Toronto Photography Meetup Group

SO I have some Leica gear.
M4-P and some decent lenses to go with it.
I want to know if it's worth it to sell and move onto an M9.

I do like the convenience of digital, and I don't have a Nikon negative scanner ( which would rock! )

now I have 4 lenses, and I dunno which ones to keep/sell.
a 50mm and 35mm summilux (non asph )
and a 50mm summicron
and lastly, a 90mm elmarit.
I like street shooting, so the 90 can go.
I'd prob. like to lose the 35mm lux and 50mm cron. I like to shoot at 1.4. Thinking MAYBE keep the 35 lux and drop the 50?
I can only keep one lens since I need to sell the rest to bump up to the m9.

Any advice? Should I do it? Will I like the jump?
Is it worth it if I almost break even after selling/trading the M4-P and 3 lenses?
I had a D700 before, then went to 5DmkII ( man, was focusing a DUD on that cam!! )
and now, this M4-P I got is SUCH a nice size, I don't think I'll be in any rush to go to full size DSLR's anytime soon. Unless they get that D3s ISO in a small body... maybe..

Sure the m9 is a cool camera, but will it do everything you want? If you want to use those lenses on digital, may I suggest instead getting a micro four thirds or sony nex camera with an adapter instead to experiment?

In my view there are two major issues to consider the first and probably most important is rangefinder versus SLR, the shooting style is very different for the two camera systems if you are wedded to the RF approach to shooting you may find the transition a challenge.

There are a variety of differences, Af versu manual focus, size of the camera etc.

The other consideration is cost. An M9 will cost you $7k + for the same amount of money you can get some nice Canon or Nikon DSLR gear.

My suggestion is that you rent or borrow whatever new system you are considering and try it out, prior to committing the big bucks..

Its cheaper to buy a Nikon Coolscan from ebay than an M9. You'll also avoid the possible lens-body calibration problems with your existing lenses when mated to a new M9 body.

thanks guys.
Well, I hit vistek.
Took a couple leica lenses I have, and tried them all on an M9 body.
Loved it. Shots came out great. The MF was not a big deal at all.

I want to just keep a summilux 35mm 1.4 maybe, or sell it and get a 35m 2.0 summicron to save some more $$ and make the transition not so bad.

I noticed I ALWAYS shoot wide 90% of the time, so I'm in no rush to expand lenses as long as I have my main wide street shooter.

I was thinking about a oly-2 or GF1, or nex5. However, I read how the leica lenses soften up on those cams. And I really enjoy the sharpness. If I used a 4/3 system, prob. just best to stick with the panny 20mm 1.7 lens. Also, the 2.0 crop factor bites. Except for the NEX5 (aps-c) 1.5x I think it was?

I was thinking of the coolscan V, and just didn't want another bulky thing in my house. Then buy film. Develop film, scan film. Although the quality will be top notch, I don't need super large, pixel peeping prints.

The size, and FF was just excellent!

My dad has an M4-P as well, and similar set of lenses...


now to push him to do what you did and get the M9... minus the part about selling lenses

Yes, the Micro Four Thirds bodies are 2x crop factor.

The Sony NEX 5 (and NEX 3) are 1.5x crop factor.

You're welcome to meet up with me and dabble with my NEX 5 and M lens adapter. I just picked up a a CV 35/2.5 to use with an M mount adapter.

Perhaps at the TPMG BBQ this week?

What's the source on the lenses "softening up"?

ohh... when's the BBQ?? That I could go for, and that way we both can see how these lenses perform on 4/3

The source was MANY internet searches after midnight to approx 4am. I landed at least 3-4 different sources stating this. I'd have to do some hunting. But I was quite sure I read that they experienced this themselves.
ie: from users with m9 and 4/3's they bought to play with.

I not sure if it's as much an issue of softening as much as flare and contrast issues... most of the M mount and certainly the LTM lenses were designed for film which doesn't reflect any light... however, with CCD and CMOS sensors, there is a reflective coating of glass or some other non-opaque material that causes extra internal reflections which may, to some critical eyes results in lower than optimal performance...

having said that the same is true for use of these lenses on M8, 8.2 and 9s from what I've read online... from what I can tell it's primarily a syndrome associates with pixel peeping..

make the move if you can afford it ... as a RF user you should be aware of the advantages and disadvantages of a RF so only you can decide if it's right for you and your objectives...

so it appears I won't be at the BBQ this Thurs.
Sorry.!!
I really wanted to try the nex-5 with some Leica glass too.
maybe next time.