When the new Leica SL was
introduced, one aspect of the camera was specifically mentioned a lot, the fact
that the camera was designed form the ground up to withstand even the toughest
of professional use. The specs
definitely support those claims. But
does that mean that Leicas in the past have been lesser cameras in this
respect?
Over the years we have
learned of quite a number of incidents which definitely prove that Leicas have
always been among the toughest of cameras on the market.
For instance there is the
Leicaflex SL Mot which survived a very special “crash test.” The American photojournalist Mark Meyer had
received permission to accompany the pilot in a Phantom II fighter jet over the
Mojave desert. His mission was to
photograph other fighter planes in flight.
At an altitude of 26,000 feet his pilot flew just below a McDonnell
Douglas F-4 when the jet above them suddenly lost speed and crashed into the
plane Mark Meyer was in. Fortunately
everyone was able to escape with their ejection seats. Mark Meyer was not able to keep a hold on his
camera and it fell 26,000 feet to the ground.
It wasn’t until a year later when a hiker found the camera. It obviously was not in the best of shape, Luckily the camera back had stayed shut. After some difficulty, he was able to pen the camera and found a roll of Kodachrome. He took the film to have it developed. He hoped to be able to determine who the owner of the camera was. With the help of a local Leica rep the camera eventually made it back into the hands of Mark Meyer. Leica determined that the camera could actually have been repaired. However, they exchanged it with Meyer for a new one and kept the battered camera as an example of how tough Leicas actually are.
It wasn’t until a year later when a hiker found the camera. It obviously was not in the best of shape, Luckily the camera back had stayed shut. After some difficulty, he was able to pen the camera and found a roll of Kodachrome. He took the film to have it developed. He hoped to be able to determine who the owner of the camera was. With the help of a local Leica rep the camera eventually made it back into the hands of Mark Meyer. Leica determined that the camera could actually have been repaired. However, they exchanged it with Meyer for a new one and kept the battered camera as an example of how tough Leicas actually are.
The Leica SL Mot after falling 26,000 feet. There was obvious damage to the 35mm f/2 Summicron. After prying the camera back open to retrieve the film, it cannot be closed any longer. In addition, the some of the parts which couple the motor to the camera had been torn off.
A similar, but much less
dramatic event occurred to Bob Nandell, a staff photographer of the Des Moinss
Register. Here is his personal account:
It was what every
photographer dreads.
One minute I was driving
along looking for harvest pictures with my Leica R3, an R3-Mot, a 250mm f/4 and
a 400mm f/6.8 Telyt nestled on the seat beside me, ready for color or black and
white.
An instant later, after
taking the ditch to avoid collision with a truck, my car was upside down.
After getting out of the
seatbelt and hastily exiting the car, to my astonishment I was not badly
hurt. But what about the cameras?
The gadgets bag with 35, 50,
135 and 19mm R lenses nestled in its pockets was fine. It had been in the foot-well.
The R3 with the 250mm
attached was in a sea of mud and glass that had been the windshield. The R3-Mot and the 400mm were next to the
roof, also in mud.
Disaster? Not so.
A quick inspection showed
that the bodies were functional. In
fact, I took photos for insurance purposes at the scene with the R3-Mot.
Back home again, I found that
the all equipment was useable. The
meters worked, the lenses worked, the motor worked. The thick plastic lens covers, which Leitz
supplies, had saved the glass in both lenses. Both lenses were shipped off for tightening
and cosmetic repair, and a few pieces, such as a replacement for a bent rewind
knob, were ordered.
Tough Camera Tough Photographer
The cameras, although
battered like their owner, had survived.
In fact, on the way home from the accident scene, the badly scratched R3
produced a nice color harvest picture, which had been the original goal of the
day.
I had purchased Leicas for
their value and durability.
I know the list can now
include indestructability.
Even though the era of the
space shuttle has come to an end, there still is a certain fascination with the
achievement of the shuttle program.
Below is an account of one of the launches where the only useable
photographs were made with Leica equipment.
Several hundred press
photographers were present at Cape Canaveral for the fourth flight of the space
shuttle Columbia. At the cape NASA will
not permit photographers any nearer than three miles from the launch pad,
because of the enormous power generated during the launch. When the space shuttle takes off, it
generates seven million horsepower, a noise level 1,000 times louder than a 747
and a temperature of 6000ᵒF. However,
remotely controlled cameras are allowed within 1,000 yards of the pad. The area in which the cameras are located is
a swampy one.
It was there that David M.
