Basic Leica setup


S

seanlim

New Member
Hi all,

I'm very new to this rangefinder stuff. After months of saving, I'm just a tad away from owning my first RF.
I figured since it's prolly gonna last me a life time, might as well go for the MP - though I might get the M6 for budget reasons.

Just wanted to ask any recommendations on a basic setup for leica? Which body which lens.
I know KRW isn't the best place for this but "LEICA Lens Names" how far away is he from clarifying the differences in lens names.

Budget ~5k or less if it's an M6 setup. More if I have to splurge on a MP setup.

Thanks a billion! :D
 

Im a newbie also and i have the M3 and an old 50 cron. Ive been taking photos a lot recently and has thinking of 'upgrading' to M6 or MP. But a poor man like me cannot afford to change camera everytime but i will definitely get there. Slowly.

What I'm trying to say is, shooting with a RF especially a Leica is very fulfilling and addictive. Theres no turning back. 1st you must be really comfortable with film cos it is entirely a diff form of photography. 2ndly, you have to put into thoughts what lens suits you most coz it plays a big part in your photography than the camera itself. If you settled for a low or mid range lens, you will still look at the Leica sooner or later.

For me, i could die and go to heaven once i get myself an MP + 35 cron or 50 cron. But then again, theres still digital M and MF. Sigh. Its a long long slippery road.

So if you are really into film, and your pockets permit, go for the M6 or M7 (makes ur life easier with meter) and a little bit more for a very good Leica lens imo. The MP will wait for you. No worries. 😃

Sorry for the long rant. Got nothing to do now. Hehe.
 

Oh ya. Forgot to add. Actually nobody can tell you what lens to go with. Only you can answer it yourself. What focal length you preferred most depend entirely on your photography. For a basic start, any 35mm or 50mm is good enough but bear in mind, you WILL have your own preferences in the near future. Plan for that too.
 

Ken Rockwell is correct with the naming conventions. ie. F2 is Summicron, F1.4 is Summilux, F2.5 is Summarit etc.

Dun underestimate M3 k. The quality of M3 is unbeatable. The M3 VF was the best VF made by Leica. MP and M6 is not an upgrade to M3. M3 has 0.91x VF and is the best analogue Leica for 50mm. Period. Only Bessa R3 has a 1:1 VF that I rate better than M3's 0.91. Even if you use 35mm or other wide angle, you can use an external VF for composition. Just watch our Chairman The Drunken Photographer (RWC) in action with his M3...He uses his M3 with 21mm Avenon!

For beginners, I invite you to consider these questions. Will save you some money thinking about this earlier rather than later:

QU. 1: Do you need built-in-meter?. Personally, I find that I prefer VC Meter II (external meter) because it is more stealth. For internal meters like MP and M6, I have to raise the camera to my eyes - this fatal action alerts the doe to my hunt. Whereas when I use VC Meter II, it is so small I can fiddle with it at waist level, and nobody notices... I find that I really prefer VC Meter II. Its really the smallest and best meter. (eh Chiif can I get discount for saying this please.) Of course, if your gongfu is so cheem that you can Sunny16 accurately, then that is the best lah. The pro Magnum photographers just use Sunny16, no need meter wan. Dun think MP or M6 is good coz of internal meter - the internal meter is very very distracting coz it got the light inside the VF

QU 2: Do you need 0.72x VF (for 35mm)?
This question is actually 2 stage. First stage is to ask whether you prefer 50mm or 35mm. Got to start with one lar. Depending on first answer, the second stage is to ask whether you need 0.72x VF for 35mm. People who not sure usually just buy 0.72x. Although this is wise move, it is actually not a wise move if you end up liking 50mm more than 35mm. If you like 50mm, then just get M3 can liao. Nothing is better for 50mm than M3.

QU 3: 35mm or 50mm?
Eh this question hor, depend on person wan. Very personal. You can read and research all over internet, but hor....nothing but nothing is better than actually trying. One way of doing it is to raise the vF to your eyes and use the level adjustor to test.

What lens to buy?
Nowadays lens price is so insane, I suggest get Voightlander or Zeiss to learn the basics.
 

Last edited:
KRW is a troll; an entertaining one indeed.

All M's are great and beautiful cameras in terms of handling, but of course the older M's are will be using quite 'primitive' and simple.

For serious shooting, I would recommend an M camera with a meter in it, and not the CL/CLE. Even if you get extremely good at estimating the exposure to +/- half a stop, you will often never get to nail it the on the dot, the way you want it.

If you really want to know the technical aspects of Leica and other similar gear, you should subscribe to reidreviews.

I would recommend the M6, M6TTL, M7, or the M8. All great cameras, albeit the M8 is plagued with its own problems.

Any lens can be your 'normal lens', depends ENTIRELY ON WHAT KIND OF PICTURE YOU WANT TO MAKE. You can use any lens, for any situation, if it calls for a certain kind of rendering and perspective.

Older lenses that seem to 'glow' a lot due to a specific kind of lens aberration can create quite to lovely-dreamy look which is great, if you want it of course.

Good luck.
 

