UnlikelyI'm the fourth owner of my British b12"x10" field camera, I bought it from the first owners grandson who now runs the family's studio and photo shop in South Wales.
The only camera I've managed to wear out is a Zenit E.
Ian
I hope all my photography equipment is worn out and worthless when I retire from photography.
So trueDon't do it!!
It is a trap!!
I bought my first Leica for the same reason. I thought I would be able to sell it at a profit sometime later. But I couldn't sell it! I still use it!
But if that isn't bad enough I found out that Leica cameras are like those famous potato chips. You can't stop once you start.
An M2 seems nice enough but once you have it you realize that the M4 is probably better. Besides; its newer, right? It becomes an addiction and the next thing you know you own several of them and you realize you can't let any of them go!
Stop now before you get sucked in!!
So trueBut so fun!!
Beware of the 2nd trap, though: after you have 2 or 3 Leicas (+ a few Summicrons, a Summilux, 3 or 4 Zeiss ZM and a couple Voigtlanders lenses) you'll decide you need a Hasselblad.
The Hassy has one big advantage over Leicas: there are only ~15 different lenses you can buy for it, which should (in theory) limit your spendings.
I speak from experience. Except that the Hassy came first in my case.
Leicas (or Hasselblads) are not an investment, but they don't really depreciate either. Life is short. Have fun with your Leicas (and Hasselblad!)
Excellent. You‘re missing on the TLR‘s, they are worth a try tooYea it starts out innocent. M2 --> M6-->MP-->6x6 folders-->6x9 folders-->Hassy 500 (gift to my wife..yea right!)-->4x5--> and now the deepest rabbit hole yet..leica ltm's.
and now the deepest rabbit hole yet..leica ltm's.
!My dear boy, the M2 is one of the best Leica cameras ever made and price or investment value are of no concern. It is designed to take pictures (full stop)
!
So true.
However, if you own a 2000FCM, with simple adapters lots of Zeiss, Kilfitt, Nikon and Leitz lenses exist that are “must have”! The quest never ends.So trueBut so fun!!
Beware of the 2nd trap, though: after you have 2 or 3 Leicas (+ a few Summicrons, a Summilux, 3 or 4 Zeiss ZM and a couple Voigtlanders lenses) you'll decide you need a Hasselblad.
The Hassy has one big advantage over Leicas: there are only ~15 different lenses you can buy for it, which should (in theory) limit your spendings.
I speak from experience. Except that the Hassy came first in my case.
Leicas (or Hasselblads) are not an investment, but they don't really depreciate either. Life is short. Have fun with your Leicas (and Hasselblad!)
I hear you. Over the years I ended up getting all lenses between 38mm and 250mm (wih a few exceptions) but the 60 and 120 are by far my favorites (180 being the 3rd, the others are rarely used)I have many Hasselblad lenses, but I find all I really need are the 60mm and the 120mm.
And prices for them are climbing. Unreal. Buy now if you’re gonna.
I was today in my favorite Leica shop (Meister Camera in Hamburg). The guy there told me that all M bodies in used conditions are sold in a minutes. There are couple of collection samples (around 5000$), but nothing around 1000$, as was usual the case before. He told me that Asia is very big market now, and even so - people are buying broken, and give for repair, as it is getting hard to find something under 1k.
I am not a big fan of CL (I do have one), but if budget is an issue - those can be found for 200-300$.
Some years ago a friend from New England had a side business dealing in antiques. He offered some wise advice: Buy an antique item because you like it. If it appreciates so much the better, if it doesn't appreciate you still have had the pleasure of owning and enjoying it. Why not apply this principle to buying used camera gear?
I am sure this has been discussed before, but how did you patch the chips? Most post-war Leica bodies were covered with vulcanite, which was applied to the shell during manufacturing. It was not a leather or plastic cover as on most other cameras. It gets brittle after several decades, but I recall some old-timers saying that the bodies that had been used usually stayed intact. Possibly body (hand) oil helped, but who knows if this is valid?and had a couple of chips in the leather I have patched.
I am sure this has been discussed before, but how did you patch the chips? Most post-war Leica bodies were covered with vulcanite, which was applied to the shell during manufacturing. It was not a leather or plastic cover as on most other cameras. It gets brittle after several decades, but I recall some old-timers saying that the bodies that had been used usually stayed intact. Possibly body (hand) oil helped, but who knows if this is valid?
I had an M3 with small chipping here and there. I used black hot glue - it worked fine for the two years I owned the camera.I am sure this has been discussed before, but how did you patch the chips? Most post-war Leica bodies were covered with vulcanite, which was applied to the shell during manufacturing. It was not a leather or plastic cover as on most other cameras. It gets brittle after several decades, but I recall some old-timers saying that the bodies that had been used usually stayed intact. Possibly body (hand) oil helped, but who knows if this is valid?
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