Tenenbaum, Photographer for the Associated Press, placed his Leica R4 with APO
Telyt-R 180mm lens, along with two other 35mm SLRs. In the company of all the other press
photographers, Tenenbaum set up his cameras the day before the launch. About an hour after everybody had arranged
their remote camera installations, Cape Canaveral was hit by a ferocious
thunderstorm with 50 mph winds, hail and torrential rain.
When the storm was over
Tenenbaum and his fellow photographers went out to check their cameras. He recalls, “The water level was about eight
inches higher than just three hours before.
And my tripod with the remote control box and three cameras all wrapped
up in plastic was blown over and lying in the swamp water.” After drying off the cameras, only one of
them, the Leica R4, still worked and showed no evidence of water in the
lens. Tenenbaum replaced the other two
cameras with a Leicaflex SL MOT and another 35mm camera.
It rained again briefly
before the launch but all else went well.
When Tenenbaum recovered his cameras all had triggered properly. Both Leicas were fine; the other camera had condensation
in the lens. The Leica photos were
excellent and were widely published. As
Tenenbaum reports, “Of all the cameras AP had access to, my Leicas made the
only useable negatives.” Thirteen of the
other camera makes were damaged, some beyond repair.
“Total damage to the press
corps cameras had to be beyond $100,000.
And my R4 and Leicaflex had no problems and no lens condensation.” Every non-Leitz lens he examined experienced
condensation between the lens elements.
Photo: David Tenenbaum
Photo: David Tenenbaum
Tenenbaum sums up his
experience: “It was nice to have the occasion to clearly see the advantage of
Leitz gear and the edge it gave me over everyone else…
The US Air Force, for their
top 35mm camera, used the Leicaflex for many years, and
a special production run of
Leica M4s, dubbed the KE-7A, was made for the US Army?
The KE-7A was accompanied by
a special instruction book which even included a special section on how to destroy
the camera in case of capture by the enemy.
It was an intriguing process. The
first suggestion was simply to try to break it with a hammer, shovel, or other
blunt instrument. Apparently they
realized how well built the cameras were, because the instructions continued,
saying that if none of the first methods succeeded, to use explosives like
dynamite.
I know Leicas are quite
tough, but dynamite?
To this I can add a personal
account. I was shooting an architecture
assignment for a client. As with most of
this type of photography, especially indoors with available light, I used a
tripod. This tripod is a rather compact
Gitzo model for easier transport, about 3 feet tall without any of the legs
extended. I have no idea how this
happened, but trying to attach the camera, a Leica Digilux 2, it slipped out of
my hand and fell at least three feet down onto a concrete floor. That makes a rather ugly sound. I picked the camera up, quickly checked its
functions and proceeded to shoot the assignment. All worked well and the camera has continued
to work without any flaws to this day.
But there are also accounts
of disasters that even Leicas were not able to withstand.
A new Leica M6 in contrast to a Leica III which was found in the remnants of the airship Hindenburg after it was destroyed by fire at Lakehurst, New Jersey in 1937.
Also found were these two Leica cameras, a 35mm f/3.5 Elmar and a no longer identifiable telephoto lens. The extremely high temperatures of the fire melted the front element of the telephoto lens.
This Leica I was at the bottom of the Baltic for over none month after the sinking of the tall ship Niobe in 1932. The salt water affected mainly the lacquered metal parts of the camera and it destroyed the viewfinder of the camera.
A new Leica M6 in contrast to a Leica III which was found in the remnants of the airship Hindenburg after it was destroyed by fire at Lakehurst, New Jersey in 1937.
Also found were these two Leica cameras, a 35mm f/3.5 Elmar and a no longer identifiable telephoto lens. The extremely high temperatures of the fire melted the front element of the telephoto lens.
This Leica I was at the bottom of the Baltic for over none month after the sinking of the tall ship Niobe in 1932. The salt water affected mainly the lacquered metal parts of the camera and it destroyed the viewfinder of the camera.
These are the souvenirs from
the completely burnt out car of English photographer Roger Hutchings His assignment was to photograph at unrest in
Brixton / England, where his car was overturned and set on fire. The burnt Summicron
50mm f/2 mm has retained its shape while
the lens of another cam era manufacturer just a melted to an unrecognizable lump.
The French photojournalist Eric
Valli was shooting an assignment in Nepal when his Summilux 80mm f/1.4 fell 250
feet down a mountain. The dents on the
front of the lens are obvious and the aperture ring was difficult to rotate. By contrast, the seven elements of the Summilux
have survived the fall undamaged.
Leicas can also be a life
saver. A shot, which was meant for the photographer
during World War II, hit his Leica II.
The photographer survived, the camera unfortunately did not.
Many more stories about the legendary toughness of Leica cameras exist. I thought it would be interesting to list some of them here.
_____________________________________________________________________________
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