The Leica MP is something very special
In another guest post from Jerome Arfouche and this time he tells us about his new found love affair with the Leica MP.
Hello everyone, I’m back with a gear related article which Bellamy kindly agreed to share.
I’m usually not a very big gearhead but I love photography and I like pretty looking cameras and this is what today’s post is about. But first, rewind back to April 2010. I have decided to take the leap and buy a Leica M, this is a serious decision as I have no real way to pay for it but to sell all my Nikon and Voigtlander gear. In the end I was convinced that a one camera one lens combo was the way to go. May 2011. For a year I’ve been using nothing but that same camera lens setup and couldn’t be happier, I’m in San Francisco on vacation when things apparently decided they were going too well; my lens broke and subsequently spent the summer in repairs and I made zero pictures that season. Hence I decided to buy a backup. October 2011, still in disbelief I buy a cheap M4 with a 28mm lens. After playing with the M4, a meterless mechanical camera, I start to question the usefulness of an auto setting on my M7, and the batteries having abadoned me a few times, a little tempting thought formed in the back of my mind about an all mechanical setup. However I dismissed the idea because I wasn’t fond of just collecting expensive gear. In general I don’t like to buy things just for the sake of buying or just because I can afford them, I guess I somehow managed to escape the great “keep buying new things” mentality pervasive in North America.
Fast forward to April 2012. A quiet morning at work, checking email, quick glance over to KEH, lo and behold what do I see ? A Leica MP, black (perfect for street), .58 finder (I wear glasses and use wide angles) in excellent condition for a jaw dropping price (the good one, the “is it missing a zero” kind). The little red devil on my shoulder is whispering into my ear.
For the third time, I question whether I need such an expensive camera. Looking at the price I equate it with x weeks of work, months of rent. Suddenly, ideas and sacrifices otherwise inconceivable to a sane mind seem to look perfectly logical and reasonable, sure I can survive on soup and fruit for a month. And before I knew it I had ordered the camera, the deal seemed too good to pass, besides, I could always sell it again if I didn’t like it, right ? (who was I kidding
when I said that, I do not know) Following that were three agonizing days of border delays, missed phone calls, second thoughts and failed deliveries. Friday afternoon I finally pick up the package, squeeze into a full subway at rush hour with nine to fivers eyeing my box uncomfortably, run home, narrowly avoiding a lengthy chat with the neighbor. There it was, on my counter, the object of so much lust and desire, and on my face a grin from ear to ear.
So why is it I put myself through all this you ask ? Leica is no foreign name for anyone who knows cameras or has been doing
photography for a while. And atop this unattainable olympus of heart breaking expensive perfection sits the MP, the most perfected and refined, the pinnacle of mechanical film cameras from a legend in 35mm. Or as my friend adequatly summed it up, “it’s the same camera, but not really. it’s a Leica thing”.
Leicas are amongst the lowest of low tech cameras, no autofocus or even auto film rewind here. Their design has been virtually the same since the 50s, they use film for heaven’s sake, what on earth would compel someone to buy them?
Although I love Leica I am lucid enough in my insanity to admit that all cameras do the same thing, they take pictures. Yes that’s right, can I live without and still make pictures ? Yes. If one wants a functional good camera, affordable working gear is plentiful. However Leica is different in that they designed not just a camera but an object you love to use, want to use. Looking at the MP it’s a clean, very simple, minimalistic design. People often say that Leica isn’t about what’s there, it’s about what isn’t there. It is to cameras what Apple is to computers (cult following included). You hold the camera and it instantly feels right in the hand, not too heavy, not too light. Solid metal, no plastic. Fingers instinctively find their spot.
