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User comments btil June 2003

Concerning the rangefinder flare...a very valid point. One might hope that Leica will agree to "fix" the problem with the M7 for buyers of that camera.
 
Thanks Andy. The crank and Leicavit are more then I thought...whew...

Elliot
 
Why do people trash the M5. I doubt many M users have even picked one up, let alone run film through one. It's a very usable metered maunal camera. It just does not look much like a traditional Leica. Perhaps this is the problem many people have with the R8 and R9. From what I've read, very usable cameras. but they don't look like an SL2 or R4.
 
>I do not like the M5 because the viewfinder is not totaly on the left side as with the other M's. With the other M's the camera is pushed at the side of my nose. With the M5 the camera is pushed against the tip of my nose and that is what I don not like.
 
Wow! Well, this is all very exciting, the new MP. I use an M6 at present and enjoy it very much, I carry it everywhere. That's good to hear the superiority of the new viewfinder in addressing the flare problem, that's the first thing I would want improved in my M6.
I like the philosophy behind the MP,which seems to pare things down a zen minimum, but what you get is of great dependable superiority.
I am disappointed to see only a .72 version for the black model-maybe that will change? Also, I thought the pull-up rewind knob would be a handicap compared to the tilted knob but with the accessory available that becomes a non-issue and I suppose people who are into it can be satisfied. This makes me wonder if the tilted knob has been prone to impact, as Leica seems to allude to in their literature. I know when I sent my M6 in for a major service they repaced the tilted knob (though I did not know it was broke(?)).
On the black paint, that seems to be an aesthetic issue to satisfy some of the market and while that is not such an issue with me I wouldn't care. If it helps a person to take better pictures by having a pretty camera, then good!
Lastly! I have always been jealous of the curves of those early advance levers!
So, I hope they come out with a .58 version in black and I will be saving my dollars. I have to say that my only other hesitancy in not investing in this piece of beauty is that a lot of my reportage/documentary goes primarily on the internet and film, though I love it, is another time/logistics hurdle that I jump.
P.S. I don't mind that
it has the old speed knob
that matches my M6. Ciao!
 
> > On the black paint, that seems to be an aesthetic issue to > satisfy some of the market and while that is not such an issue with me I wouldn't care. If it helps a person to take better pictures by having a pretty camera, then good! =================================================================

Those of us who purchased black cameras before they became a fashion statement did so because they were less conspicuous. I could carry a black camera into a market palce in Viet Nam and no one seemed to notice. But the flash of a chrome camera seemed to make everyone immediately camera shy.

Many phototgraphers have used TLRs for less conspicuous shooting in locals where people are sensitive of cameras.
 
Yes the reversion to a M3 M2 style film rewind nob is interesting. One advantage to the slow older style nob is that it is impossible to rewind the film too fast. Static electrisity can be a problem, in some weather conditions, if you are in a hurry to change film. As I once found out to my displeasure.

Was there a space problem with the new "improved VF" (we will see) that didn't allow continuation of the M6 type? I understand the MP VF technology can not be retro fitted into older models. Is this true?

Going back to the M3 type film advance lever is a little odd. The M4 lever was an improvement it think.

Also Handmade cameras are not necessarily built to the same quality as mass produced items. Make sure you don't buy a unit assembled on friday afternoon.

Interesting camera the MP
 
On my comment about black paint being an aesthetic issue, I should have been clearer that I meant to compare the black laquer finish to the newer anodized. Compared to the longer lasting anodized finish, the black paint seems to earn merit on a mostly aesthetic level, based on the sentimentality of brassed corners. (not that anything is wrong with that!).
My m6 is black, and so will the next camera. My pretty little chrome screwmount Canon always got positive affection from various people, I should note. Obviously, though, how I interact is by far more the critical factor in how my the picture turns out.
On retrofitting viewfinders to older Ms, it's too bad if it wouldn't work- that would be a nice service that I would consider.
On the lever, I have to say I actually don't mind the M4,6,7 one myself. Opinion from someone who likes the old ones more?
Yeah, don't get one made on Friday afternoon. I wonder to what extent Leica's claim of handbuilt goes and what it means. Sometimes doing things with hands could be more economical than building a complex machine. Or custom-tolerance parts may be fitted, like in gas-engines. Who knows? Still a very pretty camera and if I can save the clams, I will get one. : )
 
Question... How can static electricity be a problem on hand wound rewind? Don't motor drives rewind the film a lot faster? Why don't they have static electricity problems?

thanks for any insight!

Colorado Jeff
 
Hand rewinding can be faster than by motor. When Leitz introducted the Leicaflex, being the first camera with a crank rewind, they cautioned against rapid use likely to cause static streaks on the film. It has only occured to my films in very dry climates.
 
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