Leica Series 0 review

The following is a reprint from “The London Gentleman’s Photographic Journal” - June 1923 Edition

Greetings gentle readers, and welcome to a special report from Wetzlar in Germany, where interesting things are happening at microscope makers Ernst Leitz Optische Werke. Our host today is a Herr Oskar Barnack and he has provided us with a prototype of a camera which Leitz is considering putting into production. It’s called the Leica (Leitz/Camera), and here it is:

Our first impression is that it is far too small to be a serious camera. We really can’t imagine anyone wanting to use a camera of this size. Cameras should be big so people can be impressed; and you can’t impress people if your camera is in your pocket. To achieve this level of miniaturisation, Oskar is using 35mm film, first seen on the Simplex a few years ago; and you will recall how we rubbished that camera in our review. Real photographers need huge negatives to maximise image quality, we really can’t see such tiny film becoming popular. Anyway, we have come all this way, had a frankly appalling journey courtesy of the inadequate European steam train services, so let’s give the camera a try.

The lens, which retracts into the camera to further reduce its size for transport (what’s the point?), is called a a Leitz Anastigmat 5cm 3.5. The lens has been designed by some guy called Max Berek who we have never heard of. Oskar assures us he is very good and has plans for another lens that he will call Hektor, named after his dog. No wonder they lost the war.

Oskar has loaded some film so let’s pull out the lens, remove the lens cover, and wind on some film in preparation for our first shot. At this point Oskar has a bit of a melt-down and explains that we have to cover the lens when winding film because the shutter is not capped. In other words, the shutter remains open during the winding process, so with the lens uncovered the film will be fogged. Good start.

With the lens covered, we wind on more film and get ready to take the first shot. With our fingers only smudging the lens glass a few times, we set the lens aperture to F3.5 by moving a lever on the front of the lens; and then reckon the appropriate shutter speed should be 1/500th of a second. And then we hit the second problem. And the third problem.

The second problem is that you can’t change the shutter speed with the film fully wound on. Neither can you change the shutter speed before you wind on the film. No sir, you have to wind on the film until a little red dot lines up with a marker. THEN you can change the shutter speed, and then you can finish winding on the film before taking the shot; unless you forgot to cap the lens in which case you are screwed anyway.

So we advance the film again until the red dot is aligned and we set the speed to 1/500th second.

Except we can’t, and that’s the third problem, because the the numbers on top of the dial look nothing like shutter speeds. 2,5,10,20, 50; what’s that all about? Oskar explains that these are the width of the gap in the shutter, and if we want to behave all modern then these equate to 1/500th, 1/200th, 1/100th, 1/50th and 1/20th respectively. We are sure we can remember that. Not. If you want longer exposures, set the shutter speed to 1/20th (number 50) and move the lever on the top plate from M (Momentaufnahme) to position Z (Zeitbelichtung). Then hold down the shutter for as long as you want the exposure to last.

Next to each number is a small hole. To set the required speed, you press down on the outer ring and rotate a small plug such that it pops up and sits in the hole next to the relevant number.

Next we need to set the distance to the subject and this is set by guessing and then rotating a ring on the front of the lens. Oskar tells me he is developing a rangefinder which will be offered as an accessory on the camera when it goes into production. Production? We smile indulgently, at least the man is an optimist.

With distance, speed and F stop set, it is time to frame the subject and this is approximated by means of a fold-up viewfinder with cross-hairs that are aligned with a fold-up sight on the front of the camera. To obtain the correct framing, you have to hold the camera approximately 25cm in front of you; which can make it rather difficult for the optically challenged who may have trouble seeing the cross-hairs at that distance, or even the subject. Oskar showed us a pencil sketch of a frankly inappropriately dressed young lady demonstrating the appropriate approach:

Some members of our team were quite amused at the shooting stance, jokingly suggesting that in less than a hundred years this may be how most people take photos, and that some will even turn the camera round and take photos of themselves called “selfies”! How ridiculous.

Anyway, we were finally ready to take the shot and pressed the shutter which gave a satisfactory “thunk”. It was less satisfactory when we discovered that we had failed to remove the lens cap before taking the shot; so we had to wind on yet again, remove the cap and finally take our first shot. Hooray!

We were so pleased at this achievement that we quickly wound on to take the next shot; thereby wrecking the shot we had just taken, and the next frame, because we had forgotten to replace the cap before winding. It was at this point that someone in our group uttered “fuck”, which really is no language for a gentleman, but we had some sympathy.

And so we proceeded through the film, a succession of small triumphs sometimes destroyed by stupid mistakes. Once the film was complete, it was rewound by moving the lever to R (presumably the German word for “rewind” conveniently starts with an “r”), depressing the shutter and rotating the rewind knob which can be lifted for easier purchase. If you really want to ruin your day, leave off the lens cap when you do this, thereby fogging the entire film.

