As many of you know Leica announced an updated version of the Leica M9 yesterday, the M9-P. No internal changes, only visual changes to the body consisting of removal of the front “red dot” and “Leica” logo and placement of an engraved logo on top, a leatherette grip, and a new sapphire anti-reflective lcd cover. Definitely gives the camera a more “retro” and “stealthy” look.
Amazon.com (black or chrome) and B&H Photo now have it listed and for pre-order.
Below are a few pics and video.
Living in Cleveland, OH for 5 years I got accustomed to grey skies. It seemed as if we would have one blue sky in the winter maybe 1 or 2 times a month. When I moved to Fort Wayne, I was hoping to see more blue skies and fortunately I do but still not as often as I would like (I’m sure others agree in Northeast Indiana). One evening in January, while driving home from work we had one of those rare events. I was driving on the interstate staring at the sun and noticed 2 trees in a field with nothing around them. I immediately took the next exit and drove into the field where they were located. Fortunately, I was able to catch one of these rare Indiana sunsets.
P.S. This is a good reason why you should always carry your camera equipment, you never know when you will find a good picture opportunity.
I follow Leica News and Rumors blog and they recently posted a video from Digitalrev of the Leica M9. I personally think it’s a great video explaining what makes the Leica M9 so unique and such a great camera.
Watch the video below.
I’ve posted other pics from this location on my Flickr and 500px sites. I recently traveled back and grabbed a few pics with my Leica M9. I’ve mentioned previously how much I like the bokeh of Leica lenses. In this picture you can see how well it focuses just a small portion of the foreground and completely blurs the background. There’s an old run down bridge in the background but is obviously difficult to see. The composition allows for some imagination of what is ahead.
Last week when I traveled through South Whitley, looking for picture opportunities I came across this old beat up car at a local service store. The car was a dark ugly color and definitely wouldn’t make for a good “color” pic.
Using my 35mm summicron, I was able to easily blur the background and focus in on the car (that’s why I love Leica lenses). Converting the image to black and white using Nik Software Silver Efex Pro 2 allowed me to bring more detail out in the car and made for a better pic.
Yesterday, I was driving through South Whitley. It’s a typical small Indiana town with just a few downtown buildings. For a small town and historic looking downtown, it was busy with patrons at the local bars and restaurants. As I was making my way through town I came across a corner ice cream parlor. It definitely had a retro look and was a great picture opportunity. Maybe next time I’ll stop and get some food.
One evening I thought I would use my Ikan LED light to shoot some daffodils. I love how well it illuminated the flower pedals. I was using my Leica M9 and the 90mm Summarit-M lens. Obviously, shooting in complete darkness can be challenging especially with a manual focus camera. I had to lay on the ground to get this shot and used a high aperture (f/2.5) to get the shot.
A week ago, my wife gave birth to our first child. She’s definitely a welcome addition to our family. I don’t shoot too many portraits and I’m still trying to learn more about lighting. I’ve been trying to come up with some creative shots of her and thought using our couch would be a great back drop because of the neutral colors. This shot demonstrates how much she has to grow and makes me realize that we have a long road ahead of us. We are definitely ready for the challenge.
A few weeks ago, I pulled up to our garage and I noticed this lonely daffodil in our landscaping. Fortunately, it was a beautiful day with low lying clouds. I was able to get just the right shot by laying on the ground. What was most difficult was composing the shot without catching the side of my home and the neighbors. This, shot even though not in focus has a great feel and out of all the other shots taken that day, this was my favorite.
