Posted by Downs Matthews on July 28, 192002 at 12:54:55:
In Reply to: Re: Leica Cameras posted by Andrew Davidhazy on July 27, 192002 at 17:24:04:
Thank you, Andy, for explaining the lure of Leicas,
and for confirming my suspicions that they are more
collected than used. I will bury my urge to own one.
I have one Leica story to share. I spoke once with
a former Leica designer who had been involved in
the engineering of the early pre-WWII models. Their
highest priority was reliability. As the ultimate test,
he took a Leica and lens aloft in a small plane and threw
it out at an altitude of 500 feet. He retrieved the
camera from the 3-foot hole it had created on impact,
cleaned it up, and took pictures. He could detect
no damage of any consequence. One wonders how well
my Canon SLRs would perform after such a test. Similarly,
around 50 years ago, I was arranging a group of people
for a protrait and placed my Speed Graphic on a concrete
driveway. A truck driver, backing out of an adjacent garage
ran over the camera. After a few minutes
of lamentation, I picked up the pieces, reassembled them,
and proceeded to take pictures. I doubt they make them
like that today. It was good of you to share your thoughts
about Leicas. Cordially, Downs