My Leicas

Leica M4-2
Leica M4-P
35mm f/1.4 Summilux-M Asph
28mm f/2.8 Elmarit-M
50mm f/1.4 Summilux-M
90mm f/2.8 Tele-Elmarit-M.

I've also owned an M2 and an M3 but the M3 viewfinder isn't wide enough and the M2 was so nice I was scared of dropping it. And I much prefer the updated film-loading on the M4 series.

Of the M6 series, the only one that gets me going is the low-magnification model.

I piddled around with some of the new Voigtlander lenses (the 25, 50 and 75) and they’re cute and sharp but they didn’t make me happy.

I had a pre-asph Summilux-M 35 that I shot a lot of Human Traffic on, and that is a wonderful lens in its own way. Glows like a bastard.

I also had a Canon LTM 28/2.8, the same version Garry Winogrand used, and that is a very good, cheap lens for a Leica, or a Canon VII (which is a good Leica substitute)

Okay, let's talk about Leicas

People get really snobby about Leicas, but they aren’t jewels, they’re just cameras. And yes, their lenses are very very sharp. And they’re very very expensive (see below for equipping yourself, if not cheaply, then at the lowest cost possible). But they have some overwhelming advantages for working in the street. Namely:

They’re very small and inconspicuous. If you have been photographing with an SLR, the first time you go out with a Leica will amaze you. People seem to just not notice.

They’re almost perfectly ergonomic, especially the models without a built-in meter (one of the dials turns a different direction on the metered models). Before long a Leica feels like an extension of your eyes.

They’re manual. Learning to judge light with your eyes is a critical skill for any serious photographer. Six months of using a Leica and you will be happy to leave your light meter at home.

They’re not autofocus. Like manual exposure, using manual focus is a way of bringing your craft under YOUR control, not the camera’s. I’ve no doubt autofocus is a wonderful thing in many situations but on the street it is a positive menace. Shooting in a crowd, where stuff is happening so fast your brain can’t handle it, you have to rely on estimating focus. You know, say, that guy eight feet away is your target. With autofocus, shooting that fast you don’t know what you’ve focused on or even if the autofocus has had time to react. Of course, you can turn it off, but then you don’t have an autofocus camera any more...

They’re neat. They just are.

A new meaning of the word 'cheap'?

Okay, how do you buy a Leica without breaking the bank? Answer, buy one of the ‘unpopular’ models, like the M4-2 or the M4-P. Get a ‘user’, ie a camera that’s in ropey cosmetic shape but has everything working perfectly. And don’t buy the most recent lenses, but the ones from the generation before.

And tell yourself this: you’re not spending money, you’re saving it. Because you’ll never have to trade up. And if you do it’ll to be a Leica, and you’ll have a Leica to sell. And it’ll be worth what you paid for it in the first place.

Rolleiflex

The Rolleiflex TLR looks like it belongs in another age but it’s a wonderful camera. It’s light, silent, and most of the lenses are brilliantly sharp. Mine has a 75/3.5 Xenotar. I picked it up for about £120 and because it was all bashed up I kind of underestimated it. Then one day I took a close look at the negs and was astonished. It takes a bit of getting used to for the street, but the waist level finder is very unconfrontational. I often team it up with a strobe and a cable release and a flash bracket for a wierd and wonderful street machine. The Human Traffic revisisted pictures were taken using this set up. Left hand holds flash bracket and focuses, right hand holds cable release. You need to be at f/16 or better to have a hope of zone focusing because of the limited DOF.

The Texas Leica

I’ve also got a Graflex Super Graphic 4x5 press camera with five of those astounding Grafmatic backs, each holding 6 sheets of film. I use this with a Metz CT-45 flash and a Schneider Xenar 135mm lens, which the rangefinder is cammed for. These old press cameras are amazing beasts, and terrific value for getting into 4x5.

Don't you EVER use an SLR?

Finally there’s my trusty Canon T90, with the wonderful 35/2 lens and also the 50/1.2 plus some no-name 24. The T90 represents a kind of apex of manual SLR design: it’s truly ergonomic, has a wonderful built-in spotmeter and all the modes you’ll ever need. The only tricky thing is the shutter, which can stick if it’s not used once in a while. It can be tough to find someone who believes it can be repared, but actually it just needs a cleaning though some places will stiff you for a new shutter.

Strobes

Some people get sniffy about strobes, too, especially Leica owners. And used badly they can be hideous. But a good strobe picture is a thing of beauty!

My strobes are a Vivitar 283, a Vivitar 2800 and a Metz CT-45. They all do exactly the same thing to differing degrees. I use various kinds of reflectors and diffusers with them, the best of which is the big flat Metz one, and after that a piece of mat board velcroed to the back of the 2800.