Every part moves with such smoothness and calculated precision that for a good half hour I was just playing and clicking though I had no film in it, and that is it, it’s a camera you want to love using, not one that simply performs its function. The rewind knob very gently pops off and smoothly goes back to place. The advance lever makes a precise, quiet sound, there is no describing the smoothness of the operation. Even the little hatch to open the bottom plate lifts so
gently. The viewfinder is a gloriously bright, uncluttered view framed with discreet white lines. I have had the chance to play with many models, from the M4 to the M9 and there are no two which shutters sound the same ! The M7 is a dry, precise “clak”. The MP has a softer mechanical sound, yet drier than an M6. My much older M4 (aka grandpa) has the softest sound of all, though slightly wheezing at the slower speeds, thus justifying the nickname. The finish is an absolute beauty, though I have to say I find the engravings on the M4 still nicer and the battery cover kind of ugly. Everything is engraved and filled with paint, the script is beautiful and it’s a tactile work of art, really a pleasure for the senses (though I haven’t tasted it yet). It’s small and doesn’t attract attention, it doesn’t even have the trademark red dot, really a camera you can take everywhere.
This is a camera that quietly stays out of your way when you want to shoot, it doesn’t interefere with unnecessary safety features like autofocus or auto-whatever, it does away with what isn’t strictly related to making the picture. An exposure dial, film advance, rewind knob and a frame counter is all you get. It might sound like the lifestyle of a reclusive hermit but back in 2010 once I got used to manual controls I seriously wondered how I was doing before and whether I can ever go back to using an automated camera. All you need to know when using a Leica is that it works, so you just focus on making the picture knowing when the time comes to click it will flawlessly follow, it does one thing and it does it well. When you look at it you realize that you own something quite special, something that wasn’t mass produced in Asia or trying to ride a recent market trend.
Had my past self seen this shameless display of luxury it would have no doubt asked my present self how on earth I’m affording all this. Well, I’m not. That’s why I will be soon selling my beloved M7, not only to pay for the MP but also because I still believe I only need one camera and one lens (plus the backup because I’ve been paranoid since San Francisco). If anyone reading this is dreaming of a Leica, I say be very patient, look through offers everywhere, look again and then look some more, get to know the prices to recognize a good deal, avoid ebay like the plague and most importantly, you will never regret
buying one !
And now, before the collector purists bring out the pitchforks and hang me for heresy I shall put a lens on it, load it with film and actually go shoot with it !
Learn more about Jerome:
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Please come and comment, I love it when you do and it gives you camera karma :)
I like the sound of Camera Karma! Fantastic article too! Very Romantic, It sounds much like my love affair with the craft itself. The MP is the pinnacle of my camera dreams. You are absolutely right about the collector purists at the end there too. These cameras deserve to be shot! I’m certainly willing to help.
I keep telling myself that an MP is really no different to my M6 but there is just something so beautiful about the MP that compels most Leica users who don’t have one lust to after it’s beauty until they can finally take no more and give in and buy one. :-)
I bought my M6 from ebay. The thing is, the guy i got it from lived nearby so I picked it up and looked at the camera before buying.
@cidereye, Niklas: Correct ! Technically speaking, the MP is no different from an M6…just so much more tempting :)
@Joshua: that’s right ! no shelf queen here…
Jerome,
Very lovely piece, very moving and inspiring haha.. I’ve been saving to buy my first M kamera, and my question is: Why avoid eBay like the plague?
Thanks
From personal experience I don’t quite trust the sellers on ebay, their prices are overinflated and I rarely feel safe buying there as you have very little recourse in case things go south. That said though, the first and last time I bought there was when I got my M7
I wholeheartedly agree with Jerome on eBay, well for major purchases like bodies or lenses anyway.
I have always paid less money by buying from a reputable dealer every single time as opposed to buying from eBay when it comes to Leica gear. Plus as Jerome indicates it is very wise to have the security of a 6 or 12 months guarantee should you run into problems. And best of all it is so much nicer to have a camera arrive as described or in my experience often even better than the dealer described.
And just when I thought I was over MP GAS! Thank you for this article with the beautiful photos….grrrr…
Nice article…a pleasure to read. Yeah, I’d have to agree with everything you said about the MP. Great camera. I keep asking myself why I’ve ordered the M7. Thanks so much for the pleasure of your essay!
