Back with another question and answer. You ask and I do the talking. But this has taken on a distinct flavor due to the first question I was asked. “What do I think about the rerelease of the Leica M6? I’ve owned four of these cameras, but the camera itself isn’t the interesting part of the story. Oh no, this goes way beyond nuts and bolts. Quoting crazed politicians, I spin my web of history, voiding all relevant data and facts in an effort to simply “go with my gut.” This event is but one making headlines in the photo community
. 1. 1:14, What do I think of the M6 rerelease?
2. 30:34, What about sponsors for projects?
3. 31:00, What about selling prints, sizes, and editions?
4. 34:40, What about photo contests?
Comments 10
I have witnessed the dudes with Leicas thing, kinda like people who use their dogs as fashion accessories, bringing them wherever they go for no apparent reason. Tempted by the Q2 monochrom but know I wouldn’t be satisfied with the 28mm long term.
Haha, I’ve seen them, too. At times I may have contributed to the existence of Leica Dude. The cameras are nice to look at.
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I probably have too at some point!
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Leica dudes should be watched at all times. I feel the same about the 28. A great camera, though. So well made and the files are fantastic.
Dan, really enjoyed this one, even though most of it doesn’t apply to me. Not going anywhere near the M6 for that kind of money. If I did, it would probably be as an investment, left in the box, which is sad. I suspect that a lot of the purchases will be as investments if Leica doesn’t plan on making them for years and years.
I’ve always wondered how photographers manage the editions – #1/X. I think the concept is great. Scarcity, commitment, etc. But it also seems like it would be very stressful and open to mistakes and bad tracking.
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It just needs to be considered in a professional way. Attention to detail. A perfect reason to have a studio manager.
Uncle Dan, I did some research and it seems that it’s just restyled MP. So congratulations to Leica for making such a huge deal about changing the style of top late and paint to matt one (I had MP for a short while in gloss black and it was gorgeous(!) but to expensive for me to carry it everywhere). Somone really did that and at the end of the day a team of people at Leica agreed that it was a great idea to make something out of M6 hype. No idea what they are smoking.. And as for the M6’s fatal flaw-I just experience it afew weeks ago when my camera fell from my bed on wooden floor. The rewind crank got bent and the repair cost more than the average Pentax MX body in very nice condition. But I agree that M6 does what it’s designed to do really well and thats why I have and use it. But the ‘new’ camera will not bring any incentive for owners of older models as parts are not interchangeable in 100% and Leica doesn’t care about older model users.They sopped to provide some essential spare parts for M6 like light meter electronics. I really enjoy my gear, but this kind of bull shit makes me wanna sell my M6&M2 altogether. The only issue I have it’s that there is nothing to replace them. Maybe some suggestions?
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It’s so funny. So many people have reached out over the past few days saying “Hey, I dropped mine and broke the rewind crank too!”
I bought my Leica M6 over about a decade now and it was partly because of you and your old Smogranch website. I loved using it in India and Cambodia though where it was a joy to shoot with. I still have the black one and had a silver one but sold it years ago. You’re right though, it’s awful for almost everything other than street/documentary photography.
The rewind lever broke after dropping it a few years ago so I had to get it replaced and now the body just sits on a shelf looking nice without getting much action. I take it out once every few months, shoot two frames and then it goes away again so I guess that puts me in Leica dude territory.
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I can’t believe how many people have broken the rewind lever. I’ve done it multiple times but glad to know I was NOT off base when I reported that as the tragic flaw. I haven’t used mine in years, so don’t feel bad.