Being very new to the world of M photography I've been trying out various ways of operating my new M6.72

One of the things I've been attempting is keeping both eyes open while looking through the finder. It is very easy to do in the M3 but a little disconcerting in the M6. My brain see's two image sizes.

I'm trying this "both eyes open" technique as I have been lead to believe it reduces fatigue and one can get the "framelines imposed on reality" vision.

With the M3 this certainly holds true. Not so with the M6.72....with right eye viewing.

Interestingly I can keep both eyes open when I use my left eye against the viewfinder. I can see my thumb of course, but it does not seem distracting at all. The viewfinder image has less "vignetting" by the edge of the view image and the framelines really do seem to "float in space".....just like in the M3.

It is definitely quite relaxing to operate this way.

There are of course issues with nose and my right eye clashing with various camera parts, but my head position is less acute and my neck is not as kinked as when I use my right eye.

My nose gets in the way of really close viewing of the finder, but unlike with right eye viewing it also keeps me from pressing my right cheek hard against the camera back and the subsequent distortions my neck undergoes.

Also when in vertical viewing (when held with right hand above left) with left eye viewing the finder, my forehead sits flush with the back of the camera and helps stablize the camera.

Left eye viewing is not instinctive with me, but I'm going to investigate this matter further.

-- Simon Wong (drsimonwong@hotmail.com), July 27, 2001

Answers

I haven't seen them, but I understand that some of the new Voigtlander accessory viewfinders are designed to keep both eyes open.

-- Bill Mitchell (bmitch@home.com), July 27, 2001.

usualy we all have one eye that is the one that more criticaly photographs.

I also find seeing through my rigth eye with the M much relaxing, but just for the ergonomics, because my left eye is the critical one, as far as I see, wish the rigth one were the one but after many tries I just canīt concentrate my visual atention through that eye.

Lately came to my hands what I think is the 40 aniversary issue of a magazine edited by leica, with a picture on the cover of a girl seated on the sand of a beach holding a framed picture, this by Ralph Gibson; in the inner articles there is one on Henry Cartier Bresson reciving a gift from the Leica house on his 80th annyversary, of couse it was a new M6 body as I can see, the two pictures shows him reciving a M body without a lens, on the second picture, he is holding it with a lens already on, the lens is a black 50/2 from the 70īs without a tab, and he is using his left eye in an expontaneous reaction to test the finder, interesting to see how a master holds his tool.

-- r watson (al1231234@hotmail.com), July 27, 2001.

You are lucky that you have any option as far as choosing which eye you can use. I am left eye dominate, and can't even begin to use my right eye. I always felt like a bit of a second class citizen whenever I see Leica books showing how to hold the camera... inevitably with the right eye at the finder and the free left eye out in space. My rather large nose is always getting in the way when I bring the camera to my left eye.

-- Al Smith (smith58@msn.com), July 27, 2001.

The correct way when using a rifle with telescopic sights (contrary to what you might see in a hollywood production) is to keep both eyes open. This helps to reduce any strain that might translate into movement, which may decrease your chance of hitting the target. The same principle could be used for using slow shutter speeds on the Leica M.

-- Sam Smith (Ruy_Lopez@hotmail.com), July 28, 2001.

I have absolutely no problems shooting with both eyes open using my Leica M6 TTL 0.72. It is a great advantage especially in action photography.

Lorens

-- Lorens Christian Asmussen (toftmann@post11.tele.dk), July 28, 2001.

I have a Leitz 50 brightline finder on my llf. Its image is lifesize, making it easy to shoot with both eyes open. The Voigtlander 50 finder is also lifesize.

-- John Fleetwood (johnfleetwood@hotmail.com), July 29, 2001.

Both eyes open, my left eye is dominant, but I use my right eye for shooting (film or guns). It took as much practice to be able to ignore the other-open-eye-discrepancy as it took to get used to my progressive lens eyeglasses. The technique is simply to keep practicing until your brain decides that how your eyes are actually seeing is not how you want to see, and your brain then makes the adjustment makes the adjustment. Like riding a bicycle.

-- Jeff Polaski (polaski@acm.org), July 31, 2001.