Reproduced by kind permission (hopefully!) of Amateur Photographer (UK) magazine:

Well, not that exciting is it! Only noticable change seems to be the on/off (?) collar around the shutter button. For the moment the new Bessa R may be a more exciting prospect.

-- Giles Poilu (giles@monpoilu.icom43.net), February 19, 2002

Answers

The only thing I see is that -- as always -- Leica sticks in their 1.4/50 as "normal" lens.

-- Michael Kastner (kastner@zedat.fu-berlin.de), February 19, 2002.

Dear Giles,

Thank you so very much for the photo. I am excited that it is actually called an M7 and not an M6e or M61/2. I am glad that Leica chose to give us what most of us wanted most, an automatic shutter, and did not mess around with the basic design.

It's 20 years overdue. But better late than never.

I like it. I definately like it.

Cheers!

-- Alex Shishin (shishin@pp.iij4-u.or.jp), February 19, 2002.

Sorry, Giles, I forgot to say (as regards your on/off collar around the shutter button) maybe the best thing here is that in order to cut down on battery use we should acknowledge the important "STOP PRESSING" sign in the picture.

-- Michael Kastner (kastner@zedat.fu-berlin.de), February 19, 2002.

No big change in appearance. Good. But what about handling? Nikon FE users may care to opine...

-- Mani Sitaraman (bindumani@pacific.net.sg), February 19, 2002.

All hail Giles, I should have added.

-- Mani Sitaraman (bindumani@pacific.net.sg), February 19, 2002.

Here's the R2:

Which one do you prefer? I think it looks fantastic, and with that well defined 75mm frame I am seriously considering one of these dedicated to the 15 and 75 lenses.

-- Giles Poilu (giles@monpoilu.icom43.net), February 19, 2002.

I wonder if it has a horizontal-travel aluminum alloy multi-blade electronic shutter? Kind of like Nikon put in the EM when they made it run forever on a button-cell battery. I wonder what attery(ies) go behind the battery cover? I wonder how the shutter release feels when pressed, does the shooter meet resistance 1/2-way down for the metering operation (assume its press annd hold)? Apparently we'll see 0.58, and 0.85 versions in addition to the 0.72. Does the top of the case look just a smidgeon taller to you (maybe 1/2mm more)? And what about the metering patter. Another 12mm white dot?

Hmmm...

-- Dan Brown (brpatent@swbell.net), February 19, 2002.

Giles, the Bessa does look nice. I wonder if it has a bayonet mount? It looks as though it might. Rangefinder base looks short, though.

-- Bob Fleischman (RFXMAIL@prodigy.net), February 19, 2002.

Bob,

Look at that lens release button... yep, it's an M-mount! There is also a new tabbed (concave) 50mm f/2.5 lens.

This could be my P&S.

-- Al Smith (smith58@msn.com), February 19, 2002.

About the R2, looks wonderful! Finally, a reasonably priced (hope so) M body!! Really can't wait, guess time has come my G1 has to go.

-- Antonio Carrus (Milan, Italy) (antoniocarrus@yahoo.it), February 19, 2002.

Al, right, I don't know how I missed that button. I wonder if this camera is more compact than the M?

-- Bob Fleischman (RFXMAIL@prodigy.net), February 19, 2002.

Every high-end camera these days seems to be sporting a vertical- traveling shutter with speeds from 30 seconds to 1/8000; spot, center- weighted & matrix metering; A, T, P & M modes; built-in motor; TTL flash; auto loading & rewind; DX encoding; etc. How difficult would it be to make a camera like, say, an F100 (no autofocus, of course) with a Leica M mount and sell it for under $1000?

-- Peter Hughes (ravenart@pacbell.net), February 19, 2002.

Peter, I totally agree with you. I look forward to have a camera like F100 with leica R or M mount. god, it take forever to come to this M7 which is nothing much improve from M6.

-- Olivier T. Nguyen (onguyen@pica.army.mil), February 19, 2002.

Happy Birthday to me! Thanks Giles. Anyone know the release dates? I need PLAY.

-- Anam (aalpenia@dasar.com), February 19, 2002.

Hello,

Am I the only one that doesn't see a flash shoe?

-- David Smith (dssmith3@rmci.net), February 19, 2002.

On the subject of the Bessa R2, I think everyone's getting too excited by it. This camera is amalgom of two existing Bessas - it's a Bessa T body (thus it has an M bayonet mount) to a Bessa R top plate & accoutrements - rangefinder, viewfinder, VF switch mechanism, etc. I can't see any difference from the capabilities of the existing cameras in the new one. So basically the R2 is just an R with a bayonet; no new capabilities, nothing.

However there is at least one new lens - a 50mm f2.5 'Color Skopar'.

-- Tom Burke (tom@thbtotley.co.uk), February 19, 2002.

Is there really anything Voigtlander-Cosina needs to bring out?

The one thing some people have been asking for is a 28mm frameline, but that doesn't matter to me - if I bought one, I'd probably be looking at a 21 (either VC or Kobalux), 35, 75 set. Also a longer rangefinder base.

If they'd come out with an auto-everything, lots of do-hickeys machine, it would go against what they're trying to sell - a back-to- basics retro rangefinder, at a low price-point.

-- Matthew Powell (mlpowell@directvinternet.com), February 19, 2002.

I have to disagree Matthew, Voigtlander are doing what Leica should be doing - innovating and offering a RANGE of bodies from the basic L to the R2 and T.

