I've spent quite a bit of time on PhotoNets Leica forum, and I still go there occasionally. There's a certain breed of Leica owner that is frequently seen at that site that tends to raise my hackles. "Fondler" is perhaps the wrong term because it does imply that I'm talking about serious collectors. "Pretender" would perhaps be a better word. The Leica owners that irritate me are those who are totally ignorant about photography but love to be seen with a Leica hanging around their neck. They assume that the camera will make them a great photographer, but that's not their real purpose. Being seen with the Leica is their purpose. They black tape it to show that they're part of the cognoscenti: real Leica photographers. They even hold endless debates about the proper method of disguising the red dot. A lot of the real Leica photographers have left that list, and I rarely go there anymore.
But you're right. Leias are great, and I love them. I just hate to see them abused by a loud and mindless minority. But I won't mention it again. > On Mon, 13 Sep 2004 06:14:21 -0400, Paul Stenquist > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > The discussion had turned to black taping cameras in general. I didn't > > even recall that it had originated with Juan. To the amusing little > > list of reasons why one might tape up a camera, the pretensions of the > > Leica fondlers are certainly relevant. > > > > Paul, > > I know you're being humourous, but I can't help but notice that you've > commented on "Leica fondlers" on several occasions prior to this > thread. They seem to be a real bone of contention with you. > > I know that Leica Fondlers are out there, but I've gotta say, they > seem to be in the minority of Leica owners. I've only been on a > couple of Leica lists, but the Leica users on those lists seem to be > anything but fondlers. They tend to be fine photographers, who take > great joy in using their equipment. They enjoy using gear from many > different eras, and one is as likely to see a photo posted taken with > an M3 as with a Digilux. > > That there are some who buy Leicas as investments, there is no doubt. > Some of those people may be non-photographers, and some of them may be > users of other Leica gear who have decided to buy a NIB collectors > edition with the express intent of never using it. > > But, those who fondle (as I think someone else mentioned) would never > put black tape on their pristine investments, lest some irremovable > gunk be depositied on their mint investments. Those who do put tape > on their cams are likely users who, for some reason, want to emulate > HCB or some other Magnum Icon who did the same "back in the day". > > When I was on LUG (haven't been there for many months now), For Sale > Friday was a pretty big deal, with lots of very expensive gear being > posted for sale. My recollection is that almost everything posted was > "user" gear. I don't recall one "Collectors Edition NIB" being posted > in almost a year that I was active on that list. > > As a side note, someone on that list mentioned that for what one would > have had to pay for a brand new M3 about 40 years ago, even if they > kept it new in the box, a putting the same money into a relatively > conservative investment vehicle would yield a far larger sum of money > today than the pristine M3. They simply aren't the investment > everyone thinks they are. > > cheers, > frank > > > -- > "It's about time we started to take photography seriously and treat it > as a hobby." -Eliott Erwitt >
