Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/06/12
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]D.T. You do not need to worry about the M6 not being sufficiently "high tech" for slide film. My chrome M6 is always loaded with slide film only (usually something in the 50-100 speed range). Prepare yourself for a major treat when you see your slides on the light table after the trip; Leica lenses as justifiably famous not only for their sharpness but also their accurate color rendition and brilliance. Of course, you must be aware of what you are metering and use the meter intelligently. But the same is true with the automatic SLRs of today. I strongly suggest that you shoot a roll or two for practice before leaving. As for film choice, I think that Velvia and Kodachrome 25 may be too slow to be relied on exclusively. I do not know exactly where in Europe you are going, but if you are in Northern Europe (like here in Belgium, or in Scandinavia, the UK etc.) then you will encounter many cloudy days where these films will impose too many restrictions on your photography. Even in sunny places, if you are in an old part of a city, with narrow streets, you will find yourself in shade and again, the film will be too slow. I would suggest trying Fujichrome Provia 100 as the basic film. It has excellent color saturation, not as radical as Velvia but plenty rich nonetheless. It is for me the universal film, good for both flowers, landscapes and portraits. If extra speed is needed, the best choice is in my view Kodak's E200. For even higher speed, Fuji Provia 400 is the best, but in general I find that once I go above 200, the quality of slide film deteriorates much faster than with color negative film. In summary, if I were you, I would take 60% Provia 100, 20% E200 and 20% of the slow stuff. As for lenses, from the outfit you describe, if I could only take 3 lenses, I would add the 21mm and the 90mm to your 50mm. I think that the 90mm will be plenty long for you. On the short end, I find it absolutely essential to have a really wide lens with me when walking around any old city. Nathan InfinityDT@aol.com wrote: > I'm planning to spend a (too-)short time in Europe soon, all the time in > cities, on foot and on busses, trams, trains etc. I want to take my Leica M > outfit because it is more compact than my reflex outfit and I can carry it in > a small bag (I have a Domke that's about the size of a Billingham Series 3 > plus it has a belt tunnel in addition to the shoulder strap for added > security). Last year I shot Royal Gold 100 and the results were great but I > really prefer to have slides to project and so I want to shoot K25 and/or > Velvia. I have never used reversal film with a Leica (or any camera without > a stepless electronic shutter). I've heard that the shutters aren't all that > precise but of course with negative film a half stop or so isn't as critical > as with slide film. I don't have the time to send them for a professional > speed-check ( I suppose I could do a down-and-dirty test roll against a solid > background and check it against one from a camera that I know to be > accurate). I've seen Brian Bower's books full of Leica M work shot on PKM, > so I'm inclined to think I've nothing to obsess over. Any LUGers who shoot a > lot of reversal film with an M system can help me out here? > > Also, another quandary I'm in is: I want to take no more than 4 lenses, > perhaps even 3. I'm a long-time 50mm kind of guy, so that's in the bag for > sure. Question is, for European urban-type photography, which 2 or 3 other > M lenses would you consider "essential" choosing from 21 ASPH, 28, 35 > Summicron ASPH, 90 Elmarit and 135 APO-Telyt. > > Thanks for any help. > D.T. (which is what everyone calls me) - -- Nathan Wajsman Overijse, Belgium General photo site: http://members.tripod.com/belgiangator/ Belgium photo site: http://members.xoom.com/wajsman/ Motorcycle site: http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Downs/1704/