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I picked up a near mint M6 non ttl in Feb 2008 for $1100 US from a Leica dealer. I love the thing. I think it's worth it. It's incredibly easy to use. And the lenses make photos that look magical. No joke.
Maybe it's because the Leica was only company that cared to engineer a great rangefinder (and RF is the proper 35mm camera design IMHO). I like that the m6 is fully mechanical.
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Some of the best lenses ever made, a camera that you can have Leica make to your specs, a history that reaches to the beginning of 35mm film, what is had to understand?
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 Originally Posted by apconan
No actually, it is very easy to understand. Here is a 3-step guide that for everyone!
1. People accumulate money. Often this excess of money comes in retirement.
2. They buy the most (recognizably) expensive camera they can. Leica.
3. Now they justify the 200%+ premium over other camera brands by posting endlessly about the 'mystique' and how awesome Leicas are. Meanwhile, their photos are still sub-par. The more they spent on the camera, the more time they spend online talking about their cameras, and the less time they spend shooting or in the darkroom.
That sounds like the average gasbag dweeb on RFF to me!!! I have an old Leica IIIf and a couple of lenses, nice gear, but I prefer to use my Minoltas most of the time as they they're a better fit for the way I work.
Last edited by Zathras; 12-27-2010 at 10:42 PM. Click to view previous post history.
When the chips are down,
The buffalo is empty!!!
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It is pretty simple. A Leica is (still) well made, simple to use, reliable and a design icon. As noted above, leaving aside collectors' items, an M6 body in terrific condition can be had for around $1000. Millions of people blow many times that amount every year on any number of transient pleasures - cigarettes, booze, cable TV, holidays, fuel for their overpowered and oversized cars, truckloads of plastic crap from Walmart, etc, etc. In that context, a Leica is not really unaffordable. It is just more expensive than many other cameras. If you view cameras as simple commodities, like tins of beans, or as no more than tools, like hammers, then you may not want to spend the cash. However, if you get some additional pleasure out of using a very nice piece of machinery, then you might decide that it is money well spent.
Ian
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Originally Posted by CGW
I did not know that the M3 pre-dated the M2. Or that there's a postage stamp with the Queen holding her M3!
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When I first got mine I was impressed by the fully radiused sides as opposed to the angular or flat ones on other cameras I've handled. I remember reading once online where a Leica enthusiast claimed that the body is made of brass and this particular choice of metal radiated heat to the hands increasing the handling pleasure. I wasn't so sure about that but I was keen to try out the film advance lever which online Leica enthusiasts had variously described as being silky smooth or like a hot knife going through butter. Mine seemed a little less smooth than that but I was keen to try out the legendary quiet shutter which I'd heard so much about online; silent, like a whisper, unobtrusive, Wim Wenders even called it a 'kiss'. I tried it: 'clunk', hmm not that quiet. So I tried it against my FM2: 'clack'. Hmm, 'clunk', 'clack'. I decided I should try a real world test and a few months later I was out with my wife in the grounds of a stately home. The sun was out and she was on a bench soaking up the rays with her eyes closed. I walked around a bit and thought a nice photo may be possible from behind her with this grand house in the background. I took the photo 'clunk'; immediately my wife swung round 'did you just take a photo?'. So much for the kiss!
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Originally Posted by perkeleellinen
When I first got mine I was impressed by the fully radiused sides as opposed to the angular or flat ones on other cameras I've handled. I remember reading once online where a Leica enthusiast claimed that the body is made of brass and this particular choice of metal radiated heat to the hands increasing the handling pleasure. I wasn't so sure about that but I was keen to try out the film advance lever which online Leica enthusiasts had variously described as being silky smooth or like a hot knife going through butter. Mine seemed a little less smooth than that but I was keen to try out the legendary quiet shutter which I'd heard so much about online; silent, like a whisper, unobtrusive, Wim Wenders even called it a 'kiss'. I tried it: 'clunk', hmm not that quiet. So I tried it against my FM2: 'clack'. Hmm, 'clunk', 'clack'. I decided I should try a real world test and a few months later I was out with my wife in the grounds of a stately home. The sun was out and she was on a bench soaking up the rays with her eyes closed. I walked around a bit and thought a nice photo may be possible from behind her with this grand house in the background. I took the photo 'clunk'; immediately my wife swung round 'did you just take a photo?'. So much for the kiss!
The older models, the M3 and M2 had brass top plates but the later ones were zinc. The interior frame is Aluminum. Brass would weigh a ton, and Leicas are already heavy!
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Originally Posted by CGW
Wonderfully written article. Quite seductive I might add. Thanks for sharing.
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Originally Posted by lilmsmaggie
I recently came across a M4-P 70th Anniversary 1913-1918, body only. No box, no instruction manual. I have to admit, a very nice camera. But the price!!  Clearly, the price tag had collectors in mind. The same week, I came across an eBay listing for a plain-jane M4. Nice camera, except the leather on the back near the film indicator had worn through. Price: $1800 for a 40-year old camera!
IMHO, collectors are making a mess of the used camera market. Especially when it comes to Leica's. I guess I just don't understand. Wouldn't a Zeiss Ikon ZI fit the bill just as much as a M3 or M4? Does it have to be a Leica, and do you have to give up an arm and a leg, mortgage the farm and relinquish your 1st born to pay for it?
First, i am not a collector and both cameras and asking prices are in the collector area which is different than users.
Leica M's gained thier fame from three main attributes, lens quality, quiet operation and build quality. If a professional in some environments, there was and still is no better small format camera. The fact that the form factor has survived this long from M3 to M9 is a testamant to that. Along the way the Leica M became an 'ikon' that many amatures aspire to for many reasons, not all evident to many but valid just the same to the users.
I have them from M3 to M6 and two M7's. The M3 and M6 do not see much use but the M7's are heavily used with the latest Leica ASPH lenses for superb quality of image, form factor and minimal sound even with motor M's that are usually on my M7's.
I would suggest you go to a dealer and shoot some film with an M7 and whatever lens you like and evaluate or an M9! Then make an objective decision and leave the collector market to the collectors.-Dick
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