Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2010/12/19
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]>Frank stated: > This is analogous to what is being discussed here. LUG members are, as a > rule, just able to afford a M or R. The S is for photographers who have > been using large format film or Hassy/Phase one MF digital. > If there is a list for this type of camera it is there one may find > rational discussion about the S2 comparisons, not here. > FD > this perhaps is the most sage suggestion in this argument. The LUG is primarily an M rangefinder group with needs met by such a camera. The S2 does not meet those needs. Some of us (myself included) are R users. Perhaps we would have more in common with the S2 "crowd". However, I don't see many of the R users converting to the S2 because most of us are not pro's with that kind of need or money. We can all admire the product, however. I have no doubt it is an amazing piece of gear and the lenses nothing short of fabulous. However, it is not the tool for the fast majority of us. I remember a few months ago being in Glazers in Seattle. There was a fellow at the counter who came it to get his new M9 and lens. Gift to himself, he said. He was carefully opening the box, being careful not to drool on the expensive gear. He fixed the lens and then was holding it up to look through it. I was admiring it. I had never handled an M of any type. We started talking a bit, and I asked if I could hold it. He graciously said yes. I held it up, looked through the finder and focused on a few things and handed it back to him, thanking him. I appreciated that I was holding a wonderful piece of gear. I admired it for its feel, its workmanship and for the images I know it could make. I, however, was not the least bit tempted. It does not suite my style of photography. I am, as Dr. Ted says, a fern and rock, or peeling paint sort of photographer. Not that I don't look at and admire many of the photos on the LUG. I love looking at street photography, documenting the way we live and the things we do. It is just that I do not have the personality to do such photography. I cannot easily point a camera at anyone in the street and take their photo. The few I have I feel I am intruding. Yet I love looking at the photos posted. So, for me an M would be a useless tool because it would not allow me to do what I like to do easily. So, I will admire the S2, but even if I could afford one I would not get it. Too heavy for me in what I like to do. At 60, with mild back and knee problems, I still like to hike trails in Yosemite and other places, walk for miles around parks and cities, and the weight of a system like that would interfere with what I like to do. If someone wanted to loan me one for a few hours, that would be great. I would not hesitate to use such a fabulous machine for a while. I do not feel that way about a Nikon D3x. Aram