G. K. Chesterson

If a boy fires off a gun, whether at a fox, a landlord or a reigning sovereign, he will be rebuked according to the relative value of these objects. But if he fires off a gun for the first time it is very likely that he will not expect the recoil, or know what a heavy knock it can give him. He may go blazing away through life at these and similar objects in the landscape; but he will be less and less surprised by the recoil; that is, by the reaction. He may even dissuade his little sister of six from firing off one of the heavy rifles designed for the destruction of elephants; and will thus have the appearance of being himself a reactionary. Very much the same principle applies to firing off the big guns of revolution. It is not a man’s ideals that change; it is not his Utopia that is altered; the cynic who says, “You will forget all that moonshine of idealism when you are older,” says the exact opposite of the truth. The doubts that come with age are not about the ideal, but about the real. And one of the things that are undoubtedly real is reaction: that is, the practical probability of some reversal of direction, and of our partially succeeding in doing the opposite of what we mean to do. What experience does teach us is this: that there is something in the make-up and mechanism of mankind, whereby the result of action upon it is often unexpected, and almost always more complicated than we expect.

These are the snags of sociology; and one of them is concerned with Education. If you ask me whether I think the populace, especially the poor, should be recognized as citizens who can rule the state, I answer in a voice of thunder, “Yes.” If you ask me whether I think they ought to have education, in the sense of a wide culture and familiarity with the classics of history, I again answer, “Yes.” But there is, in the achievement of this purpose, a sort of snag or recoil that can only be discovered by experience and does not appear in print at all. It is not allowed for on paper, even so much as is the recoil of a gun. Yet it is at this moment an exceedingly practical part of practical politics; and, while it has been a political problem for a very long time past, it is a little more marked (if I may stain these serene and impartial pages with so political a suggestion) under recent conditions that have brought so many highly respectable Socialists and widely respected Trade Union officials to the front.

The snag in it is this: that the self-educated think far too much of education. I might add that the half-educated always think everything of education. That is not a fact that appears on the surface of the social plan or ideal; it is the sort of thing that can only be discovered by experience. When I said that I wanted the popular feeling to find political expression, I meant the actual and autochthonous popular feeling as it can be found in third-class carriages and bean-feasts and bank-holiday crowds; and especially, of course (for the earnest social seeker after truth), in public-houses. I thought, and I still think, that these people are right on a vast number of things on which the fashionable leaders are wrong. The snag is that when one of these people begins to “improve himself” it is exactly at that moment that I begin to doubt whether it is an improvement. He seems to me to collect with remarkable rapidity a number of superstitions, of which the most blind and benighted is what may be called the Superstition of School. He regards School, not as a normal social institution to be fitted in to other social institutions, like Home and Church and State; but as some sort of entirely supernormal and miraculous moral factory, in which perfect men and women are made by magic. To this idolatry of School he is ready to sacrifice Home and History and Humanity, with all its instincts and possibilities, at a moment’s notice. To this idol he will make any sacrifice, especially human sacrifice. And at the back of the mind, especially of the best men of this sort, there is almost always one of two variants of the same concentrated conception: either “If I had not been to School I should not be the great man I am now,” or else “If I had been to school I should be even greater than I am.” Let none say that I am scoffing at uneducated people; it is not their uneducation but their education that I scoff at. Let none mistake this for a sneer at the half-educated; what I dislike is the educated half. But I dislike it, not because I dislike education, but because, given the modern philosophy or absence of philosophy, education is turned against itself, destroying that very sense of variety and proportion which it is the object of education to give.

No man who worships education has got the best out of education; no man who sacrifices everything to education is even educated. I need not mention here the many recent examples of this monomania, rapidly turning into mad persecution, such as the ludicrous persecution of the families who live on barges. What is wrong is a neglect of principle; and the principle is that without a gentle contempt for education, no gentleman’s education is complete.

