Tuesday 27 January 2015

I want a Leica M6


I mean, I REALLY want a Leica M6


To be more precise, I need a Black Leica M6 with a CRON-M 35mm f/2 ASPH. I simply lust after this set-up. Visits to the Leica shop down on Old Street usually end up with the poor staff there having to give the display cases a good clean.  Yes, unadulterated lust...






However, I do so love my beat-up old Nikon FM. Yes, this piece of mechanical excellence built in the late 70's, yes, 1970's is still going strong. A couple dents, and some seriously sexy brassing proves this old girl's been around the block a few times. This, nearly 40 year old beauty makes the Leica M6 look like very expensive toy, which in essence of course, it is.



I love it more because, what it does, can be done by almost anything. My Nikon FM is just a box with a hole to allow light to fall on some plastic coated with silver halide crystals. The result is that when this exposed strip of plastic is processed with some chemicals, that light is, almost magically, fixed on that plastic strip. From the earliest days of the camera obscura to the modern pixel crunching beasts of today, all they did then and do now, is allow light to fall onto a light capturing medium.



So, will I make better images with a M6? Maybe. Will I enjoy shooting more with a M6? Maybe. Do I really need a M6? Not really. So, for now, I enjoy taking my FM out. I enjoy using it, and  I am very happy with the images I create using the FM, this beat-up old classic. Yes, I might lust after a Leica M6, but I am in love with my Nikon FM.




Thanks for reading


Happy shooting