Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2009/04/05
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Jan there is lots of room here for all types of photography. While I like street (but claim no talent at all!) I like to shoot static subjects and landscapes etc too. More Adams and Weston on my bookshelf than HCB! Anyway, you should post photos from your Rollei to this list too. They are extremely well respected and we have a number of talented shooters that use them too. 2009/4/6 Jan Decher <wanderjan at gmail.com> > Thanks, Geoff, for your more thoughtful response. > I knew of course, that the Leica was designed as a handheld camera and > doesn't need to go on a tripod etc. etc. OTOH, I am not a "street > photographer" in the purist sense and I like my pictures to be ultra sharp > and shoot a lot of static subjects, landscapes etc. My fastest lens is a > 2.8/35mm C-Biogon and the next lens will be a 4.5/21mm C-Biogon for > interior > forest vistas and shots of cathedrals, frescoed ceilings and other > architecture etc. > I even like formal group shots and frequenty use the mechanical self timer > on my older cameras! How so non-Cartier-Bresson!! > Since this is the LUG, I didn't mention that I also carry a 1950s > Rolleiflex > with a 3.5/75 Xenotar (and on occasion an SLR with 5.6/400mm for wildlife). > So a good compact travel tripod is a must! > I do have a Leica table top but at 6 feet 3 inches prefer not to kneel down > and try to look through the Leica VF on the 25cm tall table top (easier > with > the Rolleiflex WL finder). > Unfortunately, most zoos, botanical gardens and museums now discourage > "serious" tripod use (perhaps because they want you to buy their tourist > view postcards..). Even the Kodak House in Rochester I learned 2 years ago > had a "no tripod and no backpack policy", which I thought was rather ironc > (well, perhaps in line with Kodak's mostly amateur approach to cameras...). > In those situations a Leitz tabletop can sometimes still be "sneaked in". > Anyway, I think there are many different types of "Leica photography" and > if you really want to get the utmost out of your Leitz or Zeiss lens' > resolution - as many tests have shown - a tripod is still the way to go > when the subject matter allows it. > Jan > > =============From: Geoff Hopkinson <hopsternew at gmail.com> > Date: Mon, 6 Apr 2009 07:08:31 +1000 > Hi Jan. I agree with the very experienced travel photographer Tina. However > if you are pepared to carry a tripod because you want to shoot very long > exposures, or just wring the very best from your lenses (doing a lot of > landscape photography for example), then the Gitzo that you mention is the > ultimate in portability. A not inconsiderable investment of course. Really > consider the compromise of a good quality monopod though. Also you can > improve both tripod and monopod by fitting a dedicated head for the > functions you want. Take a look at Really Right Stuff for some options > there. you can get their whole catalog online and it has a lot of useful > info in there. > > I bought a set of good carbon legs from Manfrotto (price less ruinous than > Gitzo) and a Gitzo head. However the head while really well made is just > too > bulky for what I wanted (with a quick release plate). G1278M I think. I > don't have it with me currently. I'm getting a more compact ball head from > RRS. Also the Gitzo still suffers from the trait of almost all tripods with > a flat plate on top. The camera can still twist, which is annoying. > Consider > a system with a dedicated plate that fits your camera. > > _______________________________________________ > Leica Users Group. > See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information > -- Cheers Geoff 'Life's too short for mediocre glass' http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/gh/a/ http://www.pbase.com/hoppyman