over very quickly. It's "k'tik" instead of Kaa-CHUNK geTHWAP" or "KA-DUNK,
GekaZZZZZZZZZZT."

- --Peter Klein
Seattle, WA

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