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Photo::Death Valley

During the Easter weekend, I took a long-deserved photo trip to my favorite place in the world, Death Valley. For the past couple of months, we've been having too much rain and it was great to get out in the sun again.

I've been to Death Valley a couple of times before, and this time I tried to visit new places. This time I visited: Rhyolite, Stonepipe Wells, The Dunes (I can't remember the name right now), Golden Canyon, Artist's Pallette, Devil's Golf Course, Badwater, and Zabrieskie's Point.

I took two bodies - Hasselblad 503CW (with 3 lenses) and Hasselblad SWC/M. I used Kodak TMX for 503CW with a tripod and Kodak TMY for the SWC/M handheld.

Tech Tags: death+valley rhyolite stonepipe+wells zabrieskies+point devils+golfcourse artists+palette harmony+borax+works sand+dunes golden+canyon badwater hasselblad 503cw swc/m

Photo::Buying a Leica M7

As I've said in my previous post, I've been looking for an M7 body to substitute my M6 (which I sold in two days). In doing the research, I've learned a few things about buying an M7 and I thought there would be many people who'd like to hear what I've learned.

Two versions of the viewfinder

First, the original viewfinder for the M7 had the same 'white-out' problem that the M6 has. When you are pointing to a bright scene, your focusing patch turns white (bright) which makes it impossible to focus at all. Leica fixed the problem by installing the MP finder some time around 2003 and they've been providing upgrade at varying cost (I was recently offered to upgrade free of charge).

I've been trying to find out how I can tell whether a M7 body has an MP finder or not, and there are many different theories. One thing for sure is that you can't really tell by just looking at the body from the outside. Some people say if the body has a serial number higher than 288xxx, it is an upgraded version, but there are conflicting proofs. In fact, when I asked the seller this question, he made a call to Leica and was told that there is no way to know this just by looking at the serial number. Another theory is that the MP finder has different coating with different colorcast (orange or purple), which also has conflicting reports so its useless. Therefore, the best way to find this out is to look into the viewfinder and see if it whites out. I've got a tip from Dennis Cheng, who says you can find this out by doing the following:

If you don't know what finder flare is, the easiest way to figure it out is to have both MP and M6 to compare with. Put a light bulb to the left of a dark area. Pointing the M6 to that dark area, you can see focusing area being white out. Point a MP to the same area, you don't see the white out area.

Special versions: Flag models and the "Betriebsk" edition

There are perhaps many other models, but these two special models caught my attention because they were available in the market and were sometimes quite affordable. The flag versions have a national flag on top of the camera. They come in different countries with different availability. 100 US version is said to have been sold to the public and it is relatively easy to get. They were meant to be used as a demo unit, but apparantly some dealers wanted to promote them as collector's items. I learned, through the hard way, that they don't come with the MP finder. The US version has the "Test Camera USA" engraving above the flag.

The Betriebsk edition was also produced as the demo unit for dealers, and has the word "Betriebsk" on the top plate. I don't know how they are different from the regular versions, but I heard that there is a good chance that it comes with a MP finder. Here is what B&H says about the Betriebsk.

This camera is the special edition "Betriebsk." version. The term Betriebsk. refers to a test camera or factory camera. In the past, Betriebsk. cameras were highly sought after by collectors because of the very limited number of cameras available with this designation. Produced in a very limited quantity, this camera is brand new, unused, with full warranty.

Here are some links to the discussions related to this model: Photo.net Leica Forum

After all the research, I've decided to get a 'standard' version with MP finder. I don't know if I'm gonna have any real problem with the original finder, but I know that it will affect the resale price. I just felt 'safe' to buy what every one else is buying, I guess.

Tech Tags: leica+m7 mp+finder white+out betriesk flag+model

Photo::My first Leica

I have used, and currently own a variety of camera gears. Here are some of my favorites based on the use cases:

• Travel Landscape: Hasselblad 503CW+Three lenses (50, 80, 150)+PME45+Winder CW, Mamiya 7II+80mm
• Backyard Landscape: Linhof Technikardan+5 Lenses (75, 120, 180, 210, 300)
• Remote Travel: Canon EOS 5D, Mamiya 6, Hasselblad SWC/M
• Portraits: Hasselblad 503CW+80mm+Extension Tube (for tight face shots)

I am very happy with my landscape options, but I was never happy with my travel outfits. EOS 5D seems like a great option and I used it in my recent trip to Madrid, but although I appreciate all the benefits of digital, I really miss the darkroom process (which is why I am also experimenting the Digital Negative process). Mamiya 6 is great value for the price and can be really compact when carrying it around with the 75mm lens, but when you are adding a couple of lenses (50mm and 150mm), it quickly becomes bulky. It also does not have a wide angle lens, which I miss a lot when traveling. Hassy SWC/M is a recent acquisition, and I have not fully utilized it yet, but I think it will be great for certain cases. It produces great quality wide angle images, but I can see myself wishing for other focus lengths from time to time.

All of these issues made me think about using a 35mm range finder with 2 or three lenses. The obvious drawback is the negative size. I love large negatives and I think 6x6 or 6x7 is the best compromise between quality and portability. However, sometimes you just wish you could carry less with more quality. Another alternative can be a 645 rangefinder, and I owned one (Fuji GA645Zi), which I hated because the quality couldn't even match some of my 35mm gears. I've also tried several 35mm cameras, including Canon EOS3, Hasselblad XPAN and Contax G2. XPAN produces great images, but it is quite bulky and heavy for the quality, EOS3 is not a small outfit at all, and G2 was great but didn't like the auto focusing feature with small viewfinder.

