Intent / Disclaimer

This page is meant to aide those who are new to Leica M rangefinders. When I switched from Canon to Leica for my everyday-carry, I could not find a guide to fill in on the daily ins-and-outs of shooting with these smaller cameras. I began collecting all the things I'd learned along the way that I couldn't find answers to online, and wrote them down here.

With that in mind, this is not meant to be one of those places where you, dear reader, will be evangelized about Leica, rangefinder cameras, the impending return of Cthulhu, or whatever happens to be the cult flavor of the day. I might write about all that elsewhere, but, on this page, I will avoid it until necessary.

I mean, –why not– write something about Cthulhu? Better than another round of spec wars, or the usual tooty pontification. Can you imagine, trying to take a picture of some cultists somewhere in the darkened woods, where the stars are all wrong, and netherworldly creatures are being raised from portals too twisted for your still-sane and conscious mind to comprehend? And then imagine your shivering finger, struggling to turn the focus dial, the foul chanting perturbing your unsteady hands and the surrounding tree limbs alike, every next moment ever more decisively foul? A most untimely mosquito then landing on your face, extracting some unusually-felt draw of blood, tempting a reaction that would ensure the end of your camera roll?

Anyhow!— If you took the dive to shoot with an M camera, as utterly illogical and unsound of a decision as it may be, I will grant freely that you had good reason to.

I will similarly only say, with no small measure of unformly glee, that I've been incredibly happy shooting with my Leica rangefinder — no regrets about it.

News, Reviews, and Learning

Most camera companies offer an ample selection of first-party lenses to go with their cameras. Leica is no exception, but in contrast to the DSLM mounts, like Sony's Z and Canon's RF, Leica's M-mount offerings can easily break the bank, even if you are a dentist. But, also in contrast to most of those mirrorless mounts, the Leica M-mount has a rich set of third-party alternatives that are not only cheaper than the first-party lenses.

There's an analogy that could be made here, that the rendering of lenses can be likened to wine. The successful hedge fund crowd might only buy wine from well-gossiped names from Napa and Sonoma because they'd view their purchases as investments. But people who live in California might quietly remark that there's more to the terroir than State Routes 12 and 29. And people who'd drink wine to look successful might not know that a number of well-regarded varietals don't even grow well in Sonoma and Napa valleys. The offerings of M-mount lenses can be similarly complicated.

If you need to look for a lens at some rough focal length and aperture, that may or may not be a first-party Leica make, these are sites that offer reviews and news for M-mount lenses, as well as occasional nuggets of history:

• Macfilos.com
• PhillipReeve.net
• FredMiranda.com
• KeithWee.com

Trying to learn about photography from review sites can be as difficult as trying to learn about computer programming or hardware by reading Slashdot or Hacker News. There also isn't really such a thing as an unbiased reviewer, so a sense of taste is something that we each have to develop. I've personally found as much insight and inspiration from artists who don't necessarily treat photography as a specialized form of art on its own, as Phil Penman's suggests in one short video on street photography. It would also be neglectful not to offer a counterpoint to some of the points he offers.

• Phil Penman on Street Photography Composition
• Peter Forsgârd on Minimalism in Street Photography

Watching these videos, right off the bat, you'd note that these two accomplished artists disagree with each other. It's not difficult to infer that photography is more of an art than a science.

Some context is worth pointing out. Phil Penman is a New York-based photographer, and there's so many things to look up at in the streets of Manhattan.

Last but not least, you could make a friend while shooting with your camera:

• Mitch Lally on Getting Started with Portrait Photography

Notable M-mount Lensmakers (besides Leica)

Having funny names for things is the norm in the M-mount world. It's not just Leica. You wouldn't be faulted for thinking that many of the folks listed below are making at least a token effort at starting their own cult.

In reality, there isn't much “loyalty” to any of the third-party brands. On the M-mount, people tend to shoot with what they like.

GAS and options overload

It would be quite difficult to try shooting with all of these lens makes. There may not be a particular need for it, with the reviews that are available. If you have a case of gear-acquisition-syndrome, knowing what's out there will either cure you or [in unusually severe cases] be the end of your positive balance sheet.

Of course, one of the problems underlying GAS (and life in general) is that we don't know what we like until we've tried it — reviews notwithstanding. You just have to get out and shoot. It takes time to get to know gear, and time to train the eye. Practically all M-mount lenses are character lenses, even the modern APO Summicrons.

