Love your content and tips. Thank you!

Good afternoon Jonathan; great article. I'm 67 now, and as a result of using cameras for a living, have gained experience over many types and formats. The lure of the Leica is the legendary quality and performance. At a price too high for me regrettably. Your article highlights the issues with owning an older item, be it a camera or perhaps a timepiece - money WILL be needed to keep them working well. If one owns an example or two of these, or other mechanical beauties, the payback in using them is worth it. This applies to all the older mechanical cameras. Best wishes, be well.

If you dont want to spend on Leicas then go for the Canon 7 series especially the Canon 7s if you can find one with a working meter!

I have an M3 and an M6….love them both.

Such a beautiful camera.

Very good and through presentation! Luckily, I bought an M3 in near mint shape for a great price, so I'll just hang on to mine!! I always appreciate your presentation and telling it like it is!
Thanks,
Paul C. USA

While I own a Leica M3 and M4, I agree and am glad you’re sharing this useful information.  We hear so much hype and this can help some on the fence about buying a Leica.

I still have 3 Leicas. A Leica M2,M3 and M6 titanium limited edition. Had the the M2  and M3 serviced but the M6 is still working fine. Thanks for the video

Wise advice for those seeking it. On the question of slow, it could help you to find ways of stretching time like you did as a child. As regards value for money, advice seekers should remember that the best photographs will come from reading (Ansel Adams did a great series of books about using cameras creatively), reflecting, and planning. Haste in pushing the shutter button spoiled a lot of photographs.

Absolutely spot on, thanks. I have been shooting for 40 years by now, bought some Leicas recently, but you really have to dig for your old photography skills to be able to operate them. I love shooting with them, but it's not a point a shoot process at all and as you rightly point out, they're not at all for all genres of photography. Ain't for everybody. And given my 2.5 dioptries as of now (and getting worse every year), I am wondering for how long I'll be able to enjoy this what is otherwise a marvel of engineering.

I bought an M3 (1963 model) in great condition, and it’s a fantastic camera... the photos are great. And it really is expensive. But you’re right

Leica M cameras were never designed for beginning amateurs who wanted to spend a lot of money.

In the 70s my first camera was a Leica IIIf with an Elmar 5 cm 3.5f (we were born the same year 1953) and the operating manual was 12 pages!!!

I was good with a rangefinder when I was a teenager (which was quite a long time ago).   I recently had a chance to borrow a digital Leica M-11p for an hour or so at a sales event.   My focusing results were mixed.   I might have a chance to buy a used film Leica off a friend next year.   TBD.

If you REALLY want a vintage 35mm rangefinder with that Barnack cloth shutter, you can get a refurbished Soviet Zorki for $150-200, and lenses are fairly cheap for them as well.

apart from the things mentionned, I would add nr 6 : there"s no way to visualise the dept of field, evrything in the viewfinder is sharp, you"ve got to know the lens you"re using very well to guess what the background will look like, nr 7: rangefinder lenses don"t focus very close, when shooting close up portraits the closest focus mostly won"get you close enough for a frame filling head shot. I"ve got an M2,3 and 4 and a few Barnaq leica"s with a bunch of rangefinder lenses, in the end the Leica I use the most which gives me best results is my R8( also an aquired taste).

Yashica electro 35 GTN. 45mm + f/1.7. 🥰

I own three Leicas: First find a good repairer, than look out for a used body. But for lenses there are really good alternatives available we could only dream of a few decades ago. The first generation from Voigtländer was still a bit behind Leica but they and others really got into the game in recent years.

Fair review!

"they are old" yes they are however most modern cameras will never get old.  So based on a lifetimes use they are very cheap.