Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1998/05/12

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Subject: Re: [Leica] Re: Leica's rise to glory?
From: Marc James Small <msmall@roanoke.infi.net>
Date: Tue, 12 May 1998 22:33:23 -0400

At 09:33 PM 5/12/98 EDT, Larry Zeitlin, thoughtful and knowledgeable cuss,
wrote:
> Quoting from Helmut Gernsheim's "History of Photography",
>"Advantages of the Leica were not appreciated immediately - - - It was in
fact
>a plate camera, the Ermanox, made by the Ernemann Works, Dresden, and put on
>the market in 1924, one year before the Leica that for a few years proved a
>more useful tool for photographers needing a fast instrument. Indeed the
>powerful F1.8 and F2 Ernostar lenses made snapshots possible by available
>light 

This is an excellent, and accurate, portrayal of the state of the
photographic art in the 1920's.  As Erwin Puts had previously pointed out
to me in some detail, the Leica did NOT catch on with professionals until
the later 1930's.  Its sales were rather small until a marketing blitz
convinced the growing German middle class that this small and flexible
camera provided an ideal mix of portability and quality.  The professionals
came later!

And those glorious Ermanox lenses were designed by Dr Ludwig Bertele who,
of course, was soon to design the very Zeiss Sonnars and Biogons later
borrowed by Nikon and Canon but let's not stir up them sleepin' dogs, guys ...

Marc


msmall@roanoke.infi.net  FAX:  +540/343-7315
Cha robh bas fir gun ghras fir!