I think that coming to terms with GAS (and the reality that one can't possibly try all-the-things for the M-mount), is a little like confronting that we've only one life to live, and only so much we'll be able to see or do, so we have to pick and choose.

Thus was the kicker. At some point, I realized that I could spend all day fawning over lenses, spending all of my disposable income acquiring them, or, I could be enjoying the sights of life with a camera in my carry. The conclusion was that it'd be better to get kitted out with some minimum set of mostly third-party gear, and then settle for a good new Leica every couple of years. Lenses tend to last a long time — even the autofocus ones with motors and electronics — and manual M lenses could last for hundreds of years before viscosity ultimately deforms their glass elements. So it makes sense to be considered when purchasing them.

Pouches for your M-mount lenses

One of the draws of the M-mount has been the almost-pocketable size of the lenses, but most pouches are tailored for larger SLR-style cameras and lenses. There are some criteria for M-mount lens pouches that I think are somewhat different from the larger SLR-style lens pouches:

• The material should be padded, but not excessively so. The intent is to protect the lenses from each other, while being carried in padded camera bag.
• The exterior surface should be smooth, not rough and abrasive.
• There must be a range of sizes for lenses up to 60mm in diameter and 80mm in length, and as small as 50mm in diameter and 25mm in length. This covers everything from the smallest lenses like the Elcan reproduction, all the way up to the Voigtländer 35mm APO Lanthar.
• Anything larger is already covered by plenty of mainstream options.

Our prospective user will usually carry just one or two lenses at a time, possibly stacked on top of one another. The best I can tell, people who shoot with an M typically prefer traveling light. With that in mind, I found four companies that make pouches fitting the criteria (in my order of preference).

• OpTech USA
• ProMaster
• JJC
• Ruggard

When I first began shooting with my M11, I could not determine that Op/Tech carried lens pouches in the roughly 1.5" x 2.5" size that fits the smallest M-mount lenses. As such, I mainly kitted out with [Pro]Master pouches, and also tested Ruggard pouches. Ruggard is well-regarded and available from B&H, but they did not have as many smaller sizes, despite carrying a 1.5" x 2.5", and the sulphur-yellow logo is a bit garish on these smaller pouches.

Since then, both [Pro]Master and Ruggard have gone out of stock for the smallest 1.5" x 2.5" size, whereas it became clear that the smallest Op/Tech serves as a rough equivalent. JJC is available as well on Amazon, but like Ruggard, the logo is quite loud. [Pro]Master and Op/Tech USA can be ordered directly from their sites.

Op/Tech's pouches are the tidiest of the ones I've tried, and do not come with a loop or velcro to seal them shut. So you can't hang them off of your backpack's shoulder straps if you're a wedding photographer, –but– the lack of velcro means that you can remove the lens from the pouch while it's in your camera bag, without the velcro sticking to the inside of your bag. In theory, you can put the pouched lenses in a cloth bag so the velcro won't stick to the camera bag, but it's still an annoyance.

Pouches are one area where it might be worth not having a care about GAS. These ergonomics matter and it's worth trying out the options to see which works best for you.

Hoods vs. Filters

Unlike the plastic hoods and caps that typically come with DSLM lenses, the various metal hoods and caps for third-party M-mount lenses can be scratch hazards. Of all the lenses I own, only the Leica 21mm SEM has a metal hood that doesn't seem misfortunately attracted to its front element. If your new lens has either a metal hood or cap, I strongly recommend putting a protective filter on first, as I've even had an HD3 filter get scratched once.

The world of M-lenses seems to be protective-filters-required, for one reason or another. But hoods have often been optional, unless it was e.g. a Leica lens particularly designed with the hood in mind. The Voigtländer hoods must be bought separately and cost a pretty penny. Some stores don't even stock them.

Leica has recently begun making lenses with built-in hoods, specifically for their APO Summicrons and Summiluxes. While I haven't used any of these personally, they have been spoken well of by others, to the point where some bloggers / reviewers will remark when some older lens lacks the built-in hood. Consider it a token to draw users back to the Leica temple, after they'd bought glass from those priests at Voigtländer.

Bags

So you went ahead, despite all misgivings, and bought an M camera, whether the latest digital, or a film M6 that's older than you are. The camera is small enough that it will handily fit inside your bookbag or briefcase, but then you'll want a pouch to protect it from daily wear and tear.

