There is only one Leica

Pioneer · Feb 12, 2019

ciniframe said:
In theory. However personally I've found shooting with a big old 6X9 Kodak Tourist attracts less attention. I've even tried 4X5 as a point and shoot but too many people wanted to know "can you still get film for that?". With the 6x9 folks figure I'm just some old coot (well, I am old) playing around with an antique camera. After an initial bit of curiosity they quickly move on to whatever they were doing. Sometimes folks will come up saying, 'hey, my grandpa had one of those!'

This happens all the time when I carry my Rolleiflex or my Ikoflex Favorit.

guangong · Feb 12, 2019

Alan Gales said:
A few things:

Isn't the longest lens available for Leica a 135mm? They didn't make zoom lenses for them. Using a polarizer is slow but can be done. You would have to set it and then put it on the lens.

Wide lenses can be sharper for a rangefinder because they were not designed around the mirror of the SLR. Range finder focussing is faster. When shooting b&w you can easily focus with a colored filter on the lens since you don't view through the lens. With some of the cameras/lenses you can see beyond frame lines so it is easy to see someone walking into the frame when doing street photography.

Alan, Leitz made 200, 400, 500 and even 800mm lenses to be used on Leica with Visoflex. The 200mm with Visoflex was a very popular combination and rather compact. A tube and finder was also available to use 200 without Visoflex.
As for polarizer, Leitz made a lens shade with polarizer. The filter on a hinge so filter would be seen through viewfinder and then swung in front of lens. Takes almost no time at all.

Kodachromeguy · Feb 12, 2019

guangong said:
Alan, Leitz made 200, 400, 500 and even 800mm lenses to be used on Leica with Visoflex. The 200mm with Visoflex was a very popular combination and rather compact. A tube and finder was also available to use 200 without Visoflex.
As for polarizer, Leitz made a lens shade with polarizer. The filter on a hinge so filter would be seen through viewfinder and then swung in front of lens. Takes almost no time at all.

Here is the Leica swing-out polarizer model 13352 for all Leica lenses that use 39F filters. It also fits the Summitar lens, but the set screw needs to be tightened a bit more. It is effective and quick. I meter through the polarizer with a Gossen Luna Pro Digital, then swing the filter 180 degrees down over the lens. These used to be very expensive, but I bought this one in perfect condition for about $45 in 2018. Some of the older ones develop delamination, but if it is at the periphery, that does not affect the image. Kodak also made a polarizing arrangement for their Retina cameras, but I am not sure how it worked.

ciniframe · Feb 12, 2019

Back in the day, 1950's or so, there were a lot of work arounds for rangefinder cameras because so many were sold and 35mm SLR's had not quite 'arrived' yet. Sure, there were Exakta's and Pentax had a M42 mount camera out by 1957 and Praktica had a reflex in the 50's also. But the SLR solved so many of these problems in their design. That said, the big jump in 35 SLR sales started in the 60's and by the 70's there were so many quality cameras available, all the major Japanese camera companies were well represented. In the 70's I was a salesman at Altman's in Chicago and we pushed so many SLR's across the counter is was amazing. On an average day 10 or 15 Minolta SRT's were sold, not to mention numerous Pentax, Nikon, Canon, Olympus, Topcon (remember those?), Konica, so many I cannot remember them all. The smaller store front camera stores around the Loop would buy 6~8 cameras at a time from the reps. Ralph Altman bought popular SLR's like the SRT in pallet load quantities. Seems like everyone and their dog had to have a SLR.

Barry King · Feb 13, 2019

I did some street shooting with my Rollei 35s a little while back, a couple passed me by with the man saying "Thats an old Rollei film camera, a real camera"

Alan Gales · Feb 13, 2019

Jim Jones said:
Leica made a clever polarizer for rangefinder cameras that is little less convenient than a traditional polarizer on a SLR.

That's interesting! Thanks Jim, I did not know that.

Alan Gales · Feb 13, 2019

guangong said:
Alan, Leitz made 200, 400, 500 and even 800mm lenses to be used on Leica with Visoflex. The 200mm with Visoflex was a very popular combination and rather compact. A tube and finder was also available to use 200 without Visoflex.
As for polarizer, Leitz made a lens shade with polarizer. The filter on a hinge so filter would be seen through viewfinder and then swung in front of lens. Takes almost no time at all.

Wow! I never heard of such a thing as a Visoflex. So it turns the rangefinder Leica into an SLR. That's interesting!

Alan Gales · Feb 13, 2019

Kodachromeguy said:
Here is the Leica swing-out polarizer model 13352 for all Leica lenses that use 39F filters. It also fits the Summitar lens, but the set screw needs to be tightened a bit more. It is effective and quick. I meter through the polarizer with a Gossen Luna Pro Digital, then swing the filter 180 degrees down over the lens. These used to be very expensive, but I bought this one in perfect condition for about $45 in 2018. Some of the older ones develop delamination, but if it is at the periphery, that does not affect the image. Kodak also made a polarizing arrangement for their Retina cameras, but I am not sure how it worked.

View attachment 216914

Thanks for posting this. What a great work around!

I know that Minolta made a dual polarizer for their Autocord TLR's. That is pretty slick too.

Ko.Fe. · Feb 13, 2019

Back to OP.
Did anyone noticed the camera on the picture and statements in the text are not in sync?
Back to rf/SLR as usual talks, where I'm from RF cameras were made in millions for millions.
This is why RF is my first camera. It will outlast any F and OM . And I could service it by myself, but not the Leica.

guangong · Feb 14, 2019

Ko.Fe. said:
Back to OP.
Did anyone noticed the camera on the picture and statements in the text are not in sync?
Back to rf/SLR as usual talks, where I'm from RF cameras were made in millions for millions.
This is why RF is my first camera. It will outlast any F and OM . And I could service it by myself, but not the Leica.

Just for the record, bought my first F at about the same time as M3. Both still going strong. Then bought several used Fs. Also have sm Leicas and M4, M5. Agree with you about Leicas made by people who bought brand name. Both Nikon and Leicas are rugged cameras. Can’t speak for OM.

There is only one Leica

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