With all the new Chinese lens coming through at very affordable prices, Zeiss had a campaign on social media reminding us all they also produce M mount glass.
Leica M mount glass is very popular, the lens are small and jewel like, offer an interesting look and can be adapted to most modern mirrorless cameras.
Finding old classic lens and trying them out on your modern mirrorless camera can be a lot of fun, and the hunt for bargains in second hand shops and online is also part of the fun.
There have been rumours about a possible M11-R but now it seems we might be going straight to the M12. If the rumours are true this will be a new sensor but still 60MP.
Leica M10, 50mm Summilux-M 1.4 ASPH
I will likely stay with my M10, I find its 24 MP a sweet spot for use, and I have my Nikon Z7 and Hasselblad for higher resolution work.
Most people think of the 50mm as a standard lens, I think that for general use a 50mmm is slight too long, so I own far to many 35mm lens. The Summicron 35mm f/2, the classic Nikkor F mount 35mm f/2, and the Nikkor Z mount 35mm f/1.8 S.
The rumour sites are now talking about a new Leica Summaron-M 35mm f/2.8. Most Leica users like fast glass so this will be an interesting one, is it going for a more vintage classic rendering?
Another one from my weekly trip into town for a coffee and to look round the local record stores. It was a bright sunny day but not a lot of light was getting between the hedge and the wall we were walking down.
Since the orginal Leica M10 was released we have had the D version and the P and R version and now we are into the M11 varients.
The early M10’s have always used firmware v3.x and the more modern M’s version v4.x. The lastest Q is now on v5.
One think I like about Leica is their menus, over the years they have gotten simpler and less complicated unlike most of their competitors. Hasselblad is the exception to this and also has some of the best menus and user interface in the business.
The last V3 firmware for my Leica M10 was released in January and just added for the amazing new 35mm f/1.2 Noct.
I see at an auction recently an early Leica 0 went for over €250,000. My Leica collection consists of only one film Leica, a M4 that was made the year I was born. The above shot was taken with it.
Its fun to use old cameras and shooting black and white and developing myself is fun.
A quick grap shot from my Leica M and a 50mm Summilux, at f/2.8 it lacks some depth of field but as a once famous photographer once said, “focus is a bourgeois concept”.
Sometimes I visit a place to look for future picture taking options. In this situation, maybe a phone camera will do, but I prefer a real camera. Often its my Leica or Nikon Zf that serve me in this as a note taking camera.
For quite a while I used the Nikon V1, a small sensored and small bodied camera that would always fit in a jacket pocket with ease or not be noticed when hung over the shoulder. I the the picture above with it while scouting for a location to shoot the abbey with using my large format camera gear.
I recently came across a youtube video that really well encapsulated my thoughts on this subject of scouting a location really well. Check out Courtney Victoria’s YouTube channel.
My first every day carry camera was actually an old film Hanimex AF film camera. It was a re-badged cheap film camera but worked well. I then went on to a Nikon S3 digital compact, but I was always on the lookout for a large sensor’ed compact like the Fuji X100 or Ricoh GR.
I have tested both of these but prefered the viewfinder of my Leica to either of them, the Ricoh having no viewfinder and the Fuji being a poor competitor in the viewfinder stakes to the Leica.
Over the years I have kept returning to and testing the Olmpus Pen range.
As I posted a while back, I went on a photo walk with the Olympus rep and a OM5. This was a great little camera but I prefer the styling of the Pen. I kept putting it off as none of them had viewfinders. When the Pen-F came out, I loved it but it was too expensive for me at that time. I did get the chance to play with the OM3 recently with is totally gorgeous, see top photograph I took with it at a show. The second shot is a portrait of the amazing photographer Gavin Hoey. This was a shot with the Pen-F and the 17mm f/1.8 lens at high ISO and at 1/3 of a second. Considering the bad artificial light its come out really well. Likely if I had been more familiar and experienced with the camera, this shot would have been much better.
My everyday carry at the moment is a Leica M, but sometimes I want something I can use one handed, especially as I am often out with Ted the Greyhound.
The original digital Pen keeps coming to mind and if I can find a VF-1 optical viewfinder that fits in its hot shoe I might pick one up second hand, there only £100 now and still a nice performing camera. It would be something you would not be to concerned with risking in environments where you would not want to take a more expensive camera.
I also tried out out the Pen F again last week, as they had a black one in the local London Camera Exchange. Its still very nice, but its a lot to pay for a secondhand camera and it also lacks weather sealing.
In many ways the new OM Pen announced this month would make a good option. I was in Lincoln on Tuesday and the local London Camera Exchange had the new pen in for demo.
Its got a really nice feel and for a lower end model the quality and feel in the hand was excellent. So I have pulled the trigger and have placed an order. I am going for the black one. I might add an original Pen in silver if I can find that viewfinder accessory.
Being a little late with my order its unlikely i get one from the initial batch but should not be too long. I have placed an order for the original 17mm f/2.8. This is a fun tiny lens, and i’ll also be using a 20mm f/1.4 pro lens on it as well as the zoom it comes with.