I use the casual phrase casually; for I do not concern myself with the gentleman but with the citizen. Nevertheless, there is this historic half-truth in the case for aristocracy; that it is sometimes a little easier for the aristocrat, at his best, to have this last touch of culture which is a superiority to culture. Nevertheless, the truth of which I speak has nothing to do with any special culture of any special class. It has belonged to any number of peasants, especially when they were poets; it is this which gives a sort of natural distinction to Robert Burns and the peasant poets of Scotland. The power which produces it more effectively than any blood or breed is religion; for religion may be defined as that which puts the first things first. Robert Burns was justifiably impatient with the religion he inherited from Scottish Calvinism; but he owed something to his inheritance. His instinctive consideration of men as men came from an ancestry which still cared more for religion than education. The moment men begin to care more for education than for religion they begin to care more for ambition than for education. It is no longer a world in which the souls of all are equal before heaven, but a world in which the mind of each is bent on achieving unequal advantage over the other. There begins to be a mere vanity in being educated whether it be self-educated or merely state-educated. Education ought to be a searchlight given to a man to explore everything, but very specially the things most distant from himself. Education tends to be a spotlight; which is centered entirely on himself. Some improvement may be made by turning equally vivid and perhaps vulgar spotlights upon a large number of other people as well. But the only final cure is to turn off the limelight and let him realize the stars.

So when I updated the Ubuntu 10.10 installation the other day to 11.04 on my Lenovo Thinkpad X61 laptop, I was totally blown away by the new Unity desktop experience.

And no, I don’t mean blown away as in “blasted to smithereens.” I mean blown away as in “the angels started singing.” It’s been the strangest thing, but I haven’t wanted to tinker at all with this GUI.

Ok, well, I’ve wanted to add just a touch of tinkering here and there. For instance, I still haven’t figured out how to add the 2 CPU monitors to the indicators above so I can scale back how much power each CPU is using.

You see, I come from a lifetime of using all versions of DOS and Windows, to dual-booting Windows and GNU-Linux with a very complex partition table, to now just simply using Ubuntu “out of the box.” So I’m a total computer techie-nerd at heart. Fiddling with my operating system is in my blood.

Once you have Ubuntu 11.04 up and running, you’re going to quickly notice that the new Unity interface doesn’t look anything like any other desktop out there. It incorporates aspects of the Mac and Windows desktops, but blazes its own trail too.

Even though this is not an desktop for those who like to fiddle with the internal functions of their operating system, after using Unity for a week I haven’t wanted to tweak it much at all. It helps me focus and get my work done — which isn’t bad at all. Isn’t that really the point anyway… to get your work done?

Here’s my new Ode-to-Claude desktop (notice the absence of desktop icons?):

My Ubuntu 11.04 Unity desktop

Why am I so enamored with the new Unity user interface?

For one, it’s fast. Applications start lickety-split. I like that.

Second, it’s simple. I like that even better. I can find what I need quickly and don’t have to spend eons searching for the right thing. With the application taskbar gone from the bottom, my eyes aren’t jumping up and down trying to find out what’s going on. Every essential thing is at the top, out of the way.

The whole experience is the most minimalist, least-intrusive, most facilitative desktop experience I’ve used in quite a while, and it’s refreshing.

I hope you’ll give it a try and open yourself up to new opportunities.

I’m sure you’ve got some stuff to get done too.

Here’s a few more screenshots of my happy little laptop:

Watching a video with Stephen Fry in Ubuntu 11.04. Unless the active application window is maximized, you'll see the application bar at left.

This is what you see after clicking the Ubuntu icon at top left. Pressing the Windows or "Super" key does the same thing.

Chromium has replaced Firefox as my browser of choice. Little Mac-like indicators tell you what applications are running on the Unity bar.

With a Chromium window maximized, hovering near the left edge or the Ubuntu icon will make the application bar slide into view.

Txt Reader displays plain text e-books nicely. Opening an application which is not in your application bar adds that program's icon to it temporarily. Love the Ubuntu font too.

The desktop switcher is now a 2x2 default configuration.

