I love capturing moments and I love street photography. It is truth captured at that moment of time. Nothing scripted, nothing staged. I started with a DSLR and came to realise the constraints when shooting street with it. I know there are already many people out there who have successfully conquered streets with DSLRs. Granted, I can always throw a telephoto zoom lens and take pictures of my subjects from afar. But I like getting close to my subjects so I can better interact with my subject. How is my subject feeling at that time? Why is he/she having that expression? What could have happened to him/her before that? What is going thru his/her mind?
With the constraints of DSLR in mind and research done, I’ve decided to get myself a Leica rangefinder but a full frame digital rangefinder with a 10 grand price tag is definitely out of my reach so I’m left with the option of an analog rangefinder or a Leica M8/8.2. I opted Leica M8/8.2 out mainly because of stability issues, infra-red issues with the sensor and the fact that analog cameras last longer than digital ones. Even though the Leica M8/8.2 looks pretty much alike their analog siblings, the analog ones are slightly smaller in size and with the cloth shutters are slightly quieter. So, an analogue rangefinder it is going to be.
After much hunting, I finally got a Leica M6 in mint condition then bought a spanking new Voigtlander Nokton 35mm f1.4 SC lens. I was exhilarated when I was holding the camera in my hands. The feeling was just awesome. The camera feels solid and well-built, its like you can almost crush someone’s skull with it. The chrome finish is beautiful and the leatherette gives excellent grip. Viewfinder is clear and bright. Focus on the lens is buttery smooth and when I press the shutter, all I hear is a quick “shuck!” No loud mirror slapping. The sound of the shutter is like music to my ears.
I was trembling with joy as I was loading a roll of Kodak Trix 400 into my M6. It took me quite a while to load the film properly as this is after all my first try. Taking photos with it was unbelievable! I was able to stand pretty close to my subjects without them noticing me. Even if they do, it is probably too late for them as I have already hit the shutter. The focusing system of a rangefinder is a new thing to me but it is not difficult to pick up. It is potentially faster and more accurate than auto-focus especially under low lighting conditions if you mastered it. The camera is easy to use because all I have to do is to set the aperture, the shutter speed, focus then shoot. I don’t have to fumble around with the buttons and functions I probably won’t ever need to use.
When I’ve shot all 36 frames, I brought the roll of film to a color lab for processing and scanning to CD. When I got my negatives and CD back, I quick rushed home and feed the CD into my iMac to view the pictures. Although the pictures are not well taken but nostalgia look of the pictures, the film grains and the experience made all the research and hunting worthwhile.
As wonderful as the camera may sound, the camera still have its problems. The focusing patch get flares sometimes hence making focusing a challenge but this is a known problem to Leica M6′s viewfinder. Unlike DSLRs and most digital cameras, rangefinders have a minimum focusing distance at 70 centimetres depending on the lens and they do not have access to zoom and super telephoto lenses due to the design. After taking pictures, I am not able to preview the images I’ve taken and that made me really unsure of the photo I’ve taken especially as a new user to analogue photography but that became not so much of a problem after I got used to it. Some of these problems might be a big deal for some but acknowledging them and working around them is definitely not difficult.
Nevertheless, I am currently using my Leica M6 exclusively and lovin’ every moment with it. I’ve also learned to develop my own B/W films. The developing process is interesting and fun. It might be time-consuming and too much a hassle for some as one have to load the film to the reel in darkness, develop, stopbath, fix then air dry the negatives. But I find the whole process enjoyable, relaxing and almost therapeutic when I see the little images appearing on the negatives.
Article contributed by Jimmy.
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