Re: [Leica] Leica's Future

["Raimo Korhonen" <raimo.korhonen@pp2.inet.fi>]

Couldn=B4t agree with you more - except it must not neccessarily be big=
ger -
I=B4m a big fan of the late CL which I had and sold and of Minolta CLE =
which
I wish I had, but I heard from somewhere - the net probably - that they=
 do
not service CLEs any more. =20
Raimo
photos at http://personal.inet.fi/private/raimo.korhonen
my=F6s suomeksi

- ----------
> From: B. D. Colen <BDColen@earthlink.net>
> To: Leica-Users@Mejac. Palo-Alto. Ca. Us
<leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us>
> Subject: [Leica] Leica's Future
> Date: 28. syyskuuta 1998 15:53
>=20
> Let me make a few heretical comments in response to the Leica's futur=
e
> thread...
>=20
> Looking at the numbers of cameras and lenses sold, and looking at the
kind
> of observations Ted made about the scarcity of the products in the
> professional pack, it is foolhardy to suggest that today's Leica is
anything
> more than a niche product. Yes, there are some pros who swear by the =
Ms
or
> the Rs and produce stunning work with them. And certainly there is a
> fanatically dedicated group of "amature" users.
>=20
> But if the company is to survive, it is going to do so by producing
> equipment that melds the best of the past with the best of cutting ed=
ge
> technology. What does that mean? A rangefinder with a 4000th to 8000t=
h
top
> shutter speed, multi-mode auto exposure and true spot metering, and t=
he
> traditional M lens mount that will allow the use of virtually all the
> current and older lenses.
>=20
> Yes, this camera will be bigger than the current M, and yes, it will =
be
> noisier. However, on a trip with my daughter this weekend I was playi=
ng
> around with her Olympus OM4 and noted that that REFLEX body, with wha=
t is
> reputed to be THE best metering system in any pre-autofocus camera-
> including a true spot meter that can average up to eight seperate
readings -
> is neither as high, or wide, as the M6 (reflex housing aside) and fee=
ls
like
> it weighs a bit less.
>=20
> It is possible to get a great deal of technology into a small, light,
quiet
> package. It is possible to come up with a multi-magnification viewfin=
der
> system. It is probably also possible to come up with an autofocus sys=
tem
> that would allow true manual RF focusing.
>=20
> Will such a camera appeal to the LSM diehards - of course not. Will i=
t
> appeal to the M6 users? Probably to a large number of them, as a seco=
nd
body
> if not as a first. But the more important question is whether it woul=
d
> appeal to many of the EOS/F5 users, and I, for one, believe the answe=
r to
> that question would be a resounding "Yes!" Those who have become wed =
to
the
> modern technology would be able to make use of the best of both the R=
F
and
> TLR worlds - with the best of modern technology. And Leitz might then=
 be
> able to live on into the 21st century as a healthy company, hopefully
still
> producing a "traditional" M body along with the new camera or cameras=