By Max Lincoln Schuster, of Simon & Schuster publishing

1. Become the world’s supreme expert on something. Schuster advises to “begin at once, at this precise moment to choose some subject, some concept, some great name or idea or event in history on which you can eventually make yourself the world’s supreme expert.” He urges us to start a crash program immediately usinh the three R’s of modern education, reading, research and reflection — with the goal of establishing yourself as “one who has the most knowledge, the deepest insight and the most audacious willingness to break new ground by defining your terms and actually examining all the alternatives and consequences.”
2. Master the art and technique not merely of rapid reading, but creative reading and creative research. Schuster says it’s important to “learn how to use a library and how to build a home library of your own.” He reflects how “back in 1913, high school graduates were singing the old refrain: ‘No more pencils, no more books, no more teacher’s saucy looks.’” He points out that they were throwing away their books and saving their diplomas. He urges us to do the opposite. “Forget your diploma, or throw it away, but save your books and use them day and night.”
3. Learn the supreme art of getting sixty seconds out of a minute, sixty minutes out of an hour, twenty four out of a day. He reminds us that we have as much time as everyone else our age. He says to “Save it, hoard it, plug up all the leaks. If necessary, stand on the street corner, cap in hand like a mendicant, and beg all the passers-by for the seconds and minutes and hours and days they waste.”
4. Master the art of preparation. Do your homework (especially after your formal education). Remember the words of French chemist Louis Pasteur (1822–1895) who said “Chance favors the prepared mind.”
5. Begin now to learn the art and science of preventative medicine. In other words, take care of yourself. Exercise and eat healthy. He says we should prepare now to out-perform and outlive our doctors. He says Ralph Waldo Emerson said it best: “Give me health and a day, and I will make the pomp of emperors ridiculous.”
6. Work hard, think big, and always have a dream. Begin with a detailed blueprint and plan for your agenda, your priorities, your first things first. Schuster encourages us to put a firm foundation under our “castles in Spain, in the form of these step-by-step, play-by-play specifics and make your dream come true.”
7. Remember the following three questions: “If I am not for myself, who will be? If I am not for others, what am ‘I’? And if not now, when?” These three questions were first asked by renowned Jewish religious leader Hillel the Elder.
8. Work hard and opportunities will come. Schuster advises us to remember the words of noted American journalist H. L. Mencken (1880–1956) who said, “Most people don’t recognize opportunity when it comes along, because usually it is disguised as hard work.”
9. Don’t try to please everyone. Schuster counsels us to always keep in mind the maxim of U.S. editor and journalist (and the first recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for reporting), Herbert Bayard Swope (1882–1958) who said, “I can’t give you any formula for success, but I can give you a sure formula for failure — try to please everybody.”
10. Always remember, the time to be happy is now. The place to be happy is here. The way to be happy is to make others so.
11. Remember what people really want. Schuster’s last point is extremely applicable to writers who promote products and services. He says to “never forget that people never buy things or services … they buy solutions, for their problems. Your job is to help them find solutions.”

Not bad advice huh?

But don’t just read them and forget them.

Keep them near and use them to guide your actions and I’m confident you’ll be more successful in almost every area of your life.

]]> http://www.sweeneyblog.com/success-is-yours-11-tips-to-guide-your-life/feed/ 0 http://www.sweeneyblog.com/worlds-most-expensive-camera/ http://www.sweeneyblog.com/worlds-most-expensive-camera/#comments Wed, 01 Sep 2010 00:40:34 +0000 ms http://www.sweeneyblog.com/?p=83 The world’s most expensive camera was recently auctioned off (May 2010) by Westlicht. The final price for the camera body & lens? A cool $927,004.80.

Is this some super-duper experimental digital wonder with 50 gazillion megapixels? No, it was a very, very old camera — a Daguerréotype Giroux built in 1839, to be exact. And this is rather remarkable considering the first-ever photograph of a live person was taken early that same year (but not with this camera):



Boulevard du Temple, Paris, IIIe arrondissement, Daguerréotype 1839

No less spectacular is the price paid for the mercury box that goes with the Daguerréotype — the extremely rare accessory finally sold for $183,121.44. What the heck is a mercury box? Well, in those days you had to develop your full plate (164mm x 216mm) Daguerréotypes using a particular method.

The somewhat dangerous process involved inserting your exposed plate in the upper part of the box in a 45° angle and then exposing it to mercury vapor. The mercury vapor was produced by heating up a small sheet metal cup in the pyramid-shaped lower part of the box (break some OSHA regulations anyone?). On the right side a thermometer was mounted to measure the temperature of the mercury. On the lower left side, just next the metal cup, there is a small opening to refill the mercury with a dropping glass. At the top of the box a removable wooden cover to keep the vapor inside (hopefully… so it doesn’t go up your nose!). In order to inspect of the state of development the upper portion of the box has a semi-circular glass front which originally was covered by a curtain to keep out the light.

