Let's See Whatya Doin' With That M8

Hello Everyone. In a separate thread Asher invited me to start a thread of M8 image postings. (It sure has been quiet in this section of the forum.) So here goes.

First, the current banner image on my main PBase gallery is an M8 image taken recently. In fact, my past four banners have been M8 images.

I have actually fallen a bit behind with my online galleries but here are a few others.

This image of Magdalena Abakanowicz's "Agora" is an M8 image:


How about a very foggy Segway tour gliding through Chicago's Grant Park? (This image is also somewhere on the Chicago Tribune site.)


Speaking of fog, how about an aerial of thick ground fog over downtown Chicago one night last spring?


Lastly, here's a flash afternoon snow storm that created an interesting visual texture in this image of Chicago's Illinois Center complex.


OK, your turn.

Ken Tanaka said:

Hello Everyone. In a separate thread Asher invited me to start a thread of M8 image postings. (It sure has been quiet in this section of the forum.) So here goes.

First, the current banner image on my main PBase gallery is an M8 image taken recently. In fact, my past four banners have been M8 images.

I have actually fallen a bit behind with my online galleries but here are a few others.

This image of Magdalena Abakanowicz's "Agora" is an M8 image:

Click to expand...

Her work is a great subject and the M8 provides a non-intimidating camera for the security people. Here, you needed a wide angle lens? At least 28mm, I'd think. Did you happen to use the Tri-elmar? If so, do you think it makes any difference which one it is, the new version or the original as they have been discontinued!

Ken Tanaka said:

How about a very foggy Segway tour gliding through Chicago's Grant Park? (This image is also somewhere on the Chicago Tribune site.)

Click to expand...

I like the repeated images of the Segway machines. I wish this was even wider. This is a place you must make sure your return to, again and again. Ironic that they are used to tour a park where perhaps they should be excercising! This, I bet is magnificent too in color! Wow it has to be good!


Thanks for kicking things off!

Let's see what follows!

Asher

Late m8

One from a commercial shoot a week ago.

I love the M8 for portraits. It's just a wonderful people camera if you want to maintain a connection with the subject. I work in closer than I would with a dSLR, usually, and with wider lenses. It's the exact opposite of sticking a canon-esque 70-200 in someone's face.

This is taken with the 28 CV 1.9; I like the subtle distortion on the hands in this shot.

I've been working a lot with the IR capability of the camera (it's a *feature*, not a bug!

it's a series of images titled Glacial Seas.

Yes, Jamie,

This 28mm lens is remarkable in the price, color and tones it yields. I thought it was the Leica 28mm Summicron! That's the only lens I've tested and this sure looks close for a fraction of the price. For the unititiated, the CV is the Cosina Voigtlander, there are two lenses, the 3.5 andv the 1.9, approx $285 and $444 respectively compared to the Summicron f 2.0 for $3195!

Again for the uninitiated the x1.6 multiplication factor brings the equivalent focal length to 44.8 mm.

So it's a pretty good choice for the portrait! I think this is a wonderful lens and the picture has a nice 3D appearance becasue of the perspective governed by the your close position.

Asher

Yes, Jamie,

There is such warmth coming towards us from this gentleman. A great portrait and use of color. Are you using an infrared filter and which one. Also have you coded the lens to take advantage of the M8 built corrections for this angle?

This 28mm lens is remarkable in the price, color and tones it yields. I thought it was the Leica 28mm Summicron! That's the only lens I've tested and this sure looks close for a fraction of the price. For the unititiated, the CV is the Cosina Voigtlander, there are two lenses, the 3.5 andv the 1.9, approx $285 and $444 respectively compared to the Summicron f 2.0 for $3195!

Again for the uninitiated the x1.6 multiplication factor brings the equivalent focal length to 44.8 mm.

So it's a pretty good choice for the portrait! I think this is a wonderful lens and the picture has a nice 3D appearance becasue of the perspective governed by the your close position.

Asher

JimCollum said:

I've been working a lot with the IR capability of the camera (it's a *feature*, not a bug! it's a series of images titled Glacial Seas.

Click to expand...

Jim, I have always felt that the IR sensitivity gives the M8 an extra range of capability in writing images.

What do you do to limit visible light?

Anyway, I love the ice effect on vegetation. It is great to see our world in a different way. We are used to changing angles, position and film. IR is as much the truth as anything else. It just makes us look at things more in new ways.

We also can see further with IR and the scenes are clearer.

That alone gives a special look for B&W landscape photography.

With the ability in digital pghotography to assign colors to different tonalities, the use of IR extends this profoundly. I wish we could bracket pictures with and without the IR!