As an aside, you might want to protect your other stuff from the wear and tear that the camera will inflict on them, because cameras of this sort don't tend to be lightly-built.

For that purpose, I found the Artist and Artisan pouch to be the perfect size for the job. I use that pouch inside my Waterford Airporter.

Waterford bags are designed and hand-made in San Francisco, and I can attest that they are subtly classic, yet relaxed and hardly attention-grabbing. Unlike most of the “nice” bags I've used, they hold up well in practical daily use. No, I was not paid me to write this, and no, San Francisco is -not- a cult (right?). Regardless! These particular bags have been my main carry for more than ten years. I've replaced a shoulder strap just once. They actually carry spare parts, because they expect your bags to last that long, and still look good!

For those preferring a more overtly fashionable or luxurious look, there are options aplenty from Billingham and Oberwerth. There's also Fogg, a smaller brand handmade in France that is simple yet whimsical in its own way. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Domke makes high-quality but affordable bags, readily available from the usual places. No those aren't affiliate links either. How do I pay for this site without affiliate links? I'm an SRE, and none of this content is dynamic. Yay for keeping hobbies hobbies and not work.

During the weekend, and during the last light of the evening, when it's possible to finally ditch the work laptop (if not the cell phone), I'll carry my camera in a small ONA Bond Street. If you prefer one that's inconspicuous, that doesn't scream expensive-camera-inside, the black canvas colorway will do the trick.

The nice thing about Leica is that relatively few people know that they're expensive, so you can fly under the radar if your bag isn't too flashy. Because really, we just want to get out there and shoot.

Third-party lenses from China, and how I got into Leica

When I shot with my Canon R5, there was only one alternative lens maker of note, and that company was Laowa. If you know, you know…

Canon and Laowa could hardly be more different. Canon is one of the most well-known brands in photography. By contrast, only serious photography geeks seem to have heard of Laowa. Canon makes lenses that are truly professional in the sense that they are meant to get a job done, without fail, every time. At that, not only are they brilliant, but the internal build quality of Canon L glass has reportedly pleased many a repair-person. It's also true that their L lenses are not small, light, or easy to carry around.

One could argue there isn't any room for creative leeway because of the technical image quality demanded of Canon. Thi was obliquely alluded to when Dayong Li, Laowa's founder, had an interview with Bastian Kratzke on PhillipReeve.net.

I took most of the pictures for this post with Laowa's 35mm f/0.95, a lens much derided by a number of technical reviewers who focus on more mainstream DSLM mounts. The tone of the reviewers is sometimes striking. I'm not sure if they mock Laowa merely because they're “cheaper” and more accessible for the everyman (as if that were a bad thing), or simply because the lenses are made in China. In any case, it was unclear when Canon would finally release a 35mm fast prime for the RF mount. After I finally caved and got the Laowa 35mm, mounted it on my R5 and saw the results in post, I had a bit of an ignominious epiphany.

Truth be told, I'd been quietly struggling to find my place in photography. It's said that the most important thing about a camera is what's behind it, but I did not get that impression from the most the gear reviews I saw online. The idea that a lens was more than its test results was becoming deeply impressed upon me, and if Laowa showed how it could be, then Leica drove it home. I didn't like most of the photos I saw on the Leica subreddits, but the potential was readily visible. Unlike the closed RF and Z mounts, there was a clear diversity of renderings as well. To which point, I was reading into some history on the 35mm Summicron, and came across an article where the v4 was compared to a modern-day Cosina-Voigtländer Nokton in some blind tests. I expected the Nokton to win some, depending on the scene, but at least with that sample, I found that I preferred the old pre-aspherical v4 Summicron nearly every time. The way it rendered the out-of-focus areas was simply sublime. With that having been said, if I needed a sharp lens, and if there were ever a vintage-style lensmaker demonstrating that it's possible to make a lens sharp but nonetheless characterful, I'd wager that Cosina would lead that pack. It was very much a comparison between two excellent but different choices.

On the M-mount, Laowa does not offer the Argus lenses that I used with my Canon. Instead, they offer a number of wide-angle lenses — an area that is comparatively neglected. Whereas there's been a dearth of subjectively-good lenses for modern DSLM mounts at street photography focal lengths, the opposite is true for Leica's 1950's-era M-mount.

Nowadays, when I look at images I'd taken with my Laowa 28mm, I may only think: “gee what a nice moment!” But at one time, it was revelatory.

Historically-speaking, the marques from China are relatively new. Even put together, they've got a lot of catching up before they have same breadth of offerings as the established incumbents.