In spite of some operational hiccups, we must admit we rather enjoyed our time with the camera. It may be small but it has a refreshing heft to it. The engineering is impeccable, although we would like to have seen some traditional wood construction involved somewhere.

We returned the camera to Oskar, thanked him for his time, and asked him for his vision of the future.

Oskar has a motto which he is happy to quote to anyone who will listen: “small negative, large picture”. He believes that the lenses that Max Berek is developing will be of sufficient quality to enable large prints to be made via enlargers (that Leitz are also developing). While this may seem rather fanciful, some of his other assertions are just ridiculous.

He reckons that his upcoming production camera will popularise 35mm photography to the extent it becomes the standard for the next 100 years. Even more crazy, he reckons that the prototypes we were using during our visit will become valuable collector’s items, with one fetching more than two million of something called a Euro in the next century.

Convinced that Oskar is somewhat deluded, we handed back his prototype and went to visit Kodak, where it was refreshing to visit a company that will undoubtedly still be flourishing in a hundred years; unlike Leitz.

Although the above is of course a fiction, it does reflect the generally hostile reaction to the prototype; and it was a leap of faith by Ernst Leitz II to put the Leica 1 into production in 1925. The prototypes did indeed become the most expensive cameras in the world; and if you could afford one you certainly wouldn’t shoot with it (unless accompanied by heavy security). And the Leica 1 popularised 35mm photography, which is still the “full frame” standard today.

To mark the importance of this camera in the history of photography, Leica celebrated the 75th anniversary of the first production Leica in the year 2000 with a re-issue of the Leica prototype. Design and materials mirrored the original, the only difference was the lens where computer design was used to ensure accurate optics, and the glass was given modern coatings. Press release

There were two versions. The first release of 4,000 cameras had the “gunsight” viewfinder, the second release (2,000 cameras?) had the more usable viewfinder that was included with the Leica 1 (some of the original prototypes had been fitted with this viewfinder). Unfortunately, the second release camera also had an image of Oskar Barnack printed on the back of the camera; ugh.

I had recently sold four cameras and assorted lenses on eBay; and the resulting funds were almost exactly what was required to acquire a mint example of a Leica 0 re-issue. It was clearly meant to be…

The camera comes with a fine leather case:

Seen here with a FILCA film cassette which won’t work with the camera, but it looks the part!

There are no strap lugs on the camera, so a thin leather strap holds the camera in place in the case:

Film loading is the same as all Barnack Leica’s, you have to trim the lead before inserting the film; but the loading process is straightforward; just be sure you have the lens capped!

Although not as chaotic as the review above, I did screw up a few times by forgetting to cap the lens when winding on. But the correct process soon becomes ingrained and I had no failures on the second film. And once the process includes not winding on after taking a shot, then changing shutter speeds mid-wind also becomes a non-issue. But add in the need to consider focus distance without the aid of a rangefinder, using the camera forces you to slow down even more than usual. This is not a bad thing, and I found the overall experience very enjoyable, with one exception; the viewfinder.

My less than perfect vision, and the glaring light of Thailand, meant that holding the camera at the required distance and then aligning the cross-hairs with the gunsight was something I failed to achieve a number of times, at the cost of crap composition and lost shots. After two films I have admitted defeat and will use the Leitz SBOOI Briteline finder in future. It may not be authentic, but I am sure Oskar would not object.

The re-released prototype was generally well-received, with opinions only being divided over the lens. Some welcomed the opportunity to use an old design of lens that had been made with modern production methods and coating, others felt that the lens should have reflected the original, less precise manufacturing approach, thus producing images as they might have looked in 1923 (although modern film stock would make a difference).

Having shot with it, I am happy with the modern lens. You can treat the Series 0 as a retro shooting experience; but it is also a compact, competent little camera with a very high quality Leica lens attached. Stick it on hyperfocal and you could have an ideal camera for street photography. I haven’t had a chance to try that yet; just run a couple of films through it in order to make sure that it works; so the emphasis was more on just taking shots rather than creating interesting images; but I am happy with the output. Thank you Herr Barnack. * Shoot with XP2 at ISO 200, C41 processed and scanned. No other processing apart from cropping on some images to compensate for viewfinder errors.*

Comments 🔗

2015-04-05 | Wunderkid says

Finally, some boobies on this blog!

2015-04-05 | Spike says

I spend more than a day putting this together; and that’s your contribution… Please go away and look at boobies.

2015-04-05 | Chang Noi says

I did not know you are from before 1923. Some magnificent shots for such a old chap & camera.

2015-04-05 | subroto mukerji says

I chatter, chatter, as I flow to join the brimming river, for men may come and men may go, but Leitz goes on for ever …

~ with apologies to Alfred, Lord Tennyson

2015-05-08 | Chang Noi says

Apart from some photos of people taking photos with some Leica’s during WW2 the “Leica Freedom Train” was a story that I just recently heard. A respectable family …. and camera’s.