Anyway, your work is striking. Thanks for sharing!

Asher

Asher Kelman said:

Again for the uninitiated the x1.6 multiplication factor brings the equivalent focal length to 44.8 mm.

Click to expand...

Hi Asher: Please correct me if I am in error, but I thought the M8 mult factor was 1.3x ? This would make the 28 effectively a 37, no?

Jim, Jamie and Ken: Very nice images! I hope to take delivery on an M8 in a few days and you have given me inspiration! And with a little luck, maybe I'll have some images to post by Xmas!

Cheers,

Asher Kelman said:

Her work is a great subject and the M8 provides a non-intimidating camera for the security people. Here, you needed a wide angle lens? At least 28mm, I'd think. Did you happen to use the Tri-elmar? If so, do you think it makes any difference which one it is, the new version or the original as they have been discontinued!

Click to expand...

@Asher:
Ms. Abakanowicz's "Agora" was created at her foundry in Poland and installed in Chicago's south Grant Park (Michigan Avenue @ Roosevelt Road) late last fall. It consists of 106 cast-iron figures (actually, mostly just the fronts of the figures) approximately 10-12 feet tall. It's really quite an experience to visit. I've just begun to photograph it at various times of day / year, in various weather conditions, with various cameras.

I used a Leica 35mm Summilux for this image.

Asher Kelman said:

I like the repeated images of the Segway machines. I wish this was even wider. This is a place you must make sure your return to, again and again. Ironic that they are used to tour a park where perhaps they should be excercising! This, I bet is magnificent too in color! Wow it has to be good!

Click to expand...

Actually the color version was not much different from this monochrome rendering! The fog was very thick and I was across the street. BTW, I agree about the Segways eliminating the exercise value of a tour. But the Segways have become quite popular in the downtown Chicago parks. This tour operation (which has other operations in other cities) is very busy most of the year. They cover a great deal of ground (not accessible by vehicle) in a relatively short time. Plus the novelty of the gadget is still lively.

Jack,

My math was great! At least I'm happy about that, The x1.6 factor? So wrong, thanks!

The final 37 mm works! One lens works wonders even when one gets the factor from the Canon Xti!

Still, mea culpa!

Asher

Jack_Flesher said:

Hi Asher: Please correct me if I am in error, but I thought the M8 mult factor was 1.3x ? This would make the 28 effectively a 37, no?

Jim, Jamie and Ken: Very nice images! I hope to take delivery on an M8 in a few days and you have given me inspiration! And with a little luck, maybe I'll have some images to post by Xmas!

Cheers,

Click to expand...

@ Jack: I'm sure Asher's fingers took an unplanned detour. The M8 does, indeed, feature a 1.3x crop factor.

I think you'll enjoy the M8, particularly if you don't take it too seriously, remain patient, and keep your mind open to its -ahem- unique characteristics.

@ Jim Collum: I am not normally a fan of IR photography but your images are really otherworldly! I gather that that's an ocean floor at low-tide? Very captivating 'land/sea-scapes'.

Asher Kelman said:

Yes, Jamie,

There is such warmth coming towards us from this gentleman. A great portrait and use of color. Are you using an infrared filter and which one. Also have you coded the lens to take advantage of the M8 built corrections for this angle?

{Snipped}

Click to expand...

Asher--thanks again! Yes, there's a Leica infrared filter on this; no it's not a coded lens. I have a LAB action I use to correct the cyan drift in PS and it works very well indeed, because in LAB I can correct the colour without affecting the luminance detail (though I often tweak the L for the vignette, too).

@ Ken--those images are fantastic..moody and well-articulated, visually. On a different note, I didn't think anyone actually bought a Segway (they are pretty neat, though). They're virtually non-existant up here...

@ Jim--great use of IR! Those really are odd-looking things (you can tell I'm a land-locked guy here, far from the oceans!)

@ Jack--fantastic to see you here! I'm sure you'll enjoy the M8, too!

Asher Kelman said:

Jack,

My math was great! At least I'm happy about that, The x1.6 factor? So wrong, thanks!

The final 37 mm works! One lens works wonders even when one gets the factor from the Canon Xti!

Still, mea culpa!

Asher

Click to expand...

Well, I wasn't that sure either but equally as happy I got my math right!

So...

Judging by the sparse posting to this thread, the slow activity in this section of the forum, and the relatively limited M8 chatter in other fora I would guess that the M8's 15 minutes might be largely up. Most of the activity seems contained to the main fan site and is dominated by a very small group of enthusiasts.