Oh and one other thing — you’ll need the instruction book so you know how the whole process works. Shell out another $11,397.60 for that. All told, this little hobby kit sold for a total of $1,121,523.84. And don’t forget the .84 cents! But it was the state of the art at that time. Here’s a few pictures from the auction house’s catalog listing:

















]]> http://www.sweeneyblog.com/worlds-most-expensive-camera/feed/ 0 http://www.sweeneyblog.com/capturing-your-wedding-in-a-true-photojournalistic-style/ http://www.sweeneyblog.com/capturing-your-wedding-in-a-true-photojournalistic-style/#comments Wed, 25 Aug 2010 18:55:43 +0000 ms http://www.sweeneyblog.com/?p=56 Many grooms-to-be and brides-to-be ask,

“How do I find a wedding photographer that will cover my wedding in true photojournalistic style?”

First, let’s define photojournalistic style as it relates to a wedding. A wedding is a collection of family members and friends all moving in different directions to prepare for one thing: your special ceremony and celebration. The phrase “wedding photojournalist” has been in style for a while now and has almost become synonymous with any type of wedding photography, but there are distinct differences.

Photojournalism tells a visual story and is not just a collection of candid and/or posed pictures. All of the action surrounding your ceremony and its myriad details is what wedding photojournalism is all about. The preparation, the guests arriving, the venue being hand-decorated with personal touches, the contemplation, the rejoicing, and the joining of family all need to be captured in an artistic fashion. Wedding photojournalism documents the flow and the emotion of the day as we all gather to witness your event.

On the other hand, traditional wedding photography utilizes classical, formal posing techniques and probably studio lights. Some photographers may try to blend these styles, with varying degrees of almost-but-not-quite success.

Here are some questions to think about as you consider a photographer:

1. What are your qualifications as a photojournalist?
2. Tell me about the type of images you take and your style of shooting?
3. Do you visit the venue before the day of the ceremony to plan where and how you will capture the event?
4. Do you arrive early to capture the entire venue, the getting ready and preparations?
5. Can you show me some examples of wedding photojournalism?

Answered correctly, these questions will help insure your wedding story is best told. Consider this: there will be no one at your wedding that will see more of the entire day than your photographer. This is why I take my job so seriously. I give you and your future spouse a unique view into the day that no one else will have. The day goes by so fast, but my pictures will capture your most precious memories and special moments that are all too often forgotten. These unique events will be preserved for you to have and share for many years to come.

]]> http://www.sweeneyblog.com/capturing-your-wedding-in-a-true-photojournalistic-style/feed/ 0 http://www.sweeneyblog.com/seven-top-tips-for-your-engagement-photographs/ http://www.sweeneyblog.com/seven-top-tips-for-your-engagement-photographs/#comments Wed, 25 Aug 2010 18:42:33 +0000 ms http://www.sweeneyblog.com/?p=54 Tip #1: Location

For your engagement session, pick a spot that’s meaningful to you and your fiancé. If no favorites come to mind then ask your photographer for recommendations. Take the time of year and time of day into consideration too. If your photos are outside, the best time of day for the session is early in the morning or during the last few hours of daylight.

Tip #2: Clothing

Coordinate your clothing. This doesn’t mean you have to be totally matching twins. But it does mean that your outfit should complement the colors the other is wearing, not clash against them. Light colored khaki pants rarely look good in photos, they show spots and stains too easily. For men, dark jeans or dress pants work best. Lastly, avoid busy patterns. Busy fabrics and patterns will draw attention away from your faces and expressions.

Tip #3: Makeup

Usually, it’s best to go with hair and makeup that isn’t intense. On hot days carry oil blotting tissues (makeup safe) available for a few dollars at your local drug store. Also consider wearing matte makeup or getting your makeup applied by a professional.

Tip #4: Water

Be sure to drink extra water in the days leading up to your engagement session so that your skin is well hydrated. Get a good night’s rest, and avoid alcohol the night before (makes you puffy!).

Tip #5: Silliness

How about a “trash the engagement” session (kind of like “trash the dress“)? Jump in the fountain, ocean, pond, whatever. Play in the park and get muddy! Have fun with your engagement shoot.

Tip #6: Music

On the drive to your engagement photography session, loosen up with your favorite music. Put yourself in the mood and get rid of any anxious feelings. It’s all about having fun!

Tip #7: Most Importantly, Be Yourself

You are most beautiful (and handsome) when you are relaxed and being yourself. Ladies, don’t try anything drastic with your hair or makeup. You’ll want photos where you feel comfortable in your own skin (it will show), as well as photos that best convey who you really are. This is a wonderful time in your lives—you are in love! Let your photographs show it by letting your personalities shine.