Glen
Gosh! What about the M7? She’s really a beauty too!
Glen
Soooo… Begs the question: how much for the M7? Hoping for a jaw dropping price (the good one).
Once you hold an MP —- there is no turning back —mine is the hammertone finish….
I love my MP!
New to Leica, I found Jerome’s story rather similar to my experience. I’ve just recently jumped back into photography, alas I left it for a good ten years. Went through living my early life with my FM2, F3, F4e and with a sprinkling of F90x. Loved them all and all for different reasons. For whatever insane moment I had, I sold them all at varying times. Came back to photography with the D200 and quite frankly the result was not even luke warm. Histograms, CF cards, mega pixels, crop sensors…you know the drill. Whatever happend to just taking photographs? Now, after reading (a lot) I’ve acquired a M3 double stroke and a 50mm Summicron in amazing condition. I can’t believe it’s 45 years old! It sings when I press the shutter button, it is silky smooth when I cock the shutter and yet, it is built like a nothing I’ve ever held before. Totally romanticizing the entire experience but there a definite connection between camera, lens, film and photographer. I just finished off a roll of black and white and I’m dying of anticipation of what is burned on the film. I’m back again and it sure feels good thanks to everyone who contributes to sites like this and of course to Bellamy.
Hi Jerome
I can perfectly undertand you as i feel the same. I shoot digital Leica since the M8, M9 and now the MM. I love the MM , i think it is the closest digital camera to film, and i love everything Leica does.
A friend of mine gave me the M6 in mint condition-like new- which i use for the last month, i thought i’d buy it. But the MP bug just would’nt let grip on me.
Sooo, i guess i shall buy one too.
Your article was a joy to read. I love people with humour and you certainly dont lack it
Enjoy your beautiful camera
Danny
Just picked up an MP after finding a killer price on KEH myself! It will be my first Leica. Can’t wait to get out and shoot with it. I noticed from your photos in this post that you have the 28mm Elmarit f/2.8. What do you think of the lens? Any images you’ve taken with it?
I sold all my digital gear and moved to Leica MP. This camera was always my dream and now I am living it. Truly amazing camera.
@nietko
Great article and my feelings exactly. The MP was the last camera on my ‘lust list’ and I purchased one in December 2017 from Blue Moon Camera in Portland, Oregon. I also should not have spent so much money but the camera was perfect. No scratches. Need I say more about loving it?
I liked your advice about not buying on Ebay. At Blue Moon I get a one year warranty and I know they have tried the camera themselves., It is also where I bought my Hasselblad 500CM.
Ready to put some JCH 400 film through it as I wander the streets of Portland and soon London.
Thanks for the great article.
My husband has a Leica IIIa from 1936 that he bought from a friend.
We are a Leica family
I will move from Leica Q to Leica MP, the Q is extraordinary in performance and build, but I cant bear to fall victim to the digital curse of upgrade and obsolescence when it comes to this expensive brand. The Smartphone era has made that phenomenon all too apparent. After all, Leica in my mind meant a camera for life, I have never been comfortable with the fact that such exceptional build quality and expense of Leica digital cameras can be made inert and tossed away because of the dead chip and software inside after a relatively short life cycle. I dont even like the idea of battery dependency for the light metering, but the astonishing Leica MP gets away with it, even without a battery. Digital Leica might offer incredible tech, but that is simply incomparable to the legendary reputation of their mechanical film cameras that helped birth the mobile photography age. It easily qualifies as a heirloom that can be passed on to your children, where would I be there with the hamster lifespan of a digital product? I cannot imagine film manufacture ever dying completely, it can only improve with more environment friendly processes. That is where I am heading, my iPhone can take care of the digital side with cheap snaps, whilst a Leica film camera will continue take pictures worth framing by the time Apple launch throw-away medium format lens technology in iPhone 51 in 2059.