I suppose that the M8's small, quiet, expensive niche is now filled.

Ken--in the large, DPreview scheme of things, you're probably right. It's amazing such a special purpose tool got 15 minutes to begin with.

But I can think of any number of reasons for the lack of posts here None of them have to do with the character, fame or utility of the m8.

Also the Leica user forum is as much involved with film than digital photography. That the M8 forum is mostly people sharing experiences with the M8 is hardly surprising, and doesn't merit the "fan site" comment. I've seen more accurate, but vitriolic, critique of the camera there than anywhere else. And I'm not including your posts

Ken Tanaka said:

So...

Judging by the sparse posting to this thread, the slow activity in this section of the forum, and the relatively limited M8 chatter in other fora I would guess that the M8's 15 minutes might be largely up. Most of the activity seems contained to the main fan site and is dominated by a very small group of enthusiasts.

I suppose that the M8's small, quiet, expensive niche is now filled.

Click to expand...

Hi Ken,

Don't lose heart! It's not as bad as you think! Let me strengthen your resolve. You're work is important to us, even more now! In the past 10 months we have 28 threads on the M8 with above 28,000 views!

Our intent is to have M8 users showcase their work here. There are enough M8 users to make this very active and magnetic for others on the sidelines wondering what this is all about. I have used this camera but cannot buy every camera that's great. However, above all new Digital platforms, the M8 is distinguished by the character of the finest rangefinder ever built, the ultimate lenses and a sensor that produces files matched only by medium format cameras.

I ask you and all other M8 users to continuously helping build the M8 image in this home. The future of the digital rangefinder will be enriched by the expansion of M8 camera beyond the Leicophile fan base found in the pure Leica sites. Here we want to show everyone what is possible.

Remember the more M8 camera users, the stronger the brand is and the more updates to the digital frame will be possilbe for Solms. I believe strongly in this. We're well beyond a 15 minutes of fame. We still have requests for Michael Teitelbaum's New York Central Park pictures to experiment with.

Leica M8 pictures posted here do more than impress. They allow a new body of photographers to enjoy. I will be posting my own M8 pictures in a re view. Meanwhile, I'd love more of your pictures. This is how things grow.



Thanks,

Asher

Hi Ken, I can only speak for myself: It's the images I care about, not so much the camera they are taken with. As long as the quality is ok, everything is fine. So, what should I say?
What I would like to say is that I love the image of Chicago "..aerial of thick fog". It's an intense condensed cityscape, capturing the feeling of the city very well and "Sagway Tour" because it has both a somber mood and quite a bit of humor in it. I really like the ambiguity in that image.
Well, I don't want to re-direct the tread. Of course it is interesting to owners of a specific brand or model to talk about the particular qualities....
cheers
Angela

Angela Weil said:

Hi Ken, I can only speak for myself: It's the images I care about, not so much the camera they are taken with. As long as the quality is ok, everything is fine.

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Angela: I could not agree more strongly with your statement. Yes, I enjoy working with cameras and lenses, learning their strengths and quirks. But camera-talk tends to bore me, one reason why I participate in few online photo forums and relatively infrequently. Discussions tend to lean toward consumerism with insipid arguments erupting over nits that rarely have any relevance to photography. Someone attacks some precious lens or camera, precipitating a response from the local defense league. I don't mean to sound too high-saddled but that's really what happens nearly everywhere.

The Leica M8 has certainly (and predictably) evoked such micro-tribalism at a few venues. That aside, however, it is interesting to see others' work with this little retro-style camera. (You tend not to see much photography at these venues.) One of the camera's strengths, in my experience, is its ability to resolve details, sometimes to a breathtaking extent. The examples, below, don't qualify for such extreme categorization but they do serve to illustrate the topic.

That nighttime aerial fog image offers some examples. Below are two 100%-scale details from that aerial image. The first is clipped from the floodlit deck of the building under-construction in the foreground. This is approximately 125-150 yards from the camera.


This detail is clipped from the dark, tall building just beyond the construction building. You're looking into apartment windows that are approximately 1/4 - 1/3 mile from the camera.


Of course such characteristics have long been intrinsic to Leica's fine lenses and the close adjacency of a rangefinder's lens to the recording medium. I can also point to Canon 1-body images that have similar characteristics. But circling back to your point, Angela, it's nice to have such a small (normally) handheld camera that can record such precision with a little bit of care and skill -- regardless of its brand or style.

And thank you for your kind comments!