]]> http://www.sweeneyblog.com/seven-top-tips-for-your-engagement-photographs/feed/ 0 http://www.sweeneyblog.com/essential-differences-between-slr-and-rangefinder-viewing/ http://www.sweeneyblog.com/essential-differences-between-slr-and-rangefinder-viewing/#comments Wed, 25 Aug 2010 18:37:39 +0000 ms http://www.sweeneyblog.com/?p=50 Note: This article is by Erwin Puts and can be found on his site, but it is buried way down in the middle of the page with no headings so it’s very difficult to find.

Essential differences between R and M viewing

Quite often you read about people remarking that some Leica lens will obscure part of the Rangefinder window. Noctilux 50 or Elmarit 24mm or Tri-Elmar being cited as examples. This is true, no discussion about it. But the interesting question is this: are we using the M-camera as it is intended. Let us start with the viewfinder of the typical SLR. We see through the lens and view the object in a size that is the correct relation to the focal length and by nature we select the part of the object that is most interesting to us. With the SLR then we select, frame and compose through and with the viewfinder. In fact the SLR method is not different from using a view camera where we throw a black cloth over our head and study the exact image on the ground glass. This is a static process: we detach from the world at large and selectively focus on one element that interests us.

With the Leica M camera we are in a completely different way of looking at the world. Generally when using a M camera we are using a mental technique that some writers have called the stream of consciousness approach. We are in the centre of the scene we are attracted to and our eyes/senses absorb everything. Then in a split second we are triggered emotionally by an event or a juxtaposition of objects (the decisive moment) and then we raise our M to the eye, frame with the finder and while still being fully we have mentally captured the whole scene, the framing is an act of selection, not of composition or studying the subject and then the fact that some parts of the scene are obscured by the lens is of no importance as we already know what the full picture will be. We can mentally fill in the blocked out parts, because we are so immersed in the scene that we can se the whole scene. As soon as we are using the framelines in the M as a precise selection mechanism for the scene to be framed and composed we are using the M as a version of the SLR way of looking at a scene. The M framelines are a tool to slice spatially through the stream of consciousness dimension of time. They are not a substitute for SLR type viewing and selecting of topics.

We need to abandon the SLR style of viewing when using the M. Then the technical shortcomings of the M (frame lines not exact, obscured by lenses etc) can be disregarded. The M style of photography is not a better type of SLR photography (like a better mouse trap), but a distinct type of photography, more generic than being comparable to the SLR. If you do grasp the meaning, then the M-photography will become a new experience.

On the true difference between the R and M systems

To start with a short history: In the ’30s, the system camera has been born with the large array of interchangeable lenses and all kinds of medical, scientific and copying accessories. The Leica and Contax systems expanded from the rangefinder body and had trouble to provide accurate viewing and framing. They solved it with the Visoflex. The Exacta Varex started with a mirror box and reflex viewing, but had a problem with fast and dynamic photography. Basically we see here already the tension between the two base systems, one tuned for dynamic style of photography, the other tuned for static photography. In the fifties the Japanese cameras, like Pentax, and specifically the Nikon F tried to bridge both concepts and provided tools that were ergonomically well designed, had improved reflex systems with clear viewing and so for a long period became the universal photographic tool. Based on 35mm film, they had added capabilities of motor drives, and the quick shooting of a full 36 shots in a few seconds. This was their approach to dynamic photography. The big advantage of the SLR species was the ease of lens change combined with the correct view in the finder. And it could include zoom lenses too. The Hasselblad on the other hand became the preferred tool of the studio photographer and the art and nature photographer who needed careful and dedicated composing and demanded excellent print quality.

But a system of lenses was a burden and the limitations of the roll film (12 shots, dubious film flatness) restricted the usefulness. The Zeiss Contarex tried to combine the quality aspirations of medium format with the ease of use and expandability of the 35mm SLR. Zeiss engineers assumed that the 35mm photography had matured to a stage where careful composition, accurate framing to the edge of the image, exploiting as much of the small area of the 35mm negative as possible and excellent optical quality would be seen as advancing the art of 35mm photography.

The market was not ready for this philosophy and Zeiss stopped production and with the Contax RTS joined the mainstream of thinking.

The next stage is the incorporation of the AF module, and now we can even take pictures without looking through the finder at all.

