Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/02/07
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"David E. Strang" <dstrang@up.net> writes:
>I own an R8, I use and R8,I like my R8.
Some years back I gave up on my Nikon F3's in order to buy into a
Leica M system. At that time I felt that the M way of photography
suited me far better than using an SLR, and it still does. However,
my interests in macro photography and the use of longer focal-length
lenses did after some time force me to reconsider the decision on
using M cameras only. Visoflex was never an option to me.
Therefore I recently added a new R8 + Winder + the new 2.8/180 APO
lens and 2nd hand 2.8/60 Macro lens to my reportoire. I specifically
wanted a *manual* focus camera with *electronic* control over the
shutter. Yes, I did consider to start using F3s again. However, last
summer I had the opportunity to try out the R8 for some weeks, and
after that the F3 was never an option anymore. 20 years of
improvements in manual SLR technology over the F3 was definately a
reason to go for the R8. I considered other manual focus cameras too,
but that's a bit outside this discussion. I chose the R8.
I am quite fond of technologies that keep the user in the control loop
of the system (decision support), and the R8 is marvellous example of
such a technology in practice (in contrast to systems that make
decisions on the user's behalf). Decision-support technologies
require that the user knows what he is doing, though. On the R8, the
user interface is very intuitive and ergonomically correct (for me, at
least). Most importantly, if something goes wrong, I can usually
trace the cause of errors back to my own (erronous, misinterpreted)
use of the controls. There are few opportunities to blame the darn
camera, at least. I like that.
BTW, speaking of ergonomy. The new 2.8/180 APO is a dream to use.
The focus mechanism is so smooth, fast and precise that I doubt I'll
never miss autofocus. Last weekend I participated in a photo course
together with other LUGers, and I used this lens exclusively; mainly
to shoot portraits with the lens set at f2.8. I have the slides back
(Provia 100F, btw, thanks Sander!) and the results are far beyond my
expectations. Focus is exactly where I put it (f2.8 @ 1.5 meters,
remember) and the amount of details recorded on the film is no less
than stunning.
I am an amateur photographer and fascinated by the technological
beauty and quality inherent in some products, and the use of these
products in practice. If I was a photo journalist, my priorities
would probably have been different.
In short, the R8 fulfills my requirements to an SLR perfectly, and I
am very happy that such a niche product is still available on the
market. Thus, I like my R8 too!
- -- Arne
Arne Helme
Email: Arne.Helme at stelvio.nl, arne at acm.org ('at' == '@')
Work: +31-33-4220340, Fax: +31-33-4220341, GSM: +31-620135827
M&I/Stelvio bv, Appelweg 16, 3818 NN Amersfoort, the Netherlands