Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/06/16
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]I have now had the TTL about a week and, despite teaching 200 children basic bike safety, a major operation on my wife's foot and an attempt to make myself a soprano, I have managed to get ten or so rolls through it. I apologise for the low usage compared to our more illustrious members but hey that all I could do!! I like the TTL. It is a keeper. There are some subtle differences between my M2, M4-2 (gone to finance the TTL) and the TTL. The first thing was the longer travel of the shutter release button on the TTL. It was immediately noticeable and is, by strange coincidence, about 2mm further down than the other cameras. It releases the shutter just as it is flush with the screw ring that holds the wind arm on. I have adjusted but it will make it more difficult to switch between cameras; maybe I will rig up a small extension for the TTL or finally breakdown and get two of Tom A.'s soft releases (then shave one 2mm!). The next thing to pop up was the dreaded VIEWFINDER FLARE. One has to keep your eye carefully centred in low light situations or the rangefinder patch flares out. My M2 and M4-2 did this as well but with a greater margin for eye centring error. My M4-2 was a late one that had been supposedly "ruined" by Leica in taking out an element in the rangefinder optics so the added flare must have come with the redesign for the M6 finder. The rangefinder's superimposed image is slightly dimmer in the TTL over the other cameras which tends to exacerbate the problem in low light. I will be comparing my camera with another TTL shortly and will let you know if it is endemic or systemic. The built in meter is a joy to use but (remember I am not adjusted to the camera yet) after a few aperture and shutter speed adjustments I loose my bearings and do not know what my settings are! I am sure over time I will get better at keeping track of f-stops and shutter speeds but in that one area the MR-4 or handheld meter shines (albeit considerably slower to use). I think I will make the shutter dial more "tactile" by gluing markers or filing notches so it is easier to know where you are without taking the camera from your eye. I have not noticed the extra 2mm in body height and the silver-chrome cameras are much better at disguising the upper viewfinder silvering that I find particularly objectionable in the black-chrome/paint cameras. The silver-chrome camera is not noticed by people as much as my old black-chrome M4-2. The black really makes the white lettering and red dots pop while the silver-chrome's black lettering is hardly noticeable and the red dot seems positively muted by comparison with a black camera. All of my friends noticed when I showed up with the M4-2 but no one has thus far noticed the TTL. Well it is time to lie down and take some pressure off you know where! Cheers John Collier