At the last minute I decided to pull out Frank, my heavily modified Leica SL. For long time readers, you may remember I wrote about my FrankenLeica, made possible by my madness and Don Allen Goldberg, the great Leica repair guru. And yes, like the original creature, it lived, and I loved it. But during the last few years Frank hadn’t seen very much action as I focused on using my 35mm and medium format rangefinders. That meant my wonderful last generation Leica R lenses had been gathering dust as well.
One of the great debates that has raged on the Internet since its inception has been over the superiority of rangefinder cameras … meaning Leicas … over single lens reflexes and by extension, the lenses they use. Well, I own both Leica rangefinder and SLR systems, with vintage and modern glass so why not see what happens!
So off I went to photograph the D-Day Rally, packed with Frank and his sidekicks, the 35mm f1.4 Summilux E67, 50mm f1.4 Summilux E60 and 90mm f2.0 Summicron E60 ASPH lenses. For those into Leica, yes I know, that’s a lot of firepower. In the end I used only the 50mm. I’ve yet to develop the film or make proof sheets so there’s nothing to say regarding look and feel of pictures compared to those made with my beloved 50mm f2.0 Summicron (rigid) and 35mm f2.8 Summaron lenses.
But that’s not the point … at least for now. The point is that in dusting Frank’s cobwebs off and taking him out for a spin … drumrolls please … I found little if any difference in the making of pictures. Didn’t miss any shots, no one was scared by the sound of the shutter, or offended by its Frank’s size. Yes my camera bag was heavier, and if the light was weak the M2 or M3 might have been better for handholding at low shutter speeds. But during my outing none of this mattered or interfered with my enjoyment and presumably the results.
I remembered reading something years ago about the great documentary and street photographer Jill Freedman so I went and found it. “She uses 35mm cameras, SLRs or Leicas according to her mood or the subject, and Tri-X film”.
There … go ahead … have at it!
Stay well,
Michael
Liked the post. But would like to ask a question: At this late date am having thousands of negs scanned & a good deal of these images I’ve never seen before and don’t exactly remember taking. An example: Lisa N. from Norway lying on a bed with Nikon FM and a small Vivitar flash, maybe in Phnom Penh or maybe in Siem Reap. The scan looks great! But was it taken with a Leica M4 & 35mm Sumicron (?) or an SLR. My suspicion is that that rig took photos that could be extraordinarily beautiful, enlarge-able up to 11 x 14 and maybe larger. Ultimately I got rid of this camera because of no built-in light meter. Now I’m using Olympus SLRs and even with their quirks, I Iove them. But if I succumb to Leica lust again, would I get tones that would outdo the Oly glass & also because of no mirror slap give me sharper images at slower shutter speeds? I am now coming to the sort of conclusion that carrying a square format camera which I also love is simply too much to carry given my peripatetic lifestyle. Except that I may take a Rochester Improved 4 x. 5 to Bangkok at August’s end.
Flummoxed in Florida
Paul,
Good to hear from you! I think you can make a great picture with any camera. That really is the bottom line. I think it comes down to what you enjoy using the most and what facilitates the ease in making the picture. If you feel that a certain lens or lenses provide a better looking image than that of course complicates matters.
Best,
Michael