Photographs that I took with this camera, the scanning process (and the scanner itself) as well as more film-related stuff will be published in future articles. Expect a few months to pass though.
Recently, I found myself constantly looking at other people’s film scans. There’s something about film that you simply cannot achieve in digital post processing, no matter how good the VSCO presets are.
At some point, the wish to get back into film grew so strong that I decided to buy some colour film. I got a roll of Fujicolor Superia 200 and a roll of Kodak Portra 160 to decide for myself which one I would buy in heaps. I love black&white film and still have a roll of Fujifilm Neopan Acros 100 loaded in my Nikon F2 (I also got 7 rolls of 135 Neopan Acros 100 and 5 rolls of 120 medium format Acros 100 in my cupboard).
What’s the problem? Quickly finish the film in the Nikon, reinstall the Photomic head and get out to shoot colour film again. But I don’t like simple…
At some point in the past I bought this Konica Autoreflex T3, marked as broken, for ten bucks. (Because I wanted the lens, obviously)
The camera turned out to work, as long as you don’t chose a shutter speed longer than 1/60s (where the shutter would get stuck).
I wanted to use the Konica for my film tests, but I had to discover that the seals on the door were all gone and the meter doesn’t work anymore. The Konica still makes for a beautiful prop and looks great on the shelf.
So, we buy a new film camera then?
This solution was obvious, since my Yashica TLR doesn’t have a meter either and that means I don’t have a film camera at hand.
Looking at TLR Medium Format cameras, the Rolleiflex 2.8E – which is on top of my film camera wishlist, along with a Leica M6 Rangefinder – costs way too much (and so would the Leica).
For a short moment, I considered buying a Canon 7S Rangefinder with a Canon LTM 50mm f/1.4 (also known as the “Japanese Summilux”), but you can expect to spend 500 bucks and more for this combo, plus the rangefinder servicing is crazy expensive in Switzerland.
Back to SLR cameras, I thought about getting a Pentax with m42 screw mount (I’ve got quite a few 50mm lenses with m42 mount after all), and was ready to do some research on which model to get. But then I looked at my collection of lenses and noticed how there were several specimen with red dots and different focal lengths. Why did I not think of this right away?
Well, the Leica M6 rangefinder is one of my dream cameras, but it’s very expensive, and so are most other Leica rangefinders. I simply expected the Leica SLRs to be overpriced as well. Turns out they aren’t. (Except for the Leica R6 and R6.2, which were aimed at the “purist photographer” and didn’t offer anything other than manual mode. So they have to be worth more, no?!)
Leica SLRs never were among the prettiest, and the last models (R8 and R9) also were huge and ugly, imo. I had to discard the Leicaflex SL2 because my lenses are R-only (they don’t work on the early models) and I couldn’t find a good offer for the Leica R3 (my personal favourite, based on a Minolta XE, great build quality and rather good looking too), so I looked at the later models, based on the smaller Minolta XD. The R4 only has a 1/1000s shutter and loads of electronics issues have been reported with earlier models, the R6 is too expensive and the R7 never popped up on my searches.
Enter the Leica R5
I got the Leica R5 because it offers a fast shutter speed (up to 1/2000s), a great lightmeter (both integrated and selective (center-weighted)), is reasonably cheap (usually sells well below 100 bucks in great condition) and because it was a great offer that I couldn’t resist.
The seller offered his Leica R5 in a bundle with the Summicron-R 90mm f/2 at an already good price. I asked him to drop it another 20% and he did. Looking at the average “sold” price for the lens, one could say that I got the camera for free and he paid me 100 bucks on top of it to take the deal.
The camera came in its original box which is pretty nice.
The strap had never been used. (No surprise there. Why would anyone in their right mind decide to wear something this ugly?)
Except from a few little signs at the baseplate (the brass is showing through) and a nick in the paint at the side of the lens mount, the camera looks like new.
It really isn’t the prettiest camera, but I like the all-blake finish and prefer it to the black silver version which looks really cheap when compared to the Konica or my Nikon F2 which don’t look like painted plastic.
Handling
The camera doesn’t look great, but the handling is really nice. The viewfinder is great and all the important information is displayed with red LEDs. Also, you have a direct view of the selected aperture on the lens (through a tiny window).
