Finally…

Disclaimer: These are just my personal views/experience(s). 

Everyone knows, Leicas are, quite possibly, the best cameras money can buy. And, naturally, I have been lusting after one ever since I started photography a few years back. Originally, I was crazy for the M9. But this was when I didn’t know much about photography and just thought the flagship was the best (yes, that is the case but that is mainly true for DSLRs – not for rangefinder cameras IMO).

I used to be extremely intimidated by film photography before I actually tried it out for myself (I still am though, but it’s not as foreign a concept as it used to be). Now I’ve realised that if one truly wants to experience a Leica, they must get one of their gorgeous mechanical film cameras. Mainly the legendary Leica MP (that too in black…yummmmy) that’s rated as one of the best mechanical film cameras of all time. Well, I can’t afford a MP as yet, but I managed to get a well used (and maybe even abused) but fully functional 1935 Leica III for a very decent price off of eBay by accident. “By accident” I mean, I placed quite a low bid around (just for fun) 3 days before the bidding was supposed to end, thinking it would never sell for what I set my maximum bid at, and totally forgot about it since I was busy playing around with my new toy, the Minolta. I get the ‘item is ending soon’ email on my Blackberry, which I discard, and the next thing I know, I’ve won the item! I seriously couldn’t believe it. I was the owner of a Leica. I didn’t care which one it was (as long as it wasn’t a stupid point and shoot – the X1 is actually pretty good though).

My Minolta Uniomat with my Leica III

I knew the Leicas of that era aren’t rated as one of the most easy to use cameras but I seriously couldn’t care less. We have become so spoilt because of technology that we have forgotten what it takes to make a good photograph. There’s no excitement when you transfer the images into Lightroom (or whatever) simply because you already know how that image turned out because you peeked at it on the LCD of your digital camera when you took it.

When I got my first roll developed, the excitement was nerve-racking. I couldn’t contain myself when I was about to receive the prints. Even though, majority of the images I took on that roll were crap, it was a feeling that I will never forget. I don’t remember ever having a feeling that was even remotely similar to this when I started shooting digital.

All this emotional attachment nonsense aside, I have a feeling that one does not have the right to call themselves a photographer till the time they know how to shoot film (this goes for all the wedding and “artsy” photographers out there – glamour and commercial are obviously different scenarios). I feel this is the only way that one can ever learn to respect the underrated art. These days, because of the advent of the cheap DSLR (and the pseudo trendy-ness of the Holga and Lomography – film, but still a fad), any kid who takes a few decent pictures or just knows what every button or dial does (but doesn’t completely understand the function/logic behind it), starts calling themselves a photographer. They fail to understand that being a photographer isn’t about taking a half decent image and then going medieval on it in Photoshop. I know…I’ve been there myself, not so long ago (this paragraph is more of a personal reflection than an accusation).

Anyway, this may seem like complete horse shit to some or it may actually make some sense. Either way, here’s a shot of my dream that came true.

Related articles

• 365 Days With my Leica M9 (alexonlocation.com)
• 35mm (hibrahimphotography.wordpress.com)
• In Love With Lisbon – and Leica (theonlinephotographer.typepad.com)
• A little treat for myself (hibrahimphotography.wordpress.com)