Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1997/04/12
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]This is my first posting, though I've been lurking for a little over 100 digests now. I don't currently own a Leica but I'm quite interested in one; more so since I've been following the LUG. Some background: While I own an Nikon F4 and FM2, 10 Nikkors and a flash, anymore I primarily do street shooting with 24 mm f/2, 50 mm f/1.4 and 85 mm f/ 1.4 lenses on the FM2. Occasionally I'll stick a 200 mm f/4 in my pocket, should I think the need for it might arise. Most of the rest of my equipment sits on a closet shelf. At one time I also owned a Contax G1. I loved the small size, being able to set the exposure manually, and the photos those Zeiss lenses took had a wonderfully different quality compared to the Nikkors. But I really didn't need another camera system and found the fast Nikkors more useful, so I sold it. For some time now, I've been thinking of the switching to the camera that strikes me as the best of both worlds: an M6. Small body, fast lenses, that different quality to the photos, no camera better for the type of shooting I'm doing. So today I went to one of the two local dealers that carry Leica. An M6, 28 mm, 50 mm and 75 or 90 mm lens now, and a 135 later, could fill my needs quite well, I thought. And trading in a chunk of my Nikon equipment would make it affordable. This was just the second time I've handled an M6, the first that I've seriously contemplated purchasing it. The mechanical precision felt great. I was surprised at how quiet it really was. The bright viewfinder was terrific. Though I wear glasses, I didn't find the 28 mm frame lines bothersome. I checked out the 135 mm frame lines, which I've so often seen criticized as being too small. Not as great as an SLR, but thoroughly useable. I tried loading film. I wasn't wild about the bottom coming off, but in the end it's no more difficult than loading my FM2. My one unpleasant surprise was how small the shutter speed dial is. But I could get used to that. I talked to the dealer about my plans. He took an FM2 off his shelf and set it next to the M6. He pointed out the bodies were about the same thickness and width, that only the pentaprism made the FM2 a little bigger. With fast lenses attached, he said, there was no size advantage to the M6. "What about buying the M6 as a another system?" he asked. No, I told him, I didn't need more Nikons in the closet. I need one camera system that I'll use. "Then I'm going to do you a favor," he said, "I'm not going to sell you an M6 if you trade in any of your Nikons. Because after the novelty of the M6 wears off, you'll realize its limitations and you'll want your Nikons back." So I left, not sure if the salesperson (who uses an R7) did me a favor or not. Thoughts? Larry Kopitnik