Another of these relatively-new marques is Thypoch. Their premiere 28mm lens designed was noted for both the quality of its rendering as well its controversial ergonomics. I don't intend to write reviews of lenses here, because there others who are better at that, but I will note that these particular China-made lenses, although a significant step up in build quality compared to cheaper makes, still had some rough edges at the time of their introduction.

When my Thypoch 28mm f/1.4 first arrived, the rear cap would grind against the lens itself. Then when my Laowa 14mm f/4 arrived, I found that it ground against the bayonet mount of my M11-P in much the same way — much to my horror.

What is one to do? I fought fire with fire. I screwed the metal rear cap from the Thypoch 28mm/1.4 onto the Laowa 14mm f/4, and began grinding away.

After a few minutes, the 14mm f/4 simply clicks into place. The Thypoch rear cap is noticeably smoother when I screw it back on as well! The 14mm f/4 is small enough to daily carry, but I missed the cute pentagonal bokeh of the 15mm f/2. Maybe there was something about that lens being the first that I had some real fun with too. Eventually, I got the 15mm f/2 when they released it for the M-mount, which is even more compact than the RF-mount version while retaining the same charming rendering when shot wide-open between f/2 to f/2.8.

In terms of build quality, LLL probably leads the third-party options for the M-mount. The one weakness in their line-up is their UV filters, which have scratched easily. While expensive, the first-party Leica filters are a must if you absolutely need a silver-finish filter.

Despite the growing pains, the M-mount has benefited from the options offered by these new marques. LLL makes it possible to sample Leica history without breaking the bank. The Thypoch lenses have been noted for their relaxed-yet-sharp rendering, standing in contrast to the soft-yet-detailed look of classic Leicas.

The Visoflex Escape Hatch

One of the accessories offered for the M11 is the new Visoflex II, which grants a shooting experience more akin to a modern-day mirrorless camera. This little square contraption is particularly useful for two categories of things.

The first thing is ironically street photography, where it can draw less attention to the photographer because it offers the advantage of not having to look straight towards the subject, without swiveling out the screen like most Canon, Nikon and Sony cameras. Instead, you'll be looking down into the camera.

The second category of things are those that simply don't work well with a rangefinder. As an example, there's lots of street photography to be had with wide-angle lenses, where you'd care more about composing a scene with the urban environment, like a busy town square or a train station during rush hour. The rangefinder on M cameras has a roughly 28mm equivalent field-of-view, so it isn't able to accurately compose for e.g. a 15 or 21mm lens.

There are also close-focusing situations, and by now you've probably heard that the rangefinder mechanism only close-focuses down to 0.7m distance, due to the parallax issues inherent in the design. For some situations, you can just use the rear screen of the camera, but in order to save space, that rear screen does not pop out, making close-focusing tricky for some shots — selfies included.

With that said, the Visoflex isn't without its own problems. The design that makes it possible to look down into the camera also makes it unwieldly — like the DSLMs that we'd left at home for specifically that reason. With the 21mm f/3.4 Super-Elmar mounted in front of the camera body, the entire package barely fits in an ONA Bond St. This is very strictly not everyday-carry anymore.

Despite the bulk, there are photographers who still prefer an EVF. Sometimes the reason is bad eyesight (making the use of the rangefinder more difficult), and sometimes it's because the rangefinder simply does not work well with one's preferred lenses. If an escape hatch is desired, it's surprisingly easy to shoot an M11 using the the Visoflex II. The electronic view automatically “zooms” in when the lens' focus ring is turned, allowing the user to grab focus in pixel-peep mode. Slightly depressing the shutter-release –just short of taking the shot– returns the EVF to the big-picture view. On the M11, there's also a small round button to the right of the shutter-release (you can see it in the above photos) which toggles between the zoomed-in pixel-peep view and the big-picture through-the-lens view.

It's already easy to use an M-11's rear screen using those controls, and it works even better with the Visoflex II. You could say that it had better, because you can pick up a pretty good lens for the price of that clip-on EVF.

The Shutter Release Button

Last but not least, if you look closely, you'll see that your shutter release button has a screw thread in it. It's not just any screw thread, but a conical one that can receive any number of aftermarket buttons. This lets you add a little personalized touch to your camera. The button will jut out slightly above the rest of the camera, so if your camera already fits snugly in your daily-carry bag, you may want to forgo this option.