September 2014

NBC - Leica as Inspiration in Retro Push

Unless you've been living under a rock, you've surely noticed that "retro is in" when it comes to the latest hot cameras. Case in point, the Fujifilm X series of cameras. NBC News suggests, perhaps rightly so - that Leica is largely behind that trend. Of course, they also point out that "Leica cameras, [are seemingly] relegated to use only by the wealthy or dedicated camera aficionados." Still, it's an interesting look at this new trend. Read more in the NBC News article, "Dialing it Back: Camera Makers Prize Retro 35mm Look."

Rarely, that is, except in Leicas, which have been using this general look and feel for decades. Its rangefinders are iconic, having been used by some of the most influential photographers of the 20th century.

Richie Notar Wants a Leica M9

When The Fashion Spot asked the (somewhat infamous) Queens-born restaurateur Richie Notar 21 questions, among them was "I’m dying to splurge on…" he responded, "a Leica M9 digital camera." Good to see Mr. Notar has such refined taste! If you're not familiar, he got his start at Studio 54 (as a 16 year old busboy) and was a managing partner at Nobu - and is also the force behind Harlow, which just opened its first offshoot in Sag Harbor over the summer. He's also currently working on opening a jazz lounge and bakery in Harlem. If you're curious, check out the rest of the answers in "21 Questions with… Restaurateur Richie Notar."

I’m dying to splurge on… a Leica M9 digital camera.

Famous James Bond Leicas Up for Auction?

Remember those Leica cameras that secret agent James Bond (007) made famous? Like the Leica M3 in "Dr. No" or the one in "Thunderball?" Well, now's your chance to pick one up (sort of) - at Richard Winterton’s autumn fine art and collectors’ sale next Tuesday (September 30, 2014) in Lichfield, UK. Read more about it in "James Bond bonanza for 007 fans at Lichfield auction." However, if you view the online catalog of the auction, you realize that they're really just Leica IIIc cameras, and have nothing to do with James Bond. Just clever marketing. Oh well.

The auction also includes several iconic Leica cameras, a brand featured in Thunderball and other original novels...

100 Days in Tibet: The Leica S2

Three years ago, German photographer York Hovest made a promise to the Dalai Lama: that he would travel to Tibet, to places perhaps never seen before by tourists, and take photographs. Last month, Hovest delivered on his promise. With the help of Dr. Andreas Kaufmann and a Leica S2 in-hand, York Hovest set upon an epic journey. Read more about this fascinating story over on Die Welt in the article, "100 Days in Tibet: A Photographer's Promise to the Dalai Lama."

He places the Leica S2, a device weighing around three kilograms, on the tripod. Despite the clouds, the photographer tries to adjust the setting. This, too, is a race against time: Glove off, select the menu options and turn the control dial, glove back on and then warm the gloved hand in his trousers again. He only has a few seconds to work with his free hand. Otherwise he risks no longer being able to move it.

Sandro Miller + John Malkovitz = Che Guevara

What do Che Guevara and John Malkovitz have in common? Well, if Sandro Miller is involved... He's gone and recreated famous portraits with the latter, including the famous picture of Che (taken with a Leica M2) and seen above.

Big Daddy Kane: Leica M6 is Shitty

Over on the New Yorker in "Hip-hop Stars Get Their Start", photographer Lisa Leone recalls a time when shooting rapper Big Daddy Kane that he referred to her Leica M6 as "shitty." Funny, we might say the same about his music... But she sets him straight and gets the last laugh.

Once, when she was photographing the rapper Big Daddy Kane, “he said my camera was shitty. I could only laugh while holding my Leica M6. I told him, ‘I don’t go into the studio and tell you what equipment to use.’ He chilled out after that.”

Sony A7 Sensor In a Leica M3?

Ollie Baker, who has made previous Frankencameras has started a Kickstarter project to fund his latest project - to develop an easy and reversible digital conversion on a Leica M3, utilizing the sensor of a Sony A7:

I will be placing a digital sensor within the M3 with all the circuitry and electronics it requires to work. The sensor will probably be from the Sony NEX-5 but if I can get enough funding I will try to use the the full frame Sony A7. I am planning to make two models, one with a the camera's LCD for viewing photos and adjusting settings, and the other with only an ISO dial.

New M Magazine on M Photography

M Magazine is a new magazine for Leica M Photography (and is available in print, on iTunes and Google Play). The first issue features Bruce Gilden, Trent Parke, Alex Webb, Jan Grarup, Anton Kusters, Ciril Jazbec and other pictures taken by acclaimed Leica photographers. Read more below!

Leica and Panasonic Extend Partnership

Today Leica has announced that they've agreed to extend and deepen their strategic and technological partnership with Panasonic. The agreement includes the extension of the license agreement to use the Leica trademarks on Panasonic products and sell digital compact cameras with Leica lenses. The length of this extension is five years, from October 2014 to September 2019. What this basically means is that the two companies will be able in the future to develop more high-quality digital cameras. Read more below for details!

Epson Announces v800/v850 Flatbed Scanners

A lot of our readers are dyed-in-the-wool film shooters, be it 35mm with a Leica or 120 medium format. One range of scanners that's been super popular are the EPSON Perfection v700 Photo and v750-M Pro scanners. Especially when fitted with Doug's betterscanning.com enhancements. You can count us among the happy users of the v700 for film scanning! Well, at Photokina 2014 - EPSON (Stand B11, Hall 2.2) has announced the new successors, the v800 Photo and v850 Pro scanners. Both will be available as of October 2014! Read more below for details!

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La Vida Leica Leads Photokina 2014 Coverage!

There's no doubt about it - this year's Leica Camera AG event at the Photokina 2014 show in Cologne, Germany was their biggest, by far. Releasing no less than eight cameras, eight lenses, a huge assortment of accessories, the Fotopark cloud service and a whole bunch of firmware updates. Even Zeiss and Voigtländer joined the party! La Vida Leica was proud to be the first website in the world with such complete coverage of all of these wonderful products. We'd like to thank our sources that helped make our predictions essentially 100% correct leading up to the big day! A lot of people didn't believe us... At first! We wish Leica Camera AG much success with their fantastic new products! Please enjoy the easy-to-browse product matrix at the top of our homepage to catch up on all the news. Read more below!

Voigtländer Announces Several M Lenses

Not one to sit idly by and let Zeiss and Leica have all the fun at Photokina 2014, Voigtländer today has announced a couple of M lenses that folks might be interested in. The first is the 35mm f/1.7 Ultron, which looks eerily similar to the 50mm f/1.5 Nokton. It will be available in chrome and black, and is pictured above. Comprised of 9 elements in 7 groups, it focuses down to .5m and it weighs 297g (chrome) and 226g (black). A lens hood is included, and the filter size is 43mm. Another lens announced today is the 15mm f/4.5 Aspheric Super Wide Heliar 2014 (which we don't have a picture for yet). It's an updated optical design of 11 elements in 9 groups, focusing down to .5m and gives improved performance and color shift handling for digital (or film) M cameras. The filter size 58mm. Finally, there's the 40mm f/2.8 Heliar pancake lens (pictured below) - a very slim and retro design. It will be the first to ship in October. Read more below for details!