The above gallery is my first roll of film shot through my new Leica M6 TTL with a 35mm Summicron and Kodak Tri-X 400 (shot at box speed).
After the tremendous fail that was trying to get my 35mm Leica lens to fit on a Nikon F3, I was back to the drawing board. My Summicron stayed firmly mounted to my digital Leica, still never to see a piece of film. After continuing to use the F3 among other cameras, my desire to fit the summicron lens onto analog started to niggle at me.
I found myself constantly searching all second-hand camera platforms for months keeping my eyes out for a decent Leica (or Leica mount) camera. Everything from Minolta CLE’s to Voigtlander Bessa’s came and went, all HORRIBLY overpriced.
It seems the best thing you can do to increase the value of a camera is to fit it with a Leica M mount! After some time, and finding myself slowly drifting away from the digital realm, I decided to put my Leica M-P 240 up for sale.
Leica M-P 240 with 35mm Summicron f/2
So, REALLY long story cut short, my M-P sold almost the same day that a beautiful M6 TTL went up for sale. It came with a Carl Zeiss 35mm biogon f/2 and for a very reasonable price (for Leica!). Considering that a genuine Leica M is only a few hundred dollars more than a cheaper plastic camera with an M-mount bracket, it didnt make sense to try and save the dollars. Here is a picture of the new M6 TTL (all black of course…!)
Black Leica M6 TTL
So, thoughts and feelings. Well, pretty much every prejudice I had against the camera vanished the moment i opened the box. I feel guilty being swept off my feet merely by the aesthetics, but I was! On a whole, the camera is an absolute dream shooting experience. It’s hard to explain but everything just seems to fit. As soon as you hold the camera up to your eye and press the shutter, the gaping hole in your bank account doesn’t seem to matter. The seamless feel when you actuate the film advance lever is like nothing else. And when you get your first roll of film back and you get to see results first hand. Game over.
These tiny machines truly are mechanically perfect.
