Does the availability of this new accessory change your opinion of the best viewfinder magnification for a new camera? If you were going to opt for the 0.85, would you now go for a 0.72 or even the 0.58?

-- Frank Horn (owlhoot45@hotmail.com), November 09, 2001

Answers

This is a great question. Unfortunately for me, the more options I have the more confused I get:-)

-- Bud (budcook@attglobal.net), November 10, 2001.

Not bad, guys. Let me put it this way. I think that I would in fact prefer a whole new body (with it's own vf mag) -- for it's own lens -- instead of continually having to add and subtract the 1.25er each time when changing lenses from one and the same body. (Maybe that's what Leica hoped for anyhow...)

-- Michael Kastner (kastner@zedat.fu-berlin.de), November 10, 2001.

I have the new magnifier along with .58 and .72 bodies. I very much like the magnifier on the .72 body for lenses 50mm and up. I do not wear eyeglasses, and with the magnifier on this body the 35mm frame- lines are still visible, but reside at the very edge of the view. However, I assume eyeglass wearers would not be able to see them. The advantage for me is that the magnifier comes off easily if I want to use a 35 (my most-used focal length) on that body and still see around the frame-lines – something I could not do with a .85 body. As a plus, I still have the 28mm frame-lines with my .72 body, though I cannot see around them. (Also, to my eye, the visual difference between the .58 and .72 viewfinders does not seem all that pronounced, yet the jump from the .72 to .85 somehow seems too great – curious, but perhaps explains my basic prejudice against the .85 body...) So, for relatively few dollars, I think you get the best of both the .72 and .85 worlds with a .72 body and the magnifier. With the availability of the magnifier, I think a .85 body makes little sense unless you are only going to be shooting only 50mm and above focal lengths. On the other hand, a .85 body plus the magnifier might be the ideal combo for one who routinely shoots with only the 90 or 135.

The magnifier is of very high optical quality, and is small enough to be practically transparent in use when mounted on the body. In use, it now resides permanently on my .72 body, coming off only when the 35mm lens goes on. It definitely enhances my ability to focus the 90 and 135 more quickly, although I’m not yet convinced off any added benefit with the 50. On the downside, the magnifier does dim the viewfinder slightly, but I do not think it is a significant impairment, just a noticeable one. Also, IMO the case/leash gizmo Leica designed for the eyepiece is more of a problem than it is worth. The case itself is fine, and sits in the bottom of bag for those times I need to store the eyepiece. The case will also mount on the camera strap for those of you who like to carry accessories there, and the little leash thingie will keep the magnifier connected to the case or your strap lug-ring.

Mike: If you never plan on changing lenses between bodies, and you have the money, I think dedicated body/lens combos are a great solution - it is precisely what many photojournalists used to do, having three or four bodies at a time hanging off their necks and shoulders. However for most of us this solution is cost-prohibitive, especially with Leicas... Plus Murphy always seems to rise to the occasion to guarantee that you will never have film in the one body you want to use at a critical moment!

-- Jack Flesher (jbflesher@msn.com), November 10, 2001.

I normally carry 2 M6 classics (0.72x) or 1 M6 and a Konica RF (0.6x). One body gets the Tri-Elmar and a 28mm accessory finder, the other body gets a 90 or 135. I mounted the 1.25x on the 2nd (tele) body after removing the chain. The magnifier will stay permanently on that body...*unless* something goes wrong with the other body, in which case the magnifier will come off and go in its case in my bag; or, conversely, if something goes wrong with the magnified body I can put the magnifier on the other body for use with the tele lenses. An 0.85x body would not give me that backup flexibility. I believe that having just one body and screwing and unscrewing the magnifier whenever lenses are changed would become an awful PITA. If I had been in the Leica design department, I would have made the magnifier such that after it was screwed into the eyepiece, it could be flipped up and down on a hinge, as many SLR viewfinder magnifiers do.

-- Jay (infinitydt@aol.com), November 10, 2001.

Jack and Jay, you're both right. Good answers to Frank's original question. Let's say one has "only" two M6s. I'd say the 1.25x vf mag makes both the 0.72 and the 0.58 more beneficial, but makes the 0.85 more superfluous. However, as always, the final answer depends on what lenses you'll always be using.

-- Michael Kastner (kastner@zedat.fu-berlin.de), November 10, 2001.

When the magnifier first came out I thought it would be the answer to my desire to be able to use the 75 Summilux on an M3 until I realized that increasing the magnification of the viewfinder wouldn't change the acceptance angle of the frames:-(

-- Bud (budcook@attglobal.net), November 10, 2001.

Michael,

I have a .72 and .85. Would it not make sense to have the .58 and the .85 with the magnifier i.e. a 1.06. The latter body would be perfect with the teles (little used by all I suspect), making especially the 90 very usable, and the 58 could handle almost anything else. And at a pinch you could use the "1.06" for a really close up 50mm view.

-- Mani Sitaraman (bindumani@pacific.net.sg), November 10, 2001.

I have only one M (and probably will never buy a second), the 0,85 because I prefer long focal lengths like my 'Cron 90 AA to short lenses. If the 1,25 magnifier had existed when I bought my M, I would have probably prefered a 0,72 with the magnifier: it's the only model we find sometimes cheaper in France, it owns a 28 framelines and is more easy to use with 35 mm for eyes glasses wearers .... but don't worry, I love my M :-)

Regards, Alain

-- alain.besancon (alain.besancon@chu-dijon.fr), November 12, 2001.

Frank, I think that the pairing of the .85 with the magnifier would make sense for those who use the Noctilux and/or the 75 Summilux, because in both cases, you need all the focusing accuracy you can get. It would also make sense for those using the 90mm and 135mm lenses extensively, as I imagine having the largest possible finder image aids composition with these focal lengths; and focusing is critical with these lenses as well. When the use of these special lenses is not the first priority, I should think the .72 the more versatile choice because of the greater convenience with 35mm lenses, and the inclusion of a 28mm finder frame.

-- Bob Fleischman (RFXMAIL@prodigy.net), November 12, 2001.