Quite naturally, I become to think about a Leica. It is quite ironic that I have used and owned almost all the major brands except for Leica. It is mostly due to the fact that it is a 35mm camera that is as expensive as a Hassy. Before I went to the San Jose Photo Fair last Saturday, I decided that I would finally buy a Leica if I could find a decent deal (which I did).

Leica has produced quite an impressive line of rangefinders for the past 50 years. My first criteria was that it would have a built-in meter. In fact, I think I get stressed with metering more than any other part of the picture-taking process, which explains why I use the expensive PME45 for my Hassy 503CW. There are currently four options from Leica that has a built-in meter: M6, M6 TTL, M7 and MP. M7 is the only one with auto exposure capability (that controls the shutter speed for the given aperture). Since I rarely use a flash, I decided to get a M6 as a starting kit. I wasn't sure of the usefulness of the auto exposure and MP didn't seem to add that much to an M6.

So I ended up buying an M6 .72 Black Body with two lenses - 28mm f2.8 elmarit and 50mm f/2 summicron (third model). When I was buying them, I thought it was a decent deal, (I paid around $2400 altogether) and I could sell them any time without any loss.

I love the build quality of all of them, and it really feels great when you press the shutter. When I developed the film, I could instantly see the improvement in resolution and contrast compared to other 35mm cameras that I have used. However, I didn't like the way I had to adjust the shutter speed to get the right exposure, probably because of the ergonomics of the shutter dial. I guess this could be a reason to choose an MP over an M6. As for the lenses, they are both great quality lenses and I loved the outcome. However, I think both of them are too heavy and especially too long for its focal length. Both lenses stick out quite much and it even looks kinda odd. Also, I soon learned that I would need a super wide angle lens as well.

As a result, I have decided to upgrade to an M7 (if I can find a good deal, that is). It will solve the awkwardness in setting the shutter speed (since it is automatic) but it will be more expensive. As for the lenses, I decided to try out two smaller lenses, both from Voigtlander: 21mm f/4 skopar (pancake) and 40mm f/1.4 SC. Both of them are small, light, cheap and known to produce good quality images - whether they are comparable to the Leica ones are yet to be proven.

Tech Tags: leica m6 m7 mp hasselblad mamiya linhof

Photo::San Jose Photo Fair

The quarterly San Jose Photo Fair was held last Saturday. I've been to them several times, and I always came back with some cool stuffs, and this time was no different. The SJ Photo Fair is where about 30-40 used camera dealers get together and buy/sell anything related to photography - cameras, lenses, darkroom equipments, books, etc.

I usually bring along several cameras to sell that I am not using much. This time I brought my Horseman VH outfit, a couple of large format lenses and a Fuji GA645Zi. I ended up selling the Fuji and a 135mm lens at a decent price.

I've been having a leica bug for the past couple of weeks and I wanted to get a M6 TTL with a couple of lenses (50mm Summicron DR + 35mm Summicron Asph, recommended by my dear friend). As always, nothing goes as planned, and I ended up buying a M6 classic with a 3rd version of the 50mm Summicron along with a 28mm f2.8 (old version). I'm going to later write about how I liked (and disliked) this combo.

I also found some other decent deals. I bought a mint 4x5 grafmatic holder at $70, a Copal 0 Linhof lensboard at $15, a Hasselblad 10mm extension tube for $60 and a Pentax Digital Spotmeter (great for b&w) at $250. I could have bought a Olympus Pen FT at $250, but I decided to pass since there was no way to know if it worked or not.

The showfloor is not that big (around 5 or 6,000 sqft) and among all the sellers, I found less than handful of them carrying good stuffs. The one at the entrance (they are always there) with a Chinese lady as the owner, always carries good Leica &Hasselblad gears and this time was no exception. I bought an excellent Hasselblad FlexBody about a year ago from this shop which I sold later at eBay at a much higher price. This shop is where I bought and sold most of my stuffs this time again.

There always is a huge filter collection that carries pretty much everything, but don't expect to get a great deal here. Most of the darkroom & large format stuffs are pretty old and useless and you won't find much digital equipments here as well. This photo fair is pretty much for collectors, 35mm old equipments, and medium format cameras. I made it sound a little bit boring, but if you are looking for Hasselblad, Mamiya gears or 35mm old body/lenses, or photo accessories, you'll have a lot of fun here. I surely did!

Tech Tags: san+jose photo+fair leica hasselblad mamiya darkroom

Movie::Byakuyakou

I love stories. I love drama. Byakuyakou is a Japanese TV series ("drama") based on a novel with the same title. It is about a boy who kills his father to protect a girl. It is also about a girl who kills her mother to protect a boy. At the age of 11, they fall in love with each other and walk under the sun hand in hand for the first - and for the last time. All they want is to walk under the sun one more time, but they fall deeper and deeper into the darkness as much they try to get out of it.

"Byakuya" means "White night", which means a never ending  day, just like the mobius band. They try to get out from their past sin, but they commit new sins in doing so. Ryoji, the main character is not afraid to become a monster if that means protecting Yukiho's chance of happiness. And Yukiho does her best to try to be happy, just to make Ryoji's sacrifice worth it.

Starring the main actors from "Sekai no chûshin de, ai wo sakebu" (which is another, if not more, beautiful film), Byakuyakou is one of the best tv drama I've seen in a long time. I liked the story, the characters and the music. I especially loved the characters who are, unlike usual movies, not perfect and not purely innocent. They are not afraid to commit terrible, unthinkable sins, just to protect each other. I felt such characters are more "real" than any other I've seen. The music is also beautiful. The main theme reminds me of Enrio Morricone's "Cinema Paradiso", whereas the title song "影" by Shibasaki Kou (which is played at the end of each episode) just makes me want to cry.

Tech Tags: byakuyakou japanese+drama 백야행