Last edited:
just to add on...

u also have to factor in film, film developing and scanning costs to your purchase. i got nothing against film. but these are the costs of going the film route.

there are lower cost digital options apart from the m8/m9 (actually, the 2nd hand prices of m8 are no more than your usual mid-range DSLRs...). there is the new ricoh GXR + A12 M-mount module (currently ard $2k?) or the older epson RD-1 series of RF cameras. there are also film cameras from voigtlander. yah... they dun carry the snob appeal of leicas. but, if you are just starting, the bessas are good options. talk to chiif. he will give you good advice.

as for lenses... leicas are gooooodddd.... but the prices are rather insane at the moment. the good thing abt RFs is that you can hunt for the older LTM lenses. they are usually more affordable.
 

seanlim said:
Hi all,

I'm very new to this rangefinder stuff. After months of saving, I'm just a tad away from owning my first RF.
I figured since it's prolly gonna last me a life time, might as well go for the MP - though I might get the M6 for budget reasons.

Just wanted to ask any recommendations on a basic setup for leica? Which body which lens.
I know KRW isn't the best place for this but "LEICA Lens Names" how far away is he from clarifying the differences in lens names.

Budget ~5k or less if it's an M6 setup. More if I have to splurge on a MP setup.

Thanks a billion! :D
Click to expand...
as you can already get a sense of, only you will know what's the best setup for you... eventually.

but a M6 and a 35summicron or 50summicron will be an excellent start to your RF journey. that should still fit within your $5k budget.

the rest, you will discover along the way...
 

Hi all, Thanks so so much for your replies!

I have been hung up on Film for the longest time then it suddenly hit me...why not digital (arguably also for price reasons...the M8 seems more affordable)
Then again, I can't get MP off my mind..sigh dilemmas..either way, gnna go so broke.

Reading RSFG on the other tab....:thumbsup::thumbsup::eek:
 

seanlim said:
Hi all,

I'm very new to this rangefinder stuff. After months of saving, I'm just a tad away from owning my first RF.
I figured since it's prolly gonna last me a life time, might as well go for the MP - though I might get the M6 for budget reasons.

Just wanted to ask any recommendations on a basic setup for leica? Which body which lens.
I know KRW isn't the best place for this but "LEICA Lens Names" how far away is he from clarifying the differences in lens names.

Budget ~5k or less if it's an M6 setup. More if I have to splurge on a MP setup.

Thanks a billion! :D
Click to expand...
Bro,
Before splurging your hard earned moolah, have u tried playing with an RF camera?
I have seen quite a lot of people who bought an RF and sell it within a week as they can't get used to its 'style' : no autofocus,no zoom, very light,very small,expensive lenses
I suggest if you have not,go beg,steal or borrow an RF BEFORE spending your money.
Like what the other bros have said, once you are hooked, there is no turning back!
The slope is very slippery...VERY!
Enter at your own risk,lol!
 

seanlim said:
Hi all, Thanks so so much for your replies!

I have been hung up on Film for the longest time then it suddenly hit me...why not digital (arguably also for price reasons...the M8 seems more affordable)
Then again, I can't get MP off my mind..sigh dilemmas..either way, gnna go so broke.

Reading RSFG on the other tab....:thumbsup::thumbsup::eek:
Click to expand...

Buying the MP will help you get it off your mind :)
 

0.58 M cameras are very good because you can use a Leica 24mm/Zeiss 25mm lenses without using an external finder.
 

If you are buying a camera as old as a M3/2, you just have to remember that old cameras, being old, have wear and tear and you would need to probably spend some cash tuning it up. Mechanical components wear out in time, and lens coatings degrade too.
 

The other questions you can ask yourself are -

a) Do you need an MP to make good photographs?
b) Do you need Leica glass to make good photographs?
 

Just my advice and experience with Leica.

Don't settle for second best, buy what you want the first time around. Of course, everyone wants a Noctilux ASPH, but that's a different thing altogether.
What I mean is, if you want an MP, buy the MP. Don't settle for some secondhand M6, I settled for an M6TTL, don't regret it but I sometimes think of the MP a la carte that could have been(I just didn't want to wait 2 months for it).

And if you are certain you want the 35 or 50 'cron, then go for it. I went with both Zeiss 50's, then an F1 Noctilux, then 50/1.4 'lux ASPH, then 50/2.8 Elmar, then 50/2 collapsible 'cron. I've only kept the last three, one of the Zeiss I sold at a loss(the other I'm still trying to sell), the Nocti I sold for more than what I paid. But it's a troublesome process.
Of course you may not be able to afford the 50 'lux or 35 'lux all at once(while it's true that f/2 is plenty fast, there will be times you'll wish you had f/1.4, there are certainly times I wished I had f/0.95 ;)), but it saves more money in the long run IMHO. With that money saved, you can concentrate on whether you are willing to splurge on the 21 'lux or 21 SE or 75 'cron ASPH or 75 'lux. :P

Also about the 35/50 as a standard lens. Do you wear glasses? Or sunglasses if you don't but when you go out? On an SLR, I use 35mm but on a rangefinder I use 50mm. One reason is because with glasses, I can't see all of the 35mm frame lines in my M9, whereas I can with the 50mm and there's still enough allowance to see stuff entering the frame. The other reason is that I just compose a lot sloppier with a 35mm as opposed to the 50mm.

But since you have a budget with Leica. Buy a body you can live with(M6, MP or even M3 or M4, whatever), but splurge on the lenses. My only regret since entering the M system is not buying the M9 outright and sticking to Leica lenses.
 

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