Leica CL film using duel range Summicron.

eli griggs · Jan 1, 2023

Whom here uses the Duel Range Summicron with the Leica CL, built by Minolta, and what is your experiences in doing so?

Linked article on doing this.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://m.dpreview.com/forums/thread/4317930&ved=2ahUKEwiXrcayiqj8AhXsgnIEHQ7DBJMQFnoECBQQAQ&usg=AOvVaw34qkY6KWFKlaa7Q-xsqroC

reddesert · Jan 2, 2023

If you read down in the linked thread, the person doing this admits that the goggles (RF optics) on the dual range lens don't work on the CL because the RF window spacing is different. I don't see the point of doing this.

eli griggs · Jan 2, 2023

Cheers.

Leica confusions, and my mistaken the film CL with the digital CL, on which the DR lens & goggles were the topic

reddesert · Jan 3, 2023

I also missed that he was putting it on a digital CL, although the fact that it's on dpreview should have been a clue. Clearly for the digital camera the goggle focusing is extraneous, but I guess his goal was whatever is needed to switch the lens into the close range (I don't have one of these lenses).

Anyway, close up attachments are specific to the RF spacing. There are some close up attachments for other RF cameras like Retinas and 60s rangefinders, but by the time the film CL was introduced, the film SLR had gained the advantage for close-up photography.

GregY · Jan 3, 2023

...& the small CL with its 40/90 lens combo wasn't meant to compete with the full feature options of an SLR or an M Leica

eli griggs · Jan 4, 2023

Does anyone know the logic of Leitz naming a second camera, a digital, "CL"?

All in all, it seems pretty stupid considering how many collectors of Leica everything, out there, and the actual users who want sure understanding of which camera they are using, especially when buying services like CLA, or ordering mechinical parts.

Pieter12 · Jan 4, 2023

eli griggs said:
Does anyone know the logic of Leitz naming a second camera, a digital, "CL"?

All in all, it seems pretty stupid considering how many collectors of Leica everything, out there, and the actual users who want sure understanding of which camera they are using, especially when buying services like CLA, or ordering mechinical parts.

They probably hope the general public has forgotten the Minolta collaboration camera (especially when they dropped it, and Minolta continued with an improved version). My understanding is CL stands for Compact Leica.

MattKing · Jan 4, 2023

eli griggs said:
Does anyone know the logic of Leitz naming a second camera, a digital, "CL"?

Kodak used to do that with film sizes.
For quite a few years, people swore that Ford did it with the Mustang.
And of course, the film re-branders do it regularly.

reddesert · Jan 4, 2023

One of the reasons to reuse a name is to keep the trademark alive. If a trademark is unused for a long enough period of time, its registration expires and it returns to the public domain. For ex, Kodak originally used Ektar for lenses, and now it's on film; Ektra was a very high end 35mm camera, and much later it was a line of 110 cameras; and so on. I don't know if Leica had any exclusive rights to "CL." I did just notice that they've re-used the "Visoflex" name for add-on electronic viewfinders, which are sort-of related to the function of the original Visoflex, but I bet retaining the trademark is also at issue.

eli griggs · Jan 5, 2023

More good information in furtherance of the mystery of the CL syndrome.

Cheers.

Leica CL film using duel range Summicron.

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