Other than my Nikon F2S, the meter doesn’t just show you if you’re too bright or too dark, it shows you the best shutter speed to go with your selected aperture (Manual mode, where only selective metering is active. In Aperture mode (you can chose between selective and integrated metering for this mode), the viewfinder displays the shutter speed the camera will work with and it’s very responsive. In Shutter Priority mode T (where you can only use integrated metering for some reason), the meter will instead highlight the aperture it will select for the chosen shutter speed. You have to keep in mind to set the lens to the minimum aperture so that the camera can use all available values. I haven’t experimented with Program mode, but I don’t like that one anyways.
The viewfinder also shows you if the exposure compensation dial isn’t on the zero position, it doesn’t show you where exactly it is though. But the shutter speed/aperture indicator gives you a good idea whether you’re under- or overexposing (since you always have the selected shutter speed/aperture at the bottom of the finder too).
The viewfinder has a diopter adjustment built in, but my eyesight is way beyond the +/-2 it has on offer. Once I get the eyecup, I’ll be fine using my contacts.
The DOF preview is achieved by a lever that requires quite a bit of force to pull, but it works nicely.
The grip on the back comes in handy (pun intended) with the heavier lenses, but it looks and feels really cheap. I would’ve expected more from Leica to be honest.
I already ordered a strap from Gordy’s Camera Straps (black leather with red thread obviously) and added my Gariz soft release button (in black, the red one didn’t feel quite right) to improve the shutter button, but other than that I’m really happy with how the camera handles.
Right now I’m looking for a rubber eyecup, which turns out to be quite hard to find.. Any suggestions are highly appreciated.
Some images
For those of you who love lens/gear porn as much as I do, here are a few pictures of my Leica gear to gaze upon:
Who doesn’t love the design of Leica lenses?
Since I love lens coatings so much 🙂
My lenses on their own
And some more lens coating madness
mbphotox.wordpress.com 
I agree with you on the Leica R8 and R9 — big, heavy, and ugly. I sold mine after a relatively short while and went back to the Leica M family.
Congrats on your new toy; I’m looking forward to seeing images from it!
LikeLiked by 1 person
You have assembled a very versatile outfit, a 28, 50, 90, and 135. The first 3 are described as the “photojournalists trinity ” for obvious reasons. I find the 135mm f2.8 very useful for picking interesting faces out of a crowd. Although a zoom lens covering all these focal lengths is available in many makes, zoom lenses are still slow, typically f3.5-4.5. In poor light the pair of f2 might mean the chance of getting a shot where a slower lens would cause camera shake. I use a Leicaflex SL with Schneider Kreuznach P A Curtagon 35mm f4 shift lens for street and architectural shots and a 135mm f2.8 Elmarit R (Canada) for portraiture.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I shoot a Leicaflex Standard Mk2 with a 50mm Summicron-R and a 90mm Elmarit-R (both Mk1). What you lose in terms of lens interoperability, you gain in absolute build quality. The Leicaflex line (Standard, SL, and SL2) were handbuilt brass monsters where cost of building were completely thrown out the window in favor of absolute quality. Sadly, the Standard’s “behind the times” design meant the excellent SL and SL2 were relegated as “expensive toys” that made Leica a loss on each one sold. (Between that, the retracting of the excellent CL due to “M-line cannibalization, and the failure of the M5… it becomes clear why Leica R3-R7 were Minolta designs)
I’ve fallen a bit for the electronic Minolta-era R’s myself, and I’m looking at either an R5 or an R7. What I love about your review is that it’s a realistic review; it doesn’t read of snootiness or holier-than-thou in its mindset, and accepts the realities of the R-line. Keep shooting with it, I would love to see more of your shots and how it feels as an everyday shooter!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Lovely collection
LikeLike
Well Jason. The R8 & R9 simply do not have any manual speed that’s independently operated in case of battery failures. The R3/4/5/E/7 all have a 100 setting that would keep you going. Indeed a friend of mine has an old R4 that only works on this 100 setting. He uses Kodak Ektar 100 and Ilford FP4 125 iso and simply estimated the aperture according to the light with his 50mm f2 Summicron R. This is why I wouldn’t consider the R8/9 as if the microelectronics packed up, you have a nice paperweight.
Now I’ve seen them here in the U.K. for as low as £399 but even with 6 months warranty, I’m not tempted. Your Leicaflex will still be working in 10-20 +years time.
Also the R8/9 take a strange battery too. And it’s expensive.
I’ve got four Leicaflex SL bodies (1 black) and the black one and one chrome one have a working meter. However the correct battery is not available and the substitute gives wrong readings. So I prefer to use a Gossen Lunalite (I have 2) as it’s LED solid state and takes a PP3 9v battery that I’ve seen on sale in lots of overseas countries. However I take a spare.
LikeLiked by 1 person