Hello List Members I am just curious as to how many of you routinely focus using your right hand? Incredible as its sounds, I managed to cut-off the top of my left thumb (maybe a good 3\16")with a utility blade last weekend. I can probably palm an M camera in my left hand and focus with my right. Or maybe I'll stick to the wides and not worry about focusing so much. I'll give it a try this weekend. Just thinking out loud. Best Regards, and be safe. Richard Fulco

-- Richard Fulco (calcinc@mn.rr.com), November 02, 2001

Answers

Losing the tip of your thumb sounds painful but should not be a problem focusing because on most Leica wides there is a focusing tab which you use the inmdex finger for. For other lenses like a 50 or 90 you can have tabs added on by Leica and others.

-- Steve LeHuray (icommag@toad.net), November 02, 2001.

Remember the line 'Dr. it hurts when I do that.' 'Well don't do that then.' I cut my thumb in almost the same way with a chef's knife chopping carrots after a glass or two of wine. A padded bandage and some advil and I was able to focus my cameras pretty well. It was terrible on my golf game though. Kept bleeding through the bandage and I had to apply some general aenesthetic to finish the round. Just bandage up well and go out and focus. Cheers.

-- don (wgpinc@yahoo.com), November 02, 2001.

I lost most of the use of my left hand due to a stroke several years ago, and was a Leica zone focuser/Nikon AF-er until i learned from Lutz how to put cable tie focusing tabs on my Leica lenses. Now I hold my M3 in my right hand with only a slight brace from my left and focus it with my right middle finger, previously useful mainly for poetic self-expression. For Lutz' 10-cent solution look here: http://www.greenspun.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg.tcl?msg_id=005HY9

-thanks, Lutz!...............

-- david kelly (dmkedit@aol.com), November 02, 2001.

David,

You're welcome and I'm happy it works for you, too. But I'm more than willing to share the credit with Jack Flesher, who inspired me. Thanks, Jack!

-- Lutz Konermann (lutz@konermann.net), November 02, 2001.

I too had a stroke three years ago which resulted in bad use of my left hand etc. That is why I ended up loving tabs. Maybe why I ended up loving wide angles, but I'm not sure here. I prefer 21mm - 35mm lenses anyhow. I often use my right hand to focus, too, holding my M6TTL in the left hand. Never had any problem here. Sticking to focusing, especially with a 21, you'll never have to worry about anything. Your thumb cut-off (which I'm sorry about) will heal, but my stroke won't. I still don't see any problems here with right-hand focusing.

All best wishes, Mike

-- Michael Kastner (kastner@zedat.fu-berlin.de), November 02, 2001.

I use a grip and a wrist strap. With this combo, it's pretty easy to hold the camera, focus and shoot all with my right hand.

-- Steve Wiley (wiley@accesshub.net), November 02, 2001.