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Leica M9 Journey – First Shot

leica-m9-journey-01

The Leica M9 Journey Log has begun.

My first few minutes with the Leica M9 was an interesting one.

Having not used a rangefinder in quite some time, it is taking some getting used to.

  • Remember to take the lens cap off because with a rangefinder, the only way to tell while looking through the viewfinder is by the light meter not adjusting.
  • Keep your finger away from the viewfinder, light gatherer and focus window.
  • The meter is not perfect, but that’s part of the fun of the camera.  This camera makes you think more
  • Auto white balance needs improvement but the manual controls are fantastic.
leica-m9-fingers
Keep your fingers away from these areas

Now you see what i’ve learned within the first few minutes of using the camera.  How about my first shot?

Here you go… unedited aside from Lens Correction in Photoshop.

leica-m9-journey-01

Remember that although the camera is VERY manual, you can still use modern tools like Lens Correction.  The Zeiss 25mm lens is wide and has very little distortion and vignetting, but there is no reason you can’t correct what little there is.

leica-m9-journey-lens-profile

In the screenshot you can see that I picked the Zeiss lens for the lens profile since the lens data was not embedded into the EXIF.  (The M9’s lens profile was set to OFF)

Thanks for reading and happy shooting,

Scott

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