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About this product
Product Information
The Leica M1 35 millimeter SLR Film Camera (body only, no lens) is part of the classic M series. Made from 1959 to 1964, only 9,431 of these were made, so this is a must-have collector’s item for fans of the legendary brand. Collectors, your search is over. The M1 has all the great workmanship of a classic Leica body, along with incredible compatibility with lenses across all eras of the brand. The M1 has frame lines for the 35 millimeter and 50 millimeter focal length lens, as is typical. The M1 lacks a rangefinder as it was designed for use with microscopes and with the VISOFLEX system. One of the best ways to maximize the capacity of this camera is to use it with a wide or ultra-wide angle lens where manual focusing is not challenging. In this fashion, the M1 can serve as a phenomenal niche camera that takes excellent pictures. After all, this is among the most historically relevant cameras ever made. Despite being well over a half-century old, the M1 body is a durable machine that is easily restored to perfection with replacement parts and lenses readily available without too much search required. The chrome finish looks great, featuring all the usual Leica M-series elements, including a viewfinder, shoe mount, shutter speed dial, depth of field and distance scale, film indicator, and lens focusing lever. The M1 was such a rarity and serves such a particular niche (microscope, VISOFLEX and wide angle lenses) that the typical M1 is usually in great shape, not having been used much compared to its more well-known peers. Even the manual is beautiful to behold. Leica is a time-honored German brand that has made celebrated cameras for over 60 years. The M series film cameras represent the pinnacle of photography technology. They’ve been used to take some of the world’s most iconic images — the image in the Leica viewfinder is full of history. If this is your first entry into the world of Leica, you’ve made a great choice. If you are already familiar with Leica, you know that modern Leica lenses mount readily on the M1. The M1 will also feature the same impeccable craftsmanship and produce the sharpest, most vivid and distortion-free pictures possible. The Leica M1 body is part of a venerable line of Leica M-series film cameras, and it functions with a precision that is rare in more modern instruments. It is sleekly designed and phenomenally well-engineered to function flawlessly, from the elegant viewfinder to a quiet and smooth shutter release to a durable rewind knob. Supposedly, if you’re careful, you can rewind the film by spinning the machine above one’s head by this knob. The VISOFLEX system is a housing of mirrors that converts the 35 millimeter M1 body into an SLR. This makes for a great project replete with interesting challenges, from finding all the VISOFLEX parts to assembling the complex housing. Alternately, the M1 can be converted to an M2 if you are up for a different challenge. The Leica M1 is one of the most elegant models of a storied line of Leica cameras. If you are using it in a particular niche, like wide angle photography, or you are always focusing your 50 millimeter lenses at infinity for landscape photos, this camera will work flawlessly for you.Product Identifiers
BrandLeica
ModelM1 Body only
eBay Product ID (ePID)141801790
Product Key Features
TypeSLR
Additional Product Features
Film