But the basic tension between a dynamic and mobile system and a static, tripod bound system did not disappear. The reflex system is indeed at its best when doing macro photography, studio work, or use lenses with a very long focal length or very strange perspectives, like the 15mm or the PC control lenses. In short everywhere when the accurate match between what you see and what will be captured on film is needed.

The current R-system

If we study the features of the R8, we see that the incorporation of the flash automation, the several exposure systems, the range of high quality lenses, the provision of extenders and elpro lenses, all do indicate that the R is designed for the static type of photography where the small format can be used to its advantage: relatively compact bodies and lenses, optical quality to diffraction limits, and zoom lenses without a loss in image quality. The studio flash in the R8 is often overlooked but to me this item is very important as it indicates the direction of photography for which the R8 designers created the system. (including the lenses). The superb 2/180 is not usable without a strong tripod, as is the zoom 70-180 or the 4/280. Let alone the 2,8/400. Even the 2.8/100 macro will be used on tripod to get the best imagery. And indeed,when you see the R8 in this perspective, the true value of the viewings system can be appreciated. The viewing screen isolates the photographer from his subject and the subject is seen frozen in a small confined space of the ground glass, without relation to the surroundings. You see the final print or slide as you want it or as it will be captured on film. And if you use this screen as intended, you compose, arrange and create the picture.

You need time and dedication to do this, but that is the choice of subject and your method of interpreting. The R-system then is Leica’s answer to the need of the medium format photographer who wants to use the advantages of the 35mm format without compromising the ultimate print quality.

The current M-system

The rangefinder could never compete with the reflex-screen in framing accuracy and the possibilities of careful composing and seeing exactly what you will capture on film, whatever the lens or accessory. But its small body, and compact lenses (compromised in optical quality compared to the the best R-lenses because of volume considerations) allow a different style of photography: to be involved in the scene and have your sensory system wide open to freeze a moment in time. You sense this from your emotion or relation to the subject or scene. You cannot compose carefully or create the picture: you have to wait and hunt and then act in a swift movement of fleeting aiming and shooting. With a rangefinder you aim and shoot in an instant.

If you approach the M and R on face value you are missing the basic difference.

Both are systems, both have a range of lenses that overlap in focal lengths, both have the same type of facilities (TTL, 35mm film etc). Both can be used for a wide range of photographic tasks: reportage, landscape, portraits, you name it. So if you look at the systems from this viewpoint, you become confused as both systems seem to compete in the same type of photography. If you follow my approach to distinguish between static and dynamic photography and composition versus involvement, you have two dimensions along which you can make a satisfactory selection.

]]> http://www.sweeneyblog.com/essential-differences-between-slr-and-rangefinder-viewing/feed/ 0 http://www.sweeneyblog.com/the-leica-philosophy-of-photography/ http://www.sweeneyblog.com/the-leica-philosophy-of-photography/#comments Wed, 25 Aug 2010 08:20:42 +0000 ms http://www.sweeneyblog.com/?p=45 This is the text of a Leica M6 promotional brochure from the 1980′s, but it explains Leica’s general philosophy and technique of using M cameras very well.

Concentration On Essentials



From 1925: Leica I with 50mm Leitz Elmar f/3.5

The history of 35mm photography has been shaped by photographers using the LEICA^®. Because the idea of developing the LEICA was based on the conviction that only human creativity, the ability to compose a picture of shape, light, and colour, can invest a photograph with its special qualities.

Photography with the rangefinder LEICA puts human skills foremost: the human capacity of feeling and expression. The LEICA M6 fascinates by providing the experience of original creative work, because it expresses the Leica philosophy in its purest form: concentration on essentials. It intentionally dispenses with much that is technically feasible yet restricts creative freedom. It is made for those who believe that humanity should be master of the medium, that the medium should never become the master.

Concentration on essentials: For the LEICA M6, for example, that means high-performance optics at the limits of the technically feasible. It means perfect focusing even in the poorest light conditions. A silky smooth, practically inaudible shutter. Selective through-the-lens light metering. Precision-engineered mechanical components of ultimate perfection. The sleek, elegant shape that perfectly fits the hand.

The photographer expects of a camera reliability in all circumstances, long life, perfect functioning, and highest precision without sacrificing strength. The LEICA M6 meets these criteria in an exemplary manner.