Angela, FWIW, you're right: when I'm looking at pictures, I don't much care if it's an 8*10 camera, a cellphone, a still from a video camera, a Betterlight, or a Brownie that took them.

When I'm shooting, however, then I do care about the technology, mechanics and electronics; about ergonomics and shooting characteristics; about lenses and their fingerprint; especially about the potential for making great prints (the M8 can make spectacular prints; a cell-phone camera is less likely to afford this potential )

So the art of it--and the art appreciation of it--comes at the tail end of the technology; photography being a highly technical art by any measure...

But Ken is right--this is why a lot of online fora are ultimately boring... if there's no end or purpose to the technology, or if people discuss ridiculous technical details that have little or no ultimate affect, well, let's just say those discussions are a bit circumscribed to say the least.

But people are where they are. Many hobbyists never get beyond the physical camera...But then there are sub-species of professional gear-lust, technical interest, etc...all of which I'm completely guilty of, for sure, when they bring tangible artistics results (and note I didn't say business results; they're often not the same, alas!)

(And this is one more reason the Leica forum doesn't deserve the "M8 fan site" character; it has one of the best photo sections I know of, where any type of camera and style of photography is encouraged, though I think you have to have one peice of Leica equipment in play for that forum. It's still worth a look, though!)

Jamie,

Good points. I agree about the quality of photographs on the Leica forum. However while a great picture is welcomed there, here the M8 images are treasured!

Asher

Ken Tanaka said:

This detail is clipped from the dark, tall building just beyond the construction building. You're looking into apartment windows that are approximately 1/4 - 1/3 mile from the camera.

Of course such characteristics have long been intrinsic to Leica's fine lenses and the close adjacency of a rangefinder's lens to the recording medium. I can also point to Canon 1-body images that have similar characteristics. But circling back to your point, Angela, it's nice to have such a small (normally) handheld camera that can record such precision with a little bit of care and skill -- regardless of its brand or style.

And thank you for your kind comments!

Click to expand...

Hi Ken,

Could you share what lens this was?

Asher

The Segue photo made my day

Ken, thanks for posting. I enjoyed all of your images but especially the Segue shot. The Segue is improbable enough, but a pack of Segues shrouded in fog and ghosting through a park is a real treat.

Whatya Doin' With That M8 (more)

I'm just a happy snapper, surrounded by my family. Here are some recent shots from the zoo, the back yard, etc.

Nat,

As you already may know, I like the M8 a lot! Sharing your pictures is appreciated!

The second image is special to me. It carries the air of uniqueness, the sort of image one would print carefully. It reminds me of a Kennedy picture, walking on the beach. He is crossing a line in the road!

What are the technical specifics of the picture and how old is the boy?

Asher

@ Asher: Sorry to be so tardy in my response! I believe I used the 50mm f/1.4 Summilux for that image.

Thank you for your comments, Nat. Indeed, catching a small caravan of those odd little scooters gliding through the thick fog was a little weird....and lucky.

Details

The boy is three. The photo was taken with the 35MM F2 at F2. Thanks for your comment.

I've only had mine a few days and have spent that time working with B&W conversions. Nothing great, but getting there I think:






And I'm also...

... experimenting with the M8's IR potential, both false-color and B&W:








The processes all seem to have possibilities, so now all I need to do is go out and make some decent art using them

Cheers,

Hi Jack,

Happy to see your pictures. I like your first shots especially your old truck in the field. Sorry someone stole the engine!

It would be so helpful to know of your choice of lenses. New ones are costly and old ones need to be coded either by Leica or for others by tape with dots.

I'm not sure to whatr extent you find major differences for what you want to do.

One thing I'd love to see is your estimation of the largest landscape pics you might be able to print, by printing portions.

See the 17-40 thread on limitations in printing large by Ben Rubinstein.

Asher

BTW, what are the technicals especially for hte last picture. Did you sue a filter to block visible light and was this handheld?

Hi Asher:

Here are some tech specs:

First off, NONE of my lenses are coded and I leave lens recognition "off".

For the first IR shot, I used a 75mm Summilux with the B+W 092 IR filter. I think I used f2.8.

For the second IR, I used a 50mm Pre-Asph Summilux with a hoya 72 IR filter (same specs on IR pass as the B+W 092, 50% at 720 nm, but the Hoya is cheaper ) I think I used f4.

The little garden light was shot with a 35mm Pre-Asph Summilux wide open at f1.4, focus on the near top corner of the light. Converted to B&W in CS3.

The pick-up was shot with a 28mm Pre-Asph Elmarit, at f5.6, focus on the pick-up bed, Converted to B&W in CS3.

Cheers,