Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1998/05/16

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Subject: [Leica] upgrade M-6 to M-3 Free!!
From: "Steven Blutter" <sblutter@earthlink.net>
Date: Sat, 16 May 1998 06:51:15 -0500

take the damn battery out!

i've had an m-6 (HM)  for about 2 months now.  yesterday was a very good
shooting day for myself - starting in the late afternoon in the back yard
and ending in a chicago blues joint...6 rolls, tri-x at 400 then 800

for a bit of amusement i started testing my eye against the light meter at
800 asa, shadows, highlights etc.   after 25 yrs of no built-in meter
(traded a nikon-f for a IIIf 19 yrs ago), ya' get pretty good at
guessing...and i was either bang on or within a 1/2 stop every time.

i found during the day the m-6 diodes marginally irritating, in a dark blues
club - totally so and did take out the battery.  tri-x at 800 has plenty
enough latitude...

what bothers me about using the built-in is that takes me out of the
photographic moment.  that the slight uncertainty made me look closely at
the shot and more importantly, the light.  sure on the m-3 i always had the
mr-4 on top, but you use that more as a hand held - take some readings at
the beginning of a session and adjust as you go from light to shadow, to the
sun going behind a cloud to...

so i'm wondering if i can put an earlier m shutter speed dial on the 6 or
(heavens forbid, drill out the current one.  sure i can still use the m-3,
but its 40 years old and i don't trust it can take the pounding i dish out
when i get going...

or can anyone suggest a decent tiny hand held meter - the lights are making
me see red dots!!

or do you just get used to them?  what did i just spend 2,000 on !?!?

- --Steven Blutter--
sblutter@earthlink.net