There has hardly been any
accessory for the Leica cameras that hasn’t been offered by Leitz in one form
or another and still, other companies have made a variety of accessories that
proved to be a valid alternative to their Leitz made counterparts.
One such accessory is the
adjustable Braun Universalsucher (Universal Viewfinder). Just like the Leitz Imarect finder the Brown
offers adjustable viewing fields for 35/38mm, 45/50mm, 85/90mm and 135mm and
parallax correction in meters and feet from 0.35 meters (1.5 feet) to infinity.
Leitz Imarect Viewfinder
Braun Universalsucher
Focal Length and Parallax
Adjustments
Unlike the Leica M cameras,
the Leica screw mount cameras had no adjustable viewfinders and therefore lack
any possibility for previewing focal lengths other than 50mm. The only exception was the Leica IIIg which
also had a viewing frame for 90mm lenses. With those cameras the Brown viewfinder, just like the Imarect, allows
the use of other focal lengths by simply adjusting the viewing frame of the
finder.
It is definitely not as
sophisticated as the Imarect, but that doesn’t diminish its usefulness at
all. I used one for many years on
various Leica screw mount cameras with lenses from 35mm to 135mm.
Even today I use it
occasionally with my Leica Digilux 2 for night shots. While the electronic viewfinder of the
Digilux 2 is not at all bad under normal lighting conditions, it is virtually
useless at night. Framing is almost
impossible. With the help of the Braun
adjustable viewfinder I am able to cover the focal length range of the Leica DC
Vario Summicron with the exception of focal lengths wider than 35mm. Even with the lens at 28mm the finder has
proven to be useful in aiming the camera correctly.
Thus this little accessory
from years past still is of value beyond that of a collector’s item and I am
glad to see that it still works just as well as it did when it was first made.
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Order: info@gmpphoto.com
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Click on ad to
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Order: info@gmpphoto.com
Please make payment
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