A bit of a dilemma Advise cautiously asked

I'm reminded by the words of our late friend Al Kaplain! "It's a tool" therefore if you feel the need to sell it to expand your abilities then you should sell it. The only way I wouldn't feel right about selling it is if I thought it might hurt the feelings of the giver. If the giver don't care what you do with it then by all means sell it. I would run some film through it first to make sure it isn't in dire need of a CLA or worse a major repair! I dream of dilimmas like this!:)
 
Count me as one that doesn't get that emotionally attached to gear. If some extremely valuable collectable camera fell into my lap I would 100% sell it and not think twice.

Use that extra cash to get the things you really lusted for before this camera fell into your lap. Using it because it is aesthetically pretty or something you feel obligated to keep because of it's value is silly if there's other stuff out there you want more.

Did you make this post because you really want to sell it and needed a push? Well then consider this the push :)
 
Mark,

Moving your photography forward is a great goal. A black M2 vs a chrome & cash is a question that really comes down to you. Is the cash required to make you better? What are you going to do? Classes, more gear, film & processing, time off to shoot, money to travel and shoot? Help me understand what you think your path is.

Selling vs. Not in my mind comes down to do you need the cash now? Do you need it later? Do you expect the market for real black M2s to decrease (read lowering the value)? Do you need another M right now?

Sorry, I do not know enough about what you shoot, how you feel about your abilities, what you want to improve and/or do to get you more than just a guess.

Give me some background and I'll give you more. Right now I'd say the Black M2 would look really nice with your Black M3.

B2 (;->
 
Keep it and shoot it, I say. If you sell it, you'll always have this moral question in the back of your mind when you remember your friend, was it 'right' to sell it? No matter what we say. It will cause you to think of him less because of the association.

Just my 2c.
 
Mark, it's down to do you need the camera or the money.

Personally I need the money more, but have always been bad with those kind of decisions. I'd probably be out shooting with it already.
 
Your argument is kinda funny, Mark. If, on the one, hand (and as you said), your photographs are not going to be any better with this camera, what makes you think that any gear you buy is going to improve them?

Just sell it... and take some photography classes, buy some books, get yourself an internship with a wedding photographer or something along those lines. And don't forget to take a couple of shots while at it! :)
 
I worked for a camera shop, and needed a 35mm lens, so made payments and bought a 2.3 Takumar.

I used the lens, found it converted to a macro, interesting lens.


I had the camera serviced by a guy who became a long time friend, and he told me many times that he admired this lens and would like it for his collection. I held on to it, found it was an uncommon lens worth some money but eventually gave the lens to my friend.

I asked him about it a while later, and he told me he had traded it soon after he got it.

Never sat well.

All meaningful gifts have some strings.

Small financial gain for a camera that should remind you of your friend who thought enough to leave it to you.

That's me.

John
 
sounds (on the surface) like your old photo buddy passed it on to you because he thought you might intelligently know what to do with it. As it's an inheritance, I guess that leaves you free to do as you please - again it seems that he trusted you to some extent.

So, just do what's right but you may also want to consider what your buddy might have done in a similar situation.

Casey
 
Since going behind your friends back would most likely dent your friendship, you really should be discussing this with your friend.

If things look you are going to keep it to honor the gift while you'd really rather sell, graciously refuse to take it.

Just a thought, when spending the money on digital gear, how much value will there be left in it in four, five years? Travel and classes might be more durable.

I'm still firm on it: shoot that camera. There's other ways to fund travel or classes.
 
Interesting to read the comments

The camera in my Avatar is the camera I ask the question about.

As I said the friend has passed away and his feelings are beyond him now.

Yes it is gear that I seek to improve my photography hobby with.

I do most of my photography of family and nature. Waterfalls/small parts of the forest floor/ birds/ large and small animals/and product photography.

I have gone street shooting twice in my life. I live in a small town and drive a dump truck for a living.

None of which screams Rare Black Leica M2 to me.

But I do get the idea of honoring my friends gift. And that is pretty much the only part of the question I have pause with.
 
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Mark W said:
................ I can keep it and use it not worrying myself about it's value. But the end result are photographs. Those photographs would be no better with a Black body then with a chrome body.

The difference is that with the proceeds of the sale I would be able to greatly expand my photographic abilities.
Click to expand...

Your first statement is correct, but selling it will only give you cash to expand your hardware collection - it will not enhance your abilities one iota.

It has to be your decision, personally, I would shoot it and remember that special friend. I have sold dream kit in the past because I thought I "needed" something better (e.g. mint Reid III) only to realise that the limitation on my success is me, not the hardware :bang:
 
I suppose the question I'd ask myself is 'what did he want me to do with it?'

Did he leave it to you because he wanted you always to have a memento of your friendship? Or was it because he knew that no-one else he could leave it to would think any more than 'this is just some old film camera' and chuck it in the attic?

I thought long and hard about who to leave various things to when I wrote my will... my M3 will be going to my nephew, who I hope will use it. Having said that, it's just a bog-standard M3, not a precious rare edition. Difficult.

Cheers
Jamie
 
Mark W said:
But I do get the idea of honoring my friends gift. And that is pretty much the only part of the question I have pause with.
Click to expand...

If you have pause with it now, I don't see how selling it will ever sit well.

Not if it's just to get some other gear. On the other hand, if one day you really needed the money, your friend would surely not have minded your selling it.

Meantime, gifts like these are about the only time in life we get to enjoy things we'd otherwise be too frugal to buy, and if we did buy them, too stressed about value to feel relaxed using them.
 
I'd suggest that, to honour the memory of your generous friend, that you should look a his photographs that he took with the Leica. What did he use the camera for? It obviously meant a lot to him, otherwise he would have sold it. Who is there now to look at his photographs with the same attention and care that he put into taking them?

Next, try using his camera to take similar photographs to the ones he took. If local then go to the same places, use the same films, use the camera above all. Particularly do this at times when he has special importance for you - such as on anniversaries of memorable occasions.

Finally, use the camera to take your own photos and see what you think of the results of these inputs.

If after this you wish to sell the camera, then do so - you will have honoured the friendship and the gift appropriately.
 
i'd consider selling it and using the proceeds to buy an m2 that needed some tlc and have that painted anthracite or olive green.
 
I'd use it, as I did the black M3 I found silly-cheap in a camera store. I'd still be using that camera now if it were an M2 but I wanted the 35mm frame lines, so I got rid of it 20 years ago. In your place I'd also want to keep it as a memento of my chum, but that's just me.

Cheers,

R.
 
It is a fantastic gift from a friend of yours, do what you want with it! For what we know he wanted you to sell it and use the money on a digital p&s without any manual control, if he has not told you there is no point in beating yourself up with these thoughts.

If we are supposed to build shrines around every gift we get there is going to be a lot of shrines around.........
 
The camera looks pretty brassed already. By using it you wont devalue it (unless you write it off)
If it needs a CLA get one done and then just shoot with it. Its a collectable camera to many leica users but its still a camera and a very nice one at that.

On top of that its a gift from a friend. Dont worry about what its worth it cost you £/$ 0
 
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