Every owner of a LEICA M6 knows why the name LEICA is so closely linked with the names of great photographers: Alfred Eisenstaedt, Ansel Adams, Ernst Haas, and Hans W. Silvester.

The LEICA M6 Puts You At the Center of Events



Leica M6 with 50mm Summicron lens

How do superbly dynamic photographs happen, what makes strikingly live photography possible? There’s only one answer: the rangefinder LEICA. There is no substitute for a LEICA M when everything depends on spontaneous action without attracting attention, in the center of events. The SLR technique obliges the photographer to move away from his subject; the LEICA M6 lets you stay at the hub of what is going on.

To stay inconspicuous, the photographer with a single-lens reflex camera uses a long focal length to bridge distance. But when you use the LEICA M6, you do not have to put any distance between you and your subject. You remain unnoticed, are yourself part of the event.

The photographer who uses a LEICA M6 needs not only photographic skills, but personality and sensitivity. Someone who works so close to the subject must possess empathy, be unobtrusive, observe closely, act fast and with decision. The LEICA M6 with its wide-aperture lenses and their outstanding imaging characteristics puts this kind of creativity within your reach. A fast lens lets you work with sureness. With the LEICA M6 you do not need the hard light of a flash unit that destroys atmosphere.

Every detail of the LEICA M6 is designed to let the photographer work fast and with precision. A few examples of this performance dimension: A chromed quick-change bayonet coupling that guarantees the same accurate seating after thousands of lens changes. A shutter that remains free of the slightest trace of wear after more than 100,000 exposures. The smooth movement of the focusing drive. The silk-soft, practically inaudible shutter release.

There is no alternative worldwide to this camera. Only Leica makes 35mm rangefinder system cameras.

Brilliant Results with the LEICA M6: Precision Focusing and Perfect Composition

The wide-base rangefinder is an exclusive optical and precision-engineered masterpiece. Its special feature: you can use either split-image or double-image focusing. No other 35mm camera has this perfect system of fast precision focusing.

In any camera, the rangefinder’s base length determines focusing accuracy. The bigger the base, the more accurately you can focus. By contrast with single-lens reflex cameras, where focal length and lens aperture determine the effective rangefinder base, the wide-base rangfinder of the LEICA M6 remains constant irrespective of the lens you use. This is why focusing a LEICA M6 fitted with a short-focus lens is far more accurate than an SLR. Needle-sharp focusing shows the unsurpassed performance of lens and camera in the photographs you take. Fast focusing, even in poor light, is an absolute condition for spontaneous, unobserved photography. With the LEICA M6 you do not have to choose between a perfectly focused picture and a vivid one.

A high-contrast bright-line frame helps achieve such live photography. The viewfinder image is always the same size. Six bright-line frames are projected in pairs into the viewfinder image to frame the picture for lenses having a focal length of 28mm and 90mm, 35mm and 135mm, 50mm and 75mm. When you change the lens, the correct frame appears automatically in the viewfinder. But you can also manually select a bright-line frame without having to change the lens. That lets you see and decide quickly which lens would give you the best composition.

The viewfinder of the LEICA M6 also lets you see what is happening outside the frame and when the action moves into the frame. For example, you can see when someone is about to step into your picture.

The viewfinder is couples to the lens to compensate for parallax; the frame is automatically adjusted as you focus.

Selective Exposure Metering: Even the Most Difficult Lighting Conditions Are No Problem for the LEICA M6

Often, what captivates in a good photograph is its range of colours, its variations of brightness and contrast. Taken against the light, with oblique lighting, or with strong highlights, your subject suddenly comes alive. For pictures of that kind, perfect exposure is decisive.

With the LEICA M6 and its selective through-the-lens exposure metering, lighting conditions that convey atmosphere are no problem. The LEICA M6 gives the photographer the confidence that turns creative ideas and skillful composition with light into exact reality without wasting time.

A light touch on the shutter release switches on the exposure meter. Depending on the subject, adjust shutter speed or aperture manually until the two LEDs light to show that they are correctly balanced. As befits a camera for professionals, fine adjustment and intentional over-or underexposure, half a stop or a full stop at a time, are possible as a matter of course and are shown in the viewfinder.

A silicon photo diode in the upper part of the camera body measures the light reflected through a condenser lens by a white circular dot on the face of the shutter blind. The dot diameter is about two-thirds the length of the shorter side of the viewfinder frame in use. This ensures practical, selective exposure metering, even by candlelight; the exposure meter’s range extends down to 0.125 cd/m². At stop f/1 and an ISO film speed of 100/21° this represents a one-second exposure.

