does anyone else hate changing lenses when out in the field as much as i do?

for >90% of my shooting, a 35 sits on my M6 and the 50 on my M3. I have a 21 siting on an M4 for 5% or more of the work depending on the situation: sometimes 21/35 gets carried, never all three bodies at once.

When i got a 12 to play with it was 12/M3, 35 M6. when i get a 75 anyday from a fellow forum poster, it will be 35/M6 and 75/M3.

as you can see, the 35 is welded to my M6 as this combo never gets left at home.

-- steve (leitz_not_leica@hotmail.com), June 06, 2002

Answers

It's funny how people can perceive things differently... I don't change lenses as much as I change camera bodies. I have a different film type in each camera body and I often work with only one or sometimes 2 lenses, i.e., 280mm + 560mm. As light conditions change I'll replace one body with another that has a more suitable film.

-- Douglas Herr (telyt@earthlink.net), June 06, 2002.

I must admit to the same syndrome , For 10 years I only had two lens and two leica M bodys . Recently added a third lens and another body and its a bit much to carry out side of on a job .

Odd bit is that for years of nikon mf changing lenses was just second nature , really wish nikon still put on the tab for non AI cameras made it so easy to do blind.

Good bit is the red bump on all Leica glass that allows the same easy blind tactile feel.

-- Charles C. Stirk Jr. (ccstirkjr@yahoo.com), June 06, 2002.

well, one doesn't have much choice changing lenses when one only has one body... I tend to prefer the 50mm as a general lens though Albeit I'm quite new to the Leica/rangefinder game. I hear one tends to wider and wider... :-)

cheers,

-- pat (modlabs@yahoo.com), June 06, 2002.

Hello,

I really hate changing lenses now after dropping my 90. It's now at DAG getting fixed. #&$*%#!!!!!

Make's the notion of a second body with the second lens already mounted less expensive. Leica lens repair is expensive.

-- David Smith (dssmith3@rmci.net), June 06, 2002.

"Growing up" with a LST camera (IIIf/RD/ST), discourages one from the habit of changing lenses, (instead you learn to walk back and forth a lot).

-- Willhelmn (wmitch3400@hotmail.com), June 06, 2002.

One reason my standard outfit is the Hexar RF with ubiquitous Tri- Elmar, plus an 0.72 M6 with the 1.25x magnifier and either a 90 or 135, which is exchanged for a 15 or 21 in rare instances. Before the Tri-Elmar I had stopped carrying a 35, and used the 28-50-135 primarily, so changing lenses brought with it a substantial change in coverage. I very quickly tired of juggling 28-35-50 lenses and was happy when the Tri-Elmar came along.

-- Jay (infinitydt@aol.com), June 06, 2002.

Interesting! I have two bodies b=w,color, one 50 and one 35. It's been a great combo. One is my son's M7 the other Pats old M6ttl ! Of interest my son prefers the 28,35 or 24 combo and uses the M6's the most. He's the pro! Maybe we do get wider as time goes on he's used Leica for years.

-- gary brown (drdad1111@yahoo.com), June 06, 2002.

Pat and I go with one body apiece - - my M4 and her M6 (we're still learning how to be comfortable with the new M7). She uses a pre-asph 35 mm exclusively - - and I change between a 50, 35 and 90. One thing I've learned over the years is to have a few rear lens caps and front caps scattered throughout my clothing (photo vest or jacket) so that I don't get caught trying to change these things from the lens I'm putting on to the lens I'm taking off. I take off the lens, put on the front and rear caps, drop it into my photo jacket, and THEN pull out the new lens, pull off the caps and mount it. Slight addition to" peace of mind," in that I don't have to sweat dropping one or the other of the lenses while swapping front and rear caps.

-- George C. Berger (gberger@his.com), June 06, 2002.

This is one of the reasons I recently offloaded some Leica lenses I considered superfluous. They either spent their time sitting in the camera cabinet or I was carrying them around in the bag and rarely, if ever, bothering to mount them. I'll reiterate I point I've made in the past: I believe I could be very happy with one M body (right now the M7), the 35 'Lux asph as my only lens, and a permanent supply of Tri-X. (Of course I admit this is an easy statement to make given I don't actually have to live it!)

;-),

-- Jack Flesher (jbflesher@msn.com), June 06, 2002.

when i have a volunteer assistant-my girlfriend-i let her carry my 90 and other stuff when i need assistance with changing lenses. lucky for her i don't use a tripod (how many of you have seen the sig. other carying the tripod?). otherwise, juggling one body (or two) two lenses, two rear caps becomes very cumbersome while on the move.

i once tried a dyi by placing the M4/21 on the cobblestones lens up, taking off the 35 from my M6 (cutting the welds-had the right film) and placing the 35 on my M4, not wanting to bayonet it on-grinding the camera into the stones, so left it loose in the M4 flange. i took the pic w/21, went down to pick up the M4/35 and the lens rolled off onto the stones-luckily only a couple of inches; only a few more battle scars.

-- steve (leitz_not_leica@hotmail.com), June 06, 2002.