-- Giles Poilu (giles@monpoilu.icom43.net), February 19, 2002.

David,

The flash shoe is recessed on the M6 TTL, so it wouldn't show at the angle of the photo.

-- Ralph Barker (rbarker@pacbell.net), February 19, 2002.

Oliver: somewhere in the archives (not too long ago) there's a thread with some info on how to have your F3 (and I think any Nikon) converted to a Leica R mount. I haven't seen anything about converting to an M mount, though. The problem would be getting clearance for the mirror to move. A camera could possibly designed using a stationary semi-silvered pellicle mirror. It's been done before with some other brand. It costs a lot of light loss, though, nearly a full stop. And it couldn't be used with non-retrofocus wideangles, like the 21mm SA.

-- Bob Fleischman (RFXMAIL@prodigy.net), February 19, 2002.

The Bessa R2 looks like its hot shoe might actually "grip" a viewfinder for a change.

-- Jeffery Smith (jsmith@dcc.edu), February 19, 2002.

I prefer the black R2:

(from the Cosina site)

-- Patrick Kelly (patrick@oakroad.com), February 19, 2002.

Olivier, If you want an F100 type, with lenses in the Leica class, why not just buy a Contax?

-- Tim Franklin (tim_franklin@mac.com), February 19, 2002.

No the Bessa R2 is not just a Bessa R with a M mount and a Rapid Winder Connection, but also the plastic top, bottom, back, wind and rewind cranks, shutter release and shutter speed dial have been replaced with cast magnesium ones. This should make it a much sturdier camera. Best regards, Stephen William Foyle

-- Stephen William Foyle (swf46@aci.on.ca), February 19, 2002.

Hmmm.. I was excited to see the R2, but when I think again, it doesn't have any metering capability? Why can't I stick to the M4? Any idea how much it costs?

Regards

-- Greg Choong (greg_choong@yahoo.com), February 19, 2002.

Is this camera bessa R2 has viewfinder at all? or it just has rangefinder only? it would take 1/2 of fun away if camera only has rangefinder.

Friend of my, he has yashica FX3 somehitng 2000 and he mounted a contax lens on it. I checked on some pictures he took and I was not impress at all.

Olivier

-- Olivier T. Nguyen (onguyen@pica.army.mil), February 20, 2002.

The R2 has viewfinder, with frames.

-- Pasvorn Boonmark (boonmark@acm.org), February 20, 2002.

Sorry, but doesn't this just look like an altered picture of an M6???

Sorry, I don't buy that this is the M7 nor that there actually is going to be an M7.

Maybe I'm just cynical over all the talk over the years but there are threads from 3 or 4 years ago that speculate on the upcoming "M7". I just don't see it happening but perhaps, I am just the cynic..

-- JT (FOTOOPP@AOL.COM), February 20, 2002.

Greg,

The new Bessa-R2 has built-in metering. The picture of the viewfinder shows the left arrow, correct exposure, and right arrow indicator lights below the viewfinder window. The web site is in Japanese which I cannot read. See http://www.cosina.co.jp/bessa-r2/3.html for the pictures.

-- Clement (clement65@yahoo.com), February 21, 2002.

"Hmmm.. I was excited to see the R2, but when I think again, it doesn't have any metering capability?"

ALL V'lander/Cosina Bessas have TTL ambient light metering.

-- Andy Piper (apidens@denver.infi.net), February 21, 2002.

No, it's no altered picture of an M6. It's for real, I'm certain. My Leica dealer told me at noon today that his Leica sales distributer just received his demo M7 via UPS. The descriptions match well what we've all been reading here recently. Mechanical speeds of 1/60 and 1/125. Continuous in-between speeds on Aperture Priority--though he was taking excitedly and I didn't catch any details about any speeds between which you don't get that. Maybe there aren't any exceptions. He spoke about flash sync above 1/50, but only with a certain Metz flash unit. The collar on the shutter button was said to be a switch. For selecting auto vs. manual?? I don't know. .72 at first, other finders later. M6 continues in production.

That's the word from St. Louis.

-- Bob Fleischman (RFXMAIL@prodigy.net), February 21, 2002.

Bob: the collar on the shutter button is the ON/OFF switch. You change from auto to manual exposure by turning the shutter dial away from AUTO to any of the shutter speeds - whereupon you get that speed, even if it's the wrong one.

Leica was planning ahead when they put the big shutter dial on the M6TTL - they knew they'd eventually need the space for the 3 extra settings (2s, 4s, AUTO).

-- Andy Piper (apidens@denver.infi.net), February 21, 2002.

Oh, and he said the price was $2350. Andy, thanks for the clarification.

-- Bob Fleischman (RFXMAIL@prodigy.net), February 21, 2002.

lets hope that the M7 has better build quality than the M6 that I had.As aleica user of some 50 years it seemed to me that "Things aint wot they used to be". My 28 mm third type elmarit was also of poor build quality.I have owned 8 leitz lenses and I wouldsay that they are good but not outstanding. I now have only 2,having replaced the older ones.Still one has to remember who owns Leica now.

-- Rodney williams (willicwm@bushinternet.com), October 08, 2002.

Recently I bought a voigtlander bessa R and on testing the shutter on an electronic tester I found that every single speed was exactly as marked-this was better than any of the other cameras I have tested including Leica,Nikon,Canon,Pentax and Rollei/compur.Long may the speeds remain so!

-- rodney williams (willicwm@bushinternet.com), December 03, 2002.