From my Grandfathers Leica M3 To my Current OMD EM1 MK2 With Leica Autofocus and Leica R Lenses.
I learned a lot from my grandfather ' The Lenses are what takes the Picture The Body is a light tight box'
Once photographing meant a large box camera on a tripod, shifting film plate after each shot - and working with a dark cloth over your head and the camera.But then something happened.The Leica was extremely compact and could be fitted with a very high quality lens that enabled photographers to work in ordinary outdoor settings with available light. It was always instantly ready to capture life and action effortlessly from any angle with the photographer often able to remain unnoticed. Without the usual heavy equipment, photographs of people no longer had to be confined to stiff conventionally artistic poses.'Barnack's camera'.
Oskar Barnack was head hunter from Carl Zeiss to be the manager of the Research & Development Department at Leitz. He became the designer of the Ur-Leica which he made two (possibly three) samples of in the period 1912-1913 with the purpose to test film stock and/or lenses for movie films. Or perhaps because he couldn't carry the traditional large plate cameras and wanted a smaller camera for him self. The reasons told today are many, but that the Ur-Leica was designed as a compact means to test film stock is the most reliable.
As early as 1905, he had the idea of reducing the format of negatives and then enlarging the photographs after they had been exposed, 'Small negative, large picture', involving a small camera and an enlarger.
In any case, he learned that it could actually be turned into a new type of compact as the 'rotated' film format of film was plenty sharp (the film format was 24x18mm for large cinema theater screens, and rotating the film inside the camera and doubling the area made the 24x36mm format). With the development of an enlarger the reduced negative format could then be printed in a larger size than the negative.
Another Leitz employee, Max Berek, was instrumental in developing a lens for this camera, as he developed the first 50mm f/3.5 lens as the optimum focal length for the 24 x 36mm format.
Fast Forward to 2016
The OM-D E-M1 Mark II is Olympus' most ambitious camera yet and it blows away its peers in terms of raw speed - and it's no slouch when it comes to photo and video quality, AF performance and build quality. The Mark II is customizable to the point where it's overwhelming, . Aside from those and a few other quirks, the E-M1 II is an interchangeable lens camera to be reckoned with, The High Res Shot mode, which combines eight exposures into one to produce 50MP JPEGs and 80MB Raws, does indeed produce highly detailed photos.
The LEICA DG MACRO-ELMARIT
45mm F2.8 ASPH. MEGA O.I.S.
Outstanding Image Quality of Leica lens with High Mobility
The first Micro Four Thirds lens from Leica consists of 14 lenses in 10 groups, using both an aspherical lens and an ED lens to realize outstanding compactness and light weight while minimizing distortion and chromatic aberration. It incorporates an inner focus system of 3 groups of floating structure, which enables excellent resolution and contrast without changing its overall length from full life-size magnification to infinity. Panasonic's Mega O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilizer) prevents hand-shake, making it easy to shoot clear and sharply focused macro shot or when shooting in dimly lit places without using a tripod. This lens also excels in portraits, mid-range snapshot, or landscapes in addition to the original 1x macro shots.
M.ZUIKO DIGITAL
ED 12-40mm F2.8 PRO
High-performance standard zoom lens featuring a large F2.8 aperture throughout the range designed for the needs of professionals
Constant aperture fixed to f2.8, compact, lightweight form and superior depictive performance.
Dustproof and splashproof construction that expands shooting possibilities.
Equipped with the MSC mechanism for quick and silent auto focusing.
The Manual Focus Clutch mechanism, an evolved version of the Snapshot Focus mechanism.
Macro shooting performance of a minimum focusing distance of 20cm at all focal lengths, with a maximum magnification of 0.6x (35mm equivalent).
'The Leica R {Lens} is a tool for developing creativity, in the way that you can create things a little bit different.
If you have the intention of becoming an artist – or are an artist – Leica helps you.'
- Dr. Andreas Kaufmann, January 2013
'Aperture is only for depth of field, not light control.'
- Peter Karbe, September 2010 (on how to use the 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95 lens)
John Straton
John Straton joined Pixels.com Licensing on January 25th, 2014.
