What would be your ideal combination of Leica M film body features?

I have to say this is a fun thought exercise. I got most of the way there with my MP a la carte a few years ago, which I ordered when I got wind of the impending demise of the program. Mine has no script on the top, 0.58 viewfinder, black paint. I was lame and included the 75mm frame lines because I have 75mm lenses, but I agree they are a distraction. If a button rewind had been offered I would certainly have chosen that. I love that shape.
What I would really like though is an upspeced CL - brass body, better gears (brass?), more sturdy film takeup spool, perhaps 35mm framelines instead of 40mm. The small CL is so much more convenient for me than the full sized M.
I know the framelines in an M can be 'edited' quite easily by people like DAG and Cameraworks, so I might get that done one day.
 
I'd opt for a IIIg with an M mount, a Leotax T2L style rewind crank (it's much better solution than the canted ones on the Ms!), no self-timer, an M3 style shutter dial - maybe even with the linkage to an M meter - and the M3's frame counter and lever wind.

I'd keep everything else exactly as it was on the IIIg - bottom loading, no flappy back, separate RF/VF, 50mm framelines with 90mm nubs, and no meter. I'd even keep the top-mounted rewind/advance switch, and I wouldn't need a frameline preview lever, as there'd be no other framelines to view! Heaven.

That said, if we're in the realms of fantasy... an X-Pro style VF magnification switch could be nice, so you could swap from a 50/90 VF to a 28mm one with 40mm "nubs".
 
Coldkennels said:
I'd opt for a IIIg with an M mount, a Leotax T2L style rewind crank (it's much better solution than the canted ones on the Ms!), no self-timer, an M3 style shutter dial - maybe even with the linkage to an M meter - and the M3's frame counter and lever wind.

I'd keep everything else exactly as it was on the IIIg - bottom loading, no flappy back, separate RF/VF, 50mm framelines with 90mm nubs, and no meter. I'd even keep the top-mounted rewind/advance switch, and I wouldn't need a frameline preview lever, as there'd be no other framelines to view! Heaven.

That said, if we're in the realms of fantasy... an X-Pro style VF magnification switch could be nice, so you could swap from a 50/90 VF to a 28mm one with 40mm "nubs".
Click to expand...
Interesting combination. You’re a fan of 90mm on the Leica? I really like this focal length in my bag too. What 90mm lenses do you like?
 
The new M6 or M-A in black is close enough since they are basically the same as my '78 M4-2 with or without a meter, and the M4-2 is nearly perfect.

- A mechanical self-timer would be a nice addition.
- As useful as it might be, I only very rarely use the manual frame line selector.
- Since I use mostly 35/50/75 mm frame lines, the 0.72x magnification viewfinder is close to perfect.

An upgrade to either that selected just one of the six standard frame line sets (28, 35, 50, 75, 90, 135) for then lens fitted would be a nice simplification of the viewfinder view, but I don't know how feasible it is. I would prefer an all mechanico-optical solution rather than any kind of electronically imaged frameline mechanism.

G
 
WJJ3 said:
Interesting combination. You’re a fan of 90mm on the Leica? I really like this focal length in my bag too. What 90mm lenses do you like?
Click to expand...
I've been using the post-war LTM 90mm Elmar for a long, long time. Providing you get one without haze, the image quality on those things is absolutely ridiculous.

Although I will say this: the "nubs" in the IIIg are basically useless. The parallax correction works wonders for 50mm, but it's way out for 90mm. Still, they're a useful last resort if you don't have a 90mm finder to hand - I'd rather have them than not, basically.
 
So, there is the full viewfinder itself, which dictates the widest field of view you can see, and then there are optional framelines within that viewfinder.

The M3 has a nice arrangement, although 50mm(*) is the widest you get. With a 90 or a 135 lens mounted, the most you ever see is one additional frameline and when you see it you know that’s the frameline you use.

Ideally, a future M would be like this. Perhaps 24mm would be the default view with no framelines at all and adding a lens would add only the frameline for that lens. Opto-mechanically, that may be very difficult to do automatically when the lens is mounted - which is probably why Leica doubled-up the framelines. However, I wonder if it could be done manually with a selector, such as with the Nikon SP.

*This is why the Leica M3 was never used for real-estate photography, where 12mm is the normal lens.
 
Last edited:
An M3 with the M4 rewind crank, a film loading system similar to the Canon QL17 and a tri-pod mount centered on the bottom plate. Perfection for me!
 
