[Leica] Comparing B&W M9/MM

[leica_r8 at hotmail.com (Aram Langhans)]

I shot with manual cameras for 35 years before getting a camera that had 
some degree of automation (R4 and then R8).  Early on there was no built in 
light meter and after than there was an in-camera meter.   I personally see 
no difference between using a manual camera, which requires you to change 
either the shutter speed and/or aperture to get some meter to match up to a 
correct exposure, to using some form of built in automation that will 
automatically set either the shutter speed or aperture depending on which 
one you are controlling manually, to some sort of meter determined correct 
exposure.  In fact, this system only requires you to set one parameter 
during the picture taking experience.  You choose ahead of time that you 
want a particular shutter speed or aperture to achieve your desired results.

And if you want to override the meter reading, just as in a manual camera, 
you just do it with the +/- instead of either the aperture or shutter speed. 
I fail to see the distinction.  Manual, Aperture priority, Shutter priority 
are all the same thing most of the time.  I do switch to manual if I know I 
want all exposures to be the same for changing lighting conditions, like 
maybe for a panorama.  But for most people most of the time there is no 
difference, since they will be just matching a needle in manual mode anyway, 
just what the two priority modes do.

Now, the Auto or Programmed modes?  That's a different story all together.

So, if I am missing something, please educate me.

Aram



--------------------------------------------------
From: "George Lottermoser" <george.imagist at icloud.com>
Sent: Friday, January 31, 2014 6:51 AM
To: "Leica Users Group" <lug at leica-users.org>
Subject: Re: [Leica] Comparing B&W M9/MM

> As a manual shooter all my life I've never understood how aperture, 
> shutter, focus, shoot can be seen as more "complicated" than punching and 
> scrolling through endless menus, and choosing from: 30 focus points, or 
> all of them, 4 or more different metering and/ auto focus "modes."
>
> Yes. I have used auto everything cameras. Just not with pleasure. Some may 
> understand "the pleasure" that accompanies manual tasks; others may not. 
> This goes for many different crafts. Kneading dough vs bread machine. 
> Drawing a line with brush or pen vs mouse or iPad. Sawing a board with a 
> fine Japanese blade vs a noisy motor powered blade.
>
> I believe the pleasure comes from body and mind working together in an 
> intuitive, virtually thoughtless manner; which comes only with practice of 
> the given craft. YMMV
>
> a note off the iPad, George
>
> On Jan 30, 2014, at 7:40 PM, Richard Man <richard at richardmanphoto.com> 
> wrote:
>
>> Oh, i know how the f*ker behaves, but then i wish there is a quick +1 
>> stop
>> lever or something. Yes, i do put it on manual at times, but it really
>> shouldn't be that complicated :-)
>
>