Albert,
Oy! I feel somewhat qualified to respond to this, as I am the owner of a
couple of Hasselblads, five lenses, four OM's and sixteen lenses, and once
owned a sm Leica with a 50. No one can fault Leica for making a high quality
product, both bodies and lenses, but's let's face it, those two makers
aren't the only cameras on earth.
For most of my adult life, I've earned my living as a photographer. Along
with the blad and the OM, I also own a couple of Nikon F's and a few lenses,
and all of the above have brought home the bacon. While employeed by others,
I also used Mamiya RB 67's, and those, at least in the seventies, were
indeed stinkers.
In addition to those mentioned, I have used and own/owned personally an Xpan
outfit and a contax G outfit. Although the Contax didn't suit me, it
certainly produced fine photos, and the Xpan that replaced it continues to
please me.
Certainly, the OM and Nikon systems have lenses that produce results less
satisfying than others, but overall, each system has its strengths, just as
the Leicas have their strengths and weaknesses.
For me, I always go for the biggest negative first, but I can show you good
results from all. In fact, I went to Milan in the nineties, and took only a
Rollei Prego 90. I have displayed and sold many of the fine photos that
resulted, and I don't think anyone could tell from the print what camera was
used. For that matter, I've gotten excellent results with my XA, and my
wife's IS3, af Nikons, and Fuji DL super mini.
Of all the makes, Leica has attracted the greatest affluent snob interest.
That doesn't discount their quality, but it does mean that the brand
attracts the kind of customer that shoots less and posts more. Wouldn't we
all like to know the average yearly film comsumption of the average M6 or 7?
I think all the time spent by equiment snobs would be better spent on
shooting more photos. In the latest issue, the editor of Lenswork comments
that, if instead of photography, he were to have taken up the violin, he
wouldn't have questioned for a minute the need to play daily. Good advice
for all, myself included.
Bill Pearce
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