MY JOURNEY TO & WITH LEICA
Photography always had a role in my family, during the analogue 20th century and even into the 21st century. One of the earliest pictures we still have is a print of the first car my then 18-year-old aunt received as a Christmas gift in Berlin in 1925 – a Citroen (image 1). Definitely not shot with a Leica!
Image 1
Therefore, around the time of my confirmation, like a good German boy in those days, I was gifted a camera – and it was not a Leica! Instead, it was a frugal Penti by Pentacon Optische Werke Dresden, produced in the German Democratic Republic, but sold mainly in Western Germany (image 2).
Image 2
When I was around 19, I was engaged to a girl who was doing her apprenticing as a “Fotografenmeister,” which in those days meant three years working with a photographer who also owned a camera store. She bought a Japanese SLR with her first paycheck and showed me how to use it. One day she came home and said “Look at what I’ve got!” Without much interest I replied, “It’s a camera!” She spoke again, with greater intensity “No, look what I’ve got!” to which I replied “It’s still a camera!” She then said in a different tone of voice, almost reverentially, “It’s a LEICA.” That is when I realized that Leicas are probably very special! However, it took me several years before I obtained my first Leica. In between, I had two rather simple and sturdy SLR’s – a Pentacon Practica with a 50mm f/2.8 (image 3) and a Zenit with a Helios lens (image 4).
Image 3
Image 4
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My first foray into digital photography began with the Canon Powershot, my first digital camera that I bought from a Staples store in Massachusetts, while I was involved with WebPark, an e-commerce company (image 5).
Venice 2019, M10-P and 1.4/50mm Summilux-M.
M10-P and 2/50mm APO-Summicron-M.
Pre-production SL2 and 24-90mm Vario-Elmarit-SL.
Kremlin in Moscow, December 2019, Leica M10-P ASC and 2/35mm Summicron-M ASC using ASC Classic Film Mode.
Near Salzburg, 2019, S (Typ 006) and 30-90mm Vario-Elmar-S.
I bought my first Leica, a Leica MP, in 2004. A lovely analogue film camera that is now owned by my son Max. Soon after came the Digilux 2, which I still consider one of the best digital cameras we ever made (image 6).
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The D-Lux, still a great little camera with a superb design, quickly followed, awarded the iF Design Award 2004 (image 7).
In between, I bought a very odd Leica camera for the Kodak APS-system, probably best forgotten today (image 8).
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Image 9
Then I acquired the Leica R9 with the digital back (produced by Imacon, taken over in 2004 by Hasselblad) with the Vario- Elmarit 28-90 – still a great combination, but the intended output from Imacon never reached the planned production figures (image 9).
After 2005, when I became really involved with Leica Camera, I sometimes tested new cameras, and helped develop some concepts such as the Monochrom, Leica T, and a few others. I also began to develop my photography which for me is mainly my digital diary. I always remember Henry Cartier-Bresson’s quote, “The first ten thousand pictures are bad anyway!” However nowadays, thanks to digital, you probably have to multiply this ten-fold.
I usually carry a Leica M with me on my frequent travels. In recent years, this has been mainly the M10-P or the M10-P ASC. I’m used to the way you shoot with an M, which is perfectly suited for travel - the lenses are small and the weight is low, a necessity for traveling. Sometimes I use the Q in between, but I always come back to the M. Well, in Leica that’s “DAS WESENTLICHE!”
After all, you can see it was a long journey which brought me to Leica, and this journey with Leica is now going on for nearly 16 years. I think during my Leica journey, apart from a few other things, at least I learned to focus better, but I still doubt if I ever will be a good photographer – but I’m trying every day, with every shot. Let’s see where this will lead to!