The exposure meter and the shutter / aperture balance require little energy. They are powered by two silver oxide button cells or a lithium battery which supply energy for about twenty hours’ continuous operation with the exposure meter switched on. If you take a reading averaging fifteen seconds for each exposure, that’s enough for about 4,800 readings or about 130 films of 36 exposures each.

Simple, Fast, Silent, Unobtrusive: the Discreet Creativity of the LEICA M6

You can achieve impressive photographs, candid shots that seem alive, and unusual compositions only if your camera is instantly ready for action. For that, it must be simple to use, even in unexpected situations and under extreme conditions. The LEICA M6 is designed for this. It has only a few controls, ergonomically arranged, unmistakable because each has only a single function.

You can change the lenses of the LEICA M6 in the dark, because they have touch-detection marking that guarantees a positive fit. In the cold, you can load the film with gloved hands. You can put down LEICA M lenses on any flat surface. They need no lens cap, because a special mount protects the final lens and they have no projecting pins or levers that could be damaged. All this gives you an enormous advantage when speed is essential.

For maximum convenience and fast film transport there is the optional LEICA WINDER M attachment. With this silent motor winder, the LEICA M6 is instantly ready again after each exposure, set for the fast follow-up shot that often turns out better than the first.

It lets you take hand-held serial photographs, up to three exposures a second, without altering the precise frame you have chosen, because you no longer need to move the quick-wind lever that inevitably shifts the camera in front of the eye.

Swing-mirror and automatic hinged-shutter mechanism, essential to modern SLR cameras, are things the LEICA M6 neither needs nor has. That makes its shutter release extremely quiet. And because the fast LEICA M lenses often make flash superfluous, even the person at your elbow may not notice that you are taking a photograph. This unobtrusiveness ensures the photographer with a LEICA M6 welcome anywhere, to capture the undisturbed atmosphere and mood of the scene in exciting, lifelike pictures.

Leica M lens Performance At the Limits of the Technically Feasible

LEICA M6 lenses have focal lengths from 21mm to 135mm. Their brilliant performance has secured them their leading place internationally: outstanding image, neutral colour rendering, high contrast, superb resolution, exceptional freedom from flare. Impressive, too, is the smooth, even focusing movement and long-life stability, the result of carefully chosen materials and precision-engineered metal components, often a combination of aluminum on brass that ensures high accuracy in extreme temperatures. The LEICA M6 is built to last, even in hard, constant use. And system continuity is an essential part of the Leica policy. This means that all lenses are compatible with any camera of the M series, past, present, and future. Such a level of performance is the result of more than 60 years experience in building lenses for 35mm cameras. The LEICA was designed at Ernst Leitz Wetzlar GmbH, which was also one of the first optical companies to establish its own glass research laboratory. And not long after the laboratory had been set up, it achieved its first major international breakthrough by producing high-refraction glass without thorium, a radioactive substance previously regarded as essential. Research, development, and design are essential for the manufacture of precision lenses that set new standards. Only a perfect blend of highly competent people, the best materials, and advanced production technology can achieve such products.

Wide-angle Lenses for the LEICA M6

Seeing all that’s happening and keeping on top of things while you’re part of the crowd. Staying in close contact with events. That’s the fascination of wide-angle lenses. Experts refer to it as the magic angle. Monumental foreground and receding background characterize depth and create a sense of distance. Such dynamic composition is unmistakable in quick picture reportage and the lively candid shot alike. The great depth of field increases this effect; just a small amount of stopping down makes it perfect.

Standard Focal Lengths for the LEICA M6

The 50mm standard lenses are superbly adaptable. They are universally suitable, all the way from landscapes to available-light reportage, from candid shots to architectural photography.

They are so easy to use that even a beginner can produce effortless masterpieces. Their 45° field, about the same as the human eye, is perfect for natural-looking photographs.

The LEICA M6 Telephoto Range

Less can often be more. With a telephoto lens the photographer can concentrate on essentials, leave out the irrelevant, and stress the pictorial statement. Longer focal length telescopes distance. The shallow depth of field at full aperture emphasizes the plastic element of the main subject and sets it apart against a soft-focus background.

]]> http://www.sweeneyblog.com/the-leica-philosophy-of-photography/feed/ 0