If only Santa had brought me one of these...

pthurst

pthurst

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142
Name
Paul Hurst
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Alas! he dropped one off for my mate (m8!) instead. Still here's some pics from the M8 and the Noctilux f1.0(!) lens.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/frompaul/sets/72157594443240902/
 
A true Leica in every sense IMHO. How's your mate getting on with it... I understand there are reported sensor problems with some of them?
 
This is his second one... apparently they still have 'issues' but the reviewers still seem to rate these cameras very highly indeed.

I can see what they mean too...

335669633_199447f7f3.jpg
 
Beautiful! I'd go for the silver body, but it's way out of reach for me... I've used up all my new toy good will with the missus for a while. :D
 
DoubleT said:
please excuse my ignorance. but whats so special about these camera?? especially to warrent a £3k price tag?
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Fair question. :)
Leicas are legendary cameras engineered to standards which other cameras just aren't, and Leica lenses are razor sharp optics which aren't bettered even by offereings from Carl Zeiss. The 'M' series for many years has been the flagship model in their range, and with a whisper quiet shutter has been the chosen tool of the street/documentary shooter, including Cartier Bresson and many others.

The M8 is their first digital rangefinder (non DSLR) camera. It certainly isn't for everyone, and many who buy it will choose it just because it's a Leica. Sadly many people buy them purely for investment and wouldn't dream of ever pressing the shutter. :shrug:
 
ok thanks CT.

i wouldnt buy it because to an "untrained eye" it looks like you bought it from the local antique fair for chnage of a £20 note! my bad :(

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but i have an "untrained eye"
 
DoubleT said:
please excuse my ignorance. but whats so special about these camera?? especially to warrent a £3k price tag?
Click to expand...

The M series of rangefinders are trully great cameras. Thanks to my mates deep pockets, I have been able to use the M8 (10.2mp digital) the M7, the MP and the M5 (I think).

These camera's can be used in full manual mode and in some cases, they are completely mechanical too which is an engineering marvel when you consider that the shutters can still fire at x,000th of a second.

I love rangefinder photography and its possible to start on a very limited budget. You can pick up a brand new Bessa r3a for around £300 and the lenses are relatively cheap as well.

Rangefinder photography was commonly used in early photojournalism, largely thanks to the very fast lenses. Here, f1.4 lenses are the norm and you can still expect change from £300 so your getting very fast lenses for a decent price which wont break the bank.

If anyone fancies a photography challenge for '07, why not nip on ebay and pick one up for 40-60 quid (inc lens) and have a go at taking fully manual pictures on film. You'll find your digital skills improve and you'll never be able to pass an antique shop or car boot sale again, just in case there's an old lens knocking around for a fiver! If a few are interested in this, then we could set up a forum topic exclusively for this.

So get bidding... http://www.ebay.co.uk and search for 'Zorki'


I'll leave you with one of my favorite R3a Rangefinder shots:

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DoubleT said:
ok thanks CT.

i wouldnt buy it because to an "untrained eye" it looks like you bought it from the local antique fair for chnage of a £20 note! my bad :(

K1000.jpg



but i have an "untrained eye"
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That is the point . To the 'trained' eye this is the real deal that Pansonic have tried to imitate of late.

These camera's are old skool. Amazing kit and I would love one.
 
My first new camera of 1953 - Zeiss Nettar 4.5 Novar prontor svs shutter 12 on 120 still works and have made a new year's resolution to use my Rolleiflex TLR 2.8 Planar this year again 12 on 120. Sadly most of my old slides spent time in an unlined loft and suffered.
 
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