Leica My Leica Kit - Joining The "Cult"

[JayOC]

I have two Leica kits. My first was the CL with the 18-56 as part of the kit. I then got the 11-23. Both are great lenses. The kit came with the L to M adapter. I couldn’t see having the adapter if I didn’t have an M mount lens. So I got the Voigtlander Classic 35 Nokton MC as it received good reviews and was reasonably priced. Later last year, I came into a windfall and got the Elmarit 24. It was in very good condition and was complete in the box. That got me thinking, as I will probably be retiring at the end of the year and I already have 2 M mount lenses, it is only logical that I have an M mount body. My local camera store had gotten a refurbished M10-R from Leica with a 1 year warranty. The price was too good to pass up. GAS is starting to kicking again. I may have to start considering thr50 APO Lanthar or a 50 Cron. My son picked up a 50 Cron Rigid that produces food results. His copy is a year younger than me. I may need to look for one of those.

 

[Brian]

My Leica M3 DS was made the same month that I was. Got it with the Rigid Summicron- Leica's first lens formulated with the use of a Computer.

 

[William Lewis]

Took this today to show off at another site so why not here too My every day carry

 

[gryphon1911]

Good stuff! Any manual corrections on distortion and vignetting at play here?

M.

Slight perspective corrections. Then Just exposure, contrast, clarity and then a run through topaz photo ai to sharpen and denoise.

Most are not cropped either and shot at f/5.6.

I believe the lighting and subject matter hid the vignetting well.

 

[gryphon1911]

Zeiss 50mm f/2 Planar

DNG processed in Lightroom
Nik Silver Efex 6 - More Silver Preset

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[JayOC]

I have added the Summicron-M 50 v5 to my kit. I have had it just over a week. While it may not be my preferred focal length, I am going to enjoy using the lens. The first two shots were taken at our local coffee roaster / shop. The third is at a local park that was developed as a PPP effort between a developer and Texas Parks and Wildlife.

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[gryphon1911]

Winter Leica rangefinder shooting question…for those in colder climates, how do you shoot your Leica in the winter?

Only inside?
Get some gloves with removable fingers?
When it gets too cold, shoot with something else?

It’s getting that time of year here where gloves are not an optional outdoor accessory.

Just getting a pulse on how others might shoot.

I’ve plenty of cameras and I tend to shoot more with the larger DSLR kit that has easier adjustments with said gloves in colder months.

 

[William Lewis]

I like half finger gloves. a soft release also helps. Fortunately it's not been too harsh a winter so far.

I got into a bad habit of ignoring my Leica last year so I'm doing a personal one picture a day challenge with my M 240/Nokton 50/1.5 combo to avoid that this year

 

[BruceRH]

I use thin gloves, a half case, thumb grip, and a soft release. This all adds up to no real change from the rest of the year. If I use one of the Voigtlander skopar lenses (I have the 28 and 40 f2.8 lenses plus the 21/3.5 is also very compact), then the body/lens combo can slide into a jacket pocket, keeping both my hand and the camera reasonably warm. Keeping my core body warm is more important for me otherwise life becomes miserable A wool hat and thermal underwear takes care of that

 

[William Lewis]

Yeah, my Luigi half case and thumb grip both are really helpful too, but I'm so used to them after almost three years I didn't really think of them. So add my vote for them as well.

 

[mpeterson]

Winter Leica rangefinder shooting question…for those in colder climates, how do you shoot your Leica in the winter?

I have a leather half-case that allows me to shoot without the base plate on the camera. It has a hinged door on the bottom. That way I can change out battery and card through without removing the base plate in the cold (or risk dropping the base plate in the snow).

That is, unless I’m shooting on a tripod - in that case I have an RRS arca plate on the camera, and it replaces entire camera bottom plate - but I have my half case in a pocket in the event I drop the RRS in the snow, haha (so far never happened). I’ll add a pic of this rig.

All of my lenses have tabs, and I use a soft-release button screwed into my shutter release, so no problem operating the camera with gloves. I guess I should add, though, that I don’t wear big heavy ski-type of gloves when shooting, but a synthetic wool type that are still really warm but allow a little more dexterity.

Oh, and usually add a clear filter when shooting in the snow, so I can just wipe off snow/water-drops/condensation that are a certainty outside in the Midwest in winter.

I think that’s all, have fun!

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[MoonMind]

Winter Leica rangefinder shooting question…for those in colder climates, how do you shoot your Leica in the winter?

