Leica M2

Camera ReviewLondon SkylineStreet Photography

17 Jan

The camera

The Leica M2 is a 35mm rangefinder camera made by Ernst Leitz of Wetzlar, Germany, and introduced in 1957. Around 82,000 M2s were produced between 1957 and 1968. It came after the Leica M3, and many consider it more aesthetically pleasing. It was certainly a more affordable version of its predecessor.

Len’s Leica

This M2 has a story of its own. It belonged to Len, the late father-in-law of my friend Kieran. I met Len when he was visiting Kieran and his wife Julia, and we got talking about photography. He told me he had an old Leica, and the next time he came to visit his daughter’s family, he brought the camera with him to show me. When Len passed away, Julia kept the camera from his estate and has kindly loaned it to me long term. There’s still a roll of film in it that needs finishing off and developing.

The City of London skyline at dusk, with the Shard and the City towers, seen from the roof of Centre Point, shot on film with a Leica M2

My kit

I have three lenses with my kit: the Leica 35mm Summicron-M f/2, the Leica 90mm Elmarit-M f/2.8, and the Leica Elmarit-M 135mm f/2.8, which is a ‘goggle lens’, as the M2 only has 35mm, 50mm and 90mm frame lines, which are selected when you mount the appropriate lens. What is notable about this camera is what it doesn’t have. There is no internal light metering and no automation. It has one shooting mode, and that’s manual.

The London Eye and County Hall on a sunny day, shot on film with a Leica M2

An abstract building facade with a diamond pattern in London, shot on film with a Leica M2

Looking up at a geometric lattice structure against a blue sky, shot on film with a Leica M2

The Royal Exchange at Bank junction in the City of London, shot on film with a Leica M2

Shoppers at a London street market stall, shot on film with a Leica M2

Tower 42 seen between buildings in the City of London, shot on film with a Leica M2

Crowds outside a glass office tower in London, shot on film with a Leica M2

The clock tower of King's Cross station against a deep blue sky, shot on film with a Leica M2

A man on his phone outside an All Bar One in London, street photography, shot on film with a Leica M2

Looking up at the concrete-grid facade of Centre Point against a blue sky, shot on film with a Leica M2

Looking up at a curved glass and steel tower in London, shot on film with a Leica M2

A red double-decker bus on a busy London street, shot on film with a Leica M2

The National Gallery on Trafalgar Square under summer clouds, shot on film with a Leica M2

Shooting with the sunny 16 rule

Shooting the Leica M2 requires some basic knowledge of exposure. Personally, I use the sunny 16 rule when shooting film. In basic terms, on a bright sunny day, if the shutter speed and film speed are the same, set the aperture to f/16 and you will get a balanced exposure.

As a rule of thumb, if the sun goes behind a cloud, depending on the density of the cloud, you should open up the aperture to f/11 or f/8, or alternatively make the shutter speed slower to let more light in. I spent the day in London walking around shooting on 400 ASA film at about f/8 and 1/1000 sec. As every shot counts (and costs) when shooting film, I also use a small, free light metering app on my phone to check my estimations before releasing the shutter.

Two men in suits walking through London, street photography, shot on film with a Leica M2

A red London bus at the top of a flight of steps between buildings, shot on film with a Leica M2

Two men walking past a classical building in London, shot on film with a Leica M2

Elizabeth Tower (Big Ben) wrapped in scaffolding during its restoration, shot on film with a Leica M2

A busy London street with an Underground sign, shot on film with a Leica M2

The London Eye and County Hall seen from below, shot on film with a Leica M2

Crowds crossing the Golden Jubilee Bridges, shot on film with a Leica M2

Waterloo Bridge and the City of London skyline with St Paul's Cathedral, shot on film with a Leica M2

Waterloo Bridge and the Thames under fluffy clouds, shot on film with a Leica M2

The Queen's Walk on the South Bank on a summer's day, shot on film with a Leica M2

Yellow staircases at the Southbank Centre, shot on film with a Leica M2

The National Theatre on the South Bank, shot on film with a Leica M2

Trees and a tower block under a blue sky in London, shot on film with a Leica M2

Rekindling childhood memories

Shooting the Leica M2 rekindled some childhood memories of shooting film: the excitement of not knowing the results immediately, and having to wait for the lab to get your prints and neg scans back. That anticipation for the results was awesome, and I was certainly pleased with what I captured.

leica m2film photographyrangefinderstreet photographylondon

Stewart Marsden https://www.stewartmarsden.uk