April's Newsletter

Tri-X, FP4, CT-18, VPS, Super-XX, PKM: without film, there was no photography. Now we’re moving from silver halide to silicon, and it’s a brand new ball game…or not!

Despite the enormous growth in digital sales, and the rapid disappearance and consolidation of many firms associated with photography, film is not going away just yet. A recent Fuji press release stated eloquently and emphatically that…“Photographs express every human joy, sorrow, love and emotion, and as such are indispensable to people. …In particular film pictures are superior to digital pictures in their power of expression. They may be said to embody the very basics of photography.”

Film is no longer the only capture medium, and digital images certainly have a valid place in the photographic world. The immediacy of a digital image is changing the very nature of how photos are taken and used. (Deluged by digital photos, I occasionally fear that we’re unwilling participants in a diabolical PowerPoint presentation!) But the digital image, like the digital camera marketplace, is maturing rapidly. Inevitably, it will take its place alongside film as a different but equally important capture platform. After all, a great photo is a great photo.

Photography—be it digital or film based—captures and shapes our view of the world. Paul Simon’s old lyrics might have featured the wrong camera, but its sentiments are as important today as they were way back when!

If you took all the girls I knew
When I was single
And brought them all together for one night
I know they'd never match
my sweet imagination
everything looks worse in black and white

Kodachrome
They give us those nice bright colors
They give us the greens of summers
Makes you think all the world's a sunny day, Oh yeah
I got a Nikon camera
I love to take a photograph
So mama don't take my Kodachrome away

Come one, come all…
Friday, June 2, and Saturday, June 3, Camtec Photo is hosting a Leica demo clinic. On tap we will have a full demo of the highly rated Leica DMR back for the R system. In addition, there will be a demo of the full line of Leica’s sport optics products—binoculars and spotting scopes—as well as the usual M lineup. Please drop by. It will be great to see you!

Friday evening, Camtec is hosting an after-six get-together. Keith Matson, Leica’s sales manager for Canada and a darn good Leica scholar and historian, will host an audio-visual presentation of the company’s history and products from 1900 to the present. It should an informative and entertaining hour.

RSVP with Jean (jeanb@camtecphoto.com, ph: 514/875-5110).
Refreshments will be served.

Click here for details

A new Star is born!
The honeymoon between Leica and Ppp-ana-sssssss-onnnnnic is still going on. The result is a small and exceptional-quality compact digital camera: the Leica C-Lux! It’s more compact than the D-Lux, with a lower pixel count. Available in both black and silver, it takes great pictures, as well as appealing to the fashion conscious.
Click for Details

Warning, this section is HIGHLY OPINIONATED!!
I can’t talk about the Solms-Tokyo tango without mentioning the newly formed Four-Third CCD alliance. It calls for Leica to provide consultation and lens design for a new D-SLR system to be marketed by a consortium of manufacturers, including Panasonic.

Rumor has it that there will be a Leica version of this cookie-cutter camera and lens system. Not to infer that there was more consumed than schnapps at the birth of this idea, but is it not hare-brained to introduce a joint-ventured, ersatz Leica camera system replete with interchangeable lenses, on the heels of the launch of the digital M?

In my humble opinion, two Leica Digicams with interchangeable lenses only serves to muddy the waters for the highly anticipated Digital M…the true Leica Digital Camera!

Now don’t get me started on the decision to forsake the 24mmx36mm image-capture dimensions that Leica gave the world.

Best wishes…
Legendary Leica repair technician Gerry Smith required the services of a surgeon to fix some plumbing anomalies. The operation was a success and Gerry is doing fine. He’ll soon be back performing his magic on your M cameras and lenses. I’m sure all of you join me in wishing him a complete and speedy recovery.

Everything old is new again!
During a recent haggling session with one of my favorite suppliers, Kindermann, I discovered a cache of three lenses from the time they were Leica’s official Canadian distributor. The optic in question is one of my all- time favorites, the older non-ASPH Elmarit 21mm. I was able to get a very- good price on all three.

The sale price for this lens is C$1,575.00! (The price for the ASPH version is C$3,799.00.) They are brand-new, never been used or sold before, and come complete with hood and caps. This is a rare opportunity to acquire a lens with a special perspective, and/or be ready for the up-coming Digital M. With the 1.3X factor, this lens will double as a 28mm.
Click for Details

Why Not….expose yourselves…!?
Four photographers who are quite familiar with the Leica M space, are exposing recent photographs in the picturesque town of Granby Quebec.
Click Here..!

Plans for the next M-Vision workshop are under way. I already have two Leica luminaries preparing to host the event and inspire the creative juices of participants. Stay tuned for up-coming details about this autumn get-together.

FYI: LFI the magazine is cheaper and easier to get at the boutique!
For the past year or so, I have been receiving 10 issues of LFI Magazine for sale at the store. The price is C$10.00.

Always looking forward to your comments,

Photographically yours,

Jean Bardaji
Leicaboutique.com & Camtec Photo