Body: M3--built to exactly the same standards. Silver chrome or black paint, if it cost no more than the chrome.
Wind lever: Solid; frame preview lever, too, since that would reduce the amount of plastic on the camera. (I once bought an M6 that had lost the plastic insert on the frame preview lever--luckily, Leica UK sent me a complete replacement lever for free.)
Self-timer: None; one more thing that could go wrong that you almost never use anyway.
Lens release button: Has the guard around it.
Rewind: Lever, with the M4 and later rewind crank.
Meter: Yes, two arrows and dot.
Viewfinder: 0.85 or 0.91, 35, 50, 90 only (*maybe* the 135, too--but definitely no 75); shutter speed visible.
Takeup spool: Hmmm, tough call. I'm kind of partial to the tulip...but I've never mis-loaded a roll with the M3 spool, whereas I've done that twice with my M6.
Shutter speed dial: M6 TTL style, moves in the same direction as the meter arrows.
AE, DX reader: Who needs 'em? (If you're using a Leica, you should probably be doing the thinking about what your exposure is instead of letting the camera control that; your meter is just a *guide*. If you're shooting E-6, you'd actually let the camera decide the exposure? And if you're shooting negative film, you *don't* overexpose by 2/3 of a stop or so?)
Baseplate: Has the bit for opening and closing the old Leica brass film cassettes.
Frame counter: Auto, I mean why not? We have the technology.
Eyepiece: Has built in, locking diopter adjustment.

Give me all that, and I won't be frequently wondering if a different body would make me happier while shooting.
 
Here is mine:

  • M7 style with angled rewind crank, auto exposure
  • rear film loading (flip open back), film load like Contax N1 (stretch the leader across, close the back.)
  • manual film wind (no motor), M7 two-piece wind lever
  • Shutter speeds in the viewfinder ala Nikon FE2 (align green and black needles for match needle manual exposure)
Screen Shot 2023-06-27 at 8.51.37 PM.png

  • 35 50 90 frames
  • 0.85x mag
  • 1/2000 top speed, horizontal travel titanium shutter ala Contax RTS II
  • electronic/mechanical shutter ala Nikon FM3a (i.e., all speeds work without batteries)
  • self timer: none
  • preview lever: none
  • AE lock lever in place of self timer lever (press towards lens to lock exposure)
  • auto frame counter
  • sufficient eye relief for glasses; eyecup
  • adjustable diopter
 
splitimageview said:
  • FE2 (align green and black needles for match needle manual exposure)
Click to expand...
You have good taste. That’s my favorite of Nikon’s analog displays. Also present on the Nikkormat EL. Canon EF is similar - trap needle design.

Anyway, you and several others have mentioned diopters. Although I have this feature on numerous cameras (including the IIIf), how do people use these? If I’m not wearing glasses, I can adjust the diopter to see the image clearly, but then I’m walking around without glasses and can’t see clearly overall. If I do wear my glasses, which is the case 99.999% of the time, I don’t need the diopter. I wonder whether what many do is remove their glasses just to make the photo - hence needing the diopter.

That‘s what I have to do with waist-level finders: remove my glasses to see the groundglass sharply. But I also have to put them back on if I use the built-in magnifier! Aaaghhh… reaching for the X-Pro1 now…
 
Yes, although the EL with the CdS cell had a slower reacting needle. On the FE2, the SPD-driven needle isn't lazy, it's snaps instantly into place.

As far as diopters, I'd like to be able to adjust as needed, for when I'm using glasses or when I'm not. Normally, I'm not; my eyes are not bad enough where I can't function without correction. But at some point I'll get some prescription glasses and it would be nice to adjust the camera diopter to zero and not have to take the glasses off. :)
 
I wear progressive lens glasses, and specifically had the eye point and magnification where I use my eye to see in the viewfinders of my cameras tuned so that I can use any of my cameras without needing any viewfinder magnification correction beyond what the camera offers as standard. Although a little expensive (and tedious) to achiever sometimes, depending on your particular eyesight and the shape of your nose, etc, it's worth doing if you use a camera a lot.

I've never had the best eyesight and have been doing photography since I was about 8 years old. This solution is working just great in my dotage... LOL!

G
 
I love my MP.

I don't like the meter in the viewfinder, I wish it was similar to my CL, with a needle.

I wish it had a shutter similar to the Nikon FM3a, hybrid electronic/mechanical, doesn't have to go up to 1/4000th but would be nice.

Wish it came in black chrome like the MA with no markings on it.
 
WJJ3 said:
My ideal M body is the one recently completed for me to incorporate all the features I wanted:

M4 body with M3 levers, in black paint, and sporting an MP 0.58x finder. I had the 75mm frame corners masked for a clean 50mm frameline view, and new style M6 light shields installed. Those still shooting M4s have probably experienced the light leaks most of these cameras have now.

53003388182_533f4d58f0_o.jpg


53003388187_7dbaa67d6a_o.jpg
Click to expand...
This looks awesome.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top