[Leica] a "pro-hobbyist" evaluates an M9 . . . ICK

[roark.paul at gmail.com (Paul Roark)]

Bill Pearce <billcpearce at cox.net> wrote:

> I schlepped my hasselblad and a couple of lenses around Colorado once, and
> it wasn't a problem. ...

The Rollei SL66 is built like a tank; the tilt mechanism is probably
part of what adds weight over the Hasselblad.  So, when I went to a
TLR and could have an entire outfit, tripod included, that weighed in
at 5 lb., that made a believer out of me in terms of what I wanted to
carry and what image quality I could get from such an outfit.  The
Bronica RF 645 took over from the Rollei TLR because of the wide angle
and ability to hold Tech Pan flat.  (My stash of frozen Tech Pan 120
is going to go on eBay soon.)  The Canon 5D2 convinced me that full
frame digital could do what I needed, but the Canon outfit was too
heavy, and their wide angles really are not top notch (the 24 Tilt
Shift is special, however).  The M9 simply did a better job for less
weight.

As an aside, let me describe Sheppard Pass, the last trip for the full
SL66 outfit.  It starts in Owens Valley at 5000 ft.  On the way up to
the 12000 foot pass, there was a dead horse on the trail when I did
the trip.  On the other side, at the Muir Trail, the Sheppard Pass
trail is marked with the skull of a horse.  It is literally a killer.

Paul
www.PaulRoark.com