Softie...what are your thoughts?

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How many of you use The Abrahamsson Soft release?( http://www.rapidwinder.com/#softrelease )I was looking at it. Does it really help minimize camera vibration? Can you really shoot at 1/4 to 1/8 sec. with sharp results? Anyboby have this break off? any feed back please.

-- Rob Schopke (schopke@attbi.com), January 19, 2002

Answers

I do

Yes

Sometimes

No

I have Softies on all my Leicas. Highly recommended and inexpensive to try.

-- John Collier (jbcollier@powersurfr.com), January 19, 2002.


See similar question posted by Steve Jan 15th...

http://www.greenspun.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg.tcl?msg_id=007gdR

-- Ken Shipman (kennyshipman@aol.com), January 19, 2002.


excellent gadget! definitely worth a try. one problem though: due to the lack of a dedicated off switch on the camera, you tend to make many fotos of the interior of your camera bag. there is the o-ring solution. not very nice, but it works.

-- stefan randlkofer (geesbert@yahoo.com), January 19, 2002.

I have to agree with Stefan: Really nice to use, but you have to remember not to wind your camera after each shot ...

Kai

-- Kai Blanke (Kai.blanke@iname.com), January 19, 2002.


If you trigger the M shutter as it was designed to be used, i.e. with the pad of your finger, not the tip, there is IMO no need for aftermarket gadgets.

-- Jay (infinitydt@aol.com), January 19, 2002.


I like mine a lot.

I feel I gain a stop in minimizing camera shake and it "funkifies" my M visually :-)

The downsides are I loose a shot occasionally to the inside of my camera bag as the shutter is very easily triggered and battery drain can be a problem if my meter is not switched off.

My friends who have non TTL cameras have commented that they occasionally trigger the shutter with the softie in place when they change the shutterspeed dial. I have not noticed a problem here with my M6TTL, but then the dial is much larger and protrudes further away from the shutter.

Simon

-- Simon Wong (drsimonwong@hotmail.com), January 19, 2002.


I managed to lose one of my Softies but have a cure for the other one inadvertently working its way loose. Its el' cheapo too.

Go to Canadian Tire and pick up a box of thin rubber washers. Make sure they are for the small screw sizes. put the washer on the shutter release and tighten the Softie to just beyond "finger tight" on the shutter release or if your sensitive enough till you feel the thin washer start to deform. The added tension on the threads and the static adhesion of the metal/rubber/metal interface will ensure that the Softie stays in place. Sorry to say that this cheap little accessory didn't make the Leica catalogue.

;-)

-- John (ouroboros_2001@yahoo.com), January 19, 2002.


Ditto what John Collier said -- verbatim!

:) Cheers,

-- Jack Flesher (jbflesher@msn.com), January 20, 2002.


This is Softie week, friends. I use Softies on Leicas and other rangefinders and SLRs that can take them. Haven't lost one yet, though I suppose there is a first time.

The Softie does make your camera, Leica or not, a "hair-trigger" like James Bond's Beretta. Once you are aware of this it stops being a problem--or less of a problem--because you learn unconsiously to work and live with it. How many times did James Bond shoot himself in the foot?

-- Alex Shishin (shishin@pp.iij4u.or.jp), January 20, 2002.


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