I agree Steve. I, too, hate changing lenses in the field. When I'm doing serious work, I'll usually carry two M6's. One .72vf in my hand with a 28 'cron or one of my 35's, and a .85vf with a 75 'lux tucked away in my domke 803, ready to go if needed. Sometimes I'll have a third lens in the bag, but I don't switch often.

I generally think that people who shoot leica M cameras tend tobe the type of peolple who like to keep things fairly simple. I don't think many people walk around with 5-6 lenses. So I think it might be fairly common for leica M photographers not to change lenses often.

-- noah (naddis@mindspring.com), June 06, 2002.

I do not like to change lenses either. I normally carry a M6 with a 35/1.4A and that is it. If I am going to be doing photography that involves using different lenses then I carry each lens on a body. Three lenses is usually enough for most situations.

-- John Collier (jbcollier@shaw.ca), June 06, 2002.

Having a newly aquired second body (M6) I'm having a wale of a time.

If I'm at a function or event and so using more film, I tend to use colour in one B&W in the other and suffer the occasional lens change. If it's just candid wandering I have colour in both, M6/21mm and M6ttl/35mm plus a 50mm in the bag ready to replace whichever lens I need least at the time. As much as I like the 90, at the moment I find I use it less than I had originally hoped.

But I agree Steve, changing lenses is a hassle. Aside from time and opportunity wasted, they can so easily get damaged in the heat of battle especially the vulnerable aspherical rear lens on the 35. But that's the way it is and as they say 'you can't make an omlet without breaking some eggs'. (bad analogy when I come to think of it but you know what I mean)

-- Tim Gee (twg@optushome.com.au), June 06, 2002.

I've never dropped a lens and don't worry about doing it, as I always change lenses over the bag (one reason I like bags with a waist belt, they're always handy to swing around in front of me). What bothers me most about changing lenses is the prospect of getting sand or dust/grit into the camera and onto the rear element of the lens. I change lenses as quickly as I can, but it's still a concern. In dusty areas (again, before the Tri-Elmar)I often carried two bodies on me (28 and 50) and a third in the bag, with the 135.

-- Jay (infinitydt@aol.com), June 06, 2002.

Steve: Whatchagonnado for 75mm framelines on the M3?

-- Bob Fleischman (RFXMAIL@prodigy.net), June 06, 2002.

lately, i just carry different fixed lens cameras ... Rolleiflex, Hassy SWC, Fuji 645, etc.

no hassles, fewer decisions... ;-)

godfrey

-- Godfrey (ramarren@bayarea.net), June 06, 2002.

Aside from concerns about dust under adverse situations, changing lenses doesn't bother me in the least. Like Jay, I try to do the cap-exchange ritual over the open bag, but I can usually remove the cap from the to-be-mounted lens, and rotate it around for putting on the being-replaced lens with one hand. That leaves the other hand devoted to holding onto the lens coming off the camera until it gets to the safety zone of the bag. No sweat, no fear.

-- Ralph Barker (rbarker@pacbell.net), June 06, 2002.

1) Look up pictures of Gene Smith during the shoot of his Pittsburgh essay, or the rock photographer Jim Marshall at Woodstock. Marshall has a web site with the picture on it someplace - Smith you'll have to do your own homework on.

Both of them are portrayed bedecked in about 7 rangefinders (Smith/ Canons and Marshall/Leicas). They obviously did not like changing lenses either.

Jim Marshall has also stated (and I agree completely) that some lenses are just 'happier' on certain bodies - they focus better, especially the critical long/fast ones. So when he finds a combo that works, the lens never again leaves that body. Which explains the picture. 8^)

2) In addition some of my most-used lenses (older ones) are somewhat stiff to mount/dismount. Which is an added incentive to avoid changes. Also, I hate 1) shooting with the 21 finder on if I'm not using the 21 lens, and 2) having to swap the finder(s) around as well as the lenses.

So at the moment I'm shooting M4-2/21/finder, M4/90, M4-P/35 or 28 or occasional 15/finder. Three cameras is ideal to own (to ensure 2 to work with even if one is in the shop) but one too many to carry/shoot with in comfort, IMHO. So it's a dilemma.

Usually I just plan ahead and shoot either 21/90 or 28/90 or some such - and I WILL carry the 35 separately and (perish the thought) change it for the 21 or 90 if I need it.

-- Andy Piper (apidens@denver.infi.net), June 07, 2002.

I hate changing lenses that have protruding rear ends, like the 35 ASPHs lenses. The reason? You have to have em dead centered before inserting otherwise the rangefinder arm can scratch the rear element!

-- Karl Yik (karl.yik@dk.com), June 07, 2002.

I used to do all my work with the pre-asph 35mm Summilux, plus the 90mm Elmarit as needed.

Now I've given in to the temptation of the 28mm Summicron, and wonder what's going to happen next - looks like I'll slot the 50mm Summicron in but that'll probably mean lots more lens changes. The Tri-Elmar would be great, but f/4 is just one stop too slow for me.

-- Ulf Messner (ulf.messner@sun.com), June 08, 2002.

Andy--

I somewhere read (on his website perhaps) that Jim Marshall covered Woodstock with five Leica Ms around his neck and shoulders -- and a Walther .38 caliber pistol stuck in his belt. :-)

-- Douglas Kinnear (douglas.kinnear@colostate.edu), June 08, 2002.