No new year's resolutions for me. I never keep them. However I have decided to take some decisions about the cameras I own. The collection currently is much smaller than it was a few years ago but I have one camera system- the Panasonic Lumix S5 and lenses- which I have hardly used since I purchased it in June 2022.
Buying it was a mistake. I did not need another camera and although it is an very capable camera and system and capable of producing superb results it has one major drawback. It is too heavy. Well probably not too heavy for most potential users but too heavy for me. My days of hauling around a bag full of heavy gear are behind me and I should have recognised that obvious fact before buying it.
I made quite an investment in the Lumix outfit. Even heavily discounted the superb, but, oh so heavy, 70-200mm f2.8 lens alone cost A$3000. It was a mistake and a costly one.
Which brings me back to the core of my collection-the Leicas. Firstly there is my heriage Leica, the 1937 Leica 3A. My first Leica. Purchased way back in 1967. This was fully renovated last year. I have run a colur film through it with good results. Two photos from it are below. Now I have to apply myself to finishing the 35mm black and white film I have in it.
Using the film is not as as easy as it sounds. Using the 3A is very slow work. I don't know how the early Leica users took the photos they did. They certainly were committed. Just imagine what they could have done if they had used today's cameras.
Second in the stable is my Leica X1. My long term favourite. I now have two of them and I've dusted them down, charged their batteries and used one of them in the last few days. Here's one of the photos I took with it - a DNG file post processed in LR.
When I first moved to Terrigal back in 2008 I took my X1 with me on my early morning walk every day used used it to take a wide variety of subjects including friendly locals. Now the whole scene has changed. The number of people walking early morning has increased considerably. And many are not so photo friendly and of course there are smartphones. So I now use my iPhone13 Pro as my early morning camera as well as using it to pay for my coffee and to catch up on the Guardian Australian edition whilst drinking the coffee.
It would be nice to be able to say that I can see the X1 having a new lease of life in my hands but that is not realistic. It is victim of the iPhone. So here's an early morning walk iPhone13 photo.
However the X1's more sophisticated sibling, the X Vario, is a different case. I still use mine regularly, particularly as a "cat camera" as the tiltable, accessory shoe fitting, EVF allows me to get down to cat level without lying on the ground.
Although it is nearly 10 years old and by today's standards the specification is modest I still cherish my X Vario as the image quality is superb.
When launched the X Vario was maligned but it was very much a victim of very poor marketing and a really nasty social medi "pile on".
For a neat reprise of the X Vario story see this on the Macfilos blog X VARIO
I see from Lightroom that I have taken over 3000 photos with my X Vario so making a very small representative selection is not easy but here they are
That brings me to the final two cameras in my Leica collection.-the Sofort(!) and the Q2 but they will have to wait fot the next post.
great photos John, Love the film work. keep it up! great composition on the bike shots - the shadow and the dog, and the motorbikes int he pits, excellent.
ReplyDeletehave you thought of using a waist camera bag - the 'bumbag' as they say? i use one occasionally for cameras. It takes any weight off the shoulders, and can be spun around to vary the weight on one hip or the other, back front etc. great option IMO. getting the best out of your walks with a real high quality kit is so important.
sorry to read of the less friendly walkers out there nowadays. i get the same vibe in Bne, especially the albeit justifiably nervous and frightened women in their 20-40 year age group. the older ladies are still friendly where I walk and the blokes too, but these younger ones with their fake sudden phone calls as they approach a man walking to wards them on the footpath / bikepath is so very sad to see. It is kinda funny, but , in honesty, really tragic that these types feel so afraid to just say hello in passing anymore, or even just nod in acknowledgement of a fellow Aussie. So radically different to the kids, like your shot of the little Indian / Sri Lankan girl - so full of trust and wonder. that is a lovely shot. will you be going back one day? It is so rewarding to take a few prints if you return to such countries, and seek out that person and give them a print or two. I have only done that a few times but is such a fun exercise to set yourself.