I honestly just use (rather thin) gloves with a grippy surface; the camera (M10 with Leica thumb rest) is pretty resilient as far as the cold goes, and it comes in and out of the EDC bag (ONA Bowery) quickly, so I don't carry it in-hand when it gets to bothersome (i.e. too cold to the touch). Battery life takes a hit, so I carry a spare one in an inside pocket of the coat or, even better, the fleeze jacket I usually wear underneath. If things get colder, I change gloves ... the small frame and minimalist controls don't necessitate high-tech solutions in my experience. For the record, I don't use half-cases or straps of any kind on my Leicas - just the "bare metal" ... I just like it best that way.

M.

 

[gryphon1911]

Thanks for the responses. Good to hear that you are able to cope with all the manual focusing even with gloves.

I’ll most likely try that and see. Take a small “auto”camera as well in case I’m not as dexterous as you all!!

 

[boojum]

Winter is a variable. Some see sub-zero regularly as I did when I lived in Montreal. Now in the Pacific Northwest on the coast it rarely dips to freezing, but is windy and rainy. Shooting? I stay in the damned car! ;o) I just keep the heat on and roll down the window, shoot, and roll up the window. The combination of bad weather and my age makes this a good option. As usual, YMMV. The trusty M-9 works just fine.

 

[rayvonn]

Winter Leica rangefinder shooting question…for those in colder climates, how do you shoot your Leica in the winter?

Only inside?
Get some gloves with removable fingers?
When it gets too cold, shoot with something else?

It’s getting that time of year here where gloves are not an optional outdoor accessory.

Just getting a pulse on how others might shoot.

I’ve plenty of cameras and I tend to shoot more with the larger DSLR kit that has easier adjustments with said gloves in colder months.

Nah. Never gloves.

 

[JayOC]

Well, I had some money in my pocket and it was burning a hole in it. Nothing else to do but to buy a Elmarit-M 1:2.8/28. I really like this lens. This pretty well finishes out my kit. I have a 24, 28, 35 and 50. I also have my CL with th 11-23 and 18-56.
Here are a few from the 28.

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[boojum]

Well, I had some money in my pocket and it was burning a hole in it. Nothing else to do but to buy a Elmarit-M 1:2.8/28. I really like this lens. This pretty well finishes out my kit. I have a 24, 28, 35 and 50. I also have my CL with th 11-23 and 18-56.
Here are a few from the 28.View attachment 457647View attachment 457648View attachment 457649View attachment 457650

That's a nice series. You're pissing me off. ;o) I had hoped I was done with lenses. Nice color and definition and composition. Very nice.

 

[JayOC]

That's a nice series. You're pissing me off. ;o) I had hoped I was done with lenses. Nice color and definition and composition. Very nice.

The really irritating thing about the M10 kit is I can only get the body and 3 lenses in my Think Tank Mirrorless Mover 25. I cant carry all 4 easily.

 

[gryphon1911]

The really irritating thing about the M10 kit is I can only get the body and 3 lenses in my Think Tank Mirrorless Mover 25. I cant carry all 4 easily.

Curious about the 24 and 28 regarding how close they are in field of view.

I’ve always gravitated toward 28mm.
Do you find you use them both a lot or do you prefer one over the other - or is it just when you need that little bit extra width, pop on the 24?

 

[JayOC]

Curious about the 24 and 28 regarding how close they are in field of view.

I’ve always gravitated toward 28mm.
Do you find you use them both a lot or do you prefer one over the other - or is it just when you need that little bit extra width, pop on the 24?

I have had the 28 for such a short time, it is hard to say. I do like the wider FOV of the 24 but it tends to need the external view finder. Whereas the 28 has the built in frame lines. The lenses performs similarly. So I think I will use the 24 when I want the additional width.

If I am out with a 2 lens set up , it will be a 50/28 or 35/24 combination.

Sorry to ramble, I first got the 24 because it was in very good condition and came with the viewfinder for a good price. I had seen some used 28 Elmarit that did not appear to be in as good condition cosmetically and were priced about the same. My thought at that time was to go for the extra FOV. I have had the 24 for a couple of years. I initially used it on my CL with the adapter. Since getting the M10-R, I had been thinking it would be nice to have the 28 so that I would not have to use the viewfinder. I got to admit the frame lines are nice with the 28. I also considered selling the 24 to help fund the 28. It in the end, I decided to keep them both. I really like them both. Another plus is when my son is in town and we are out with cameras ( he has SL2S), we can both have wide angles lenses. He has the 50 Summicron rigid and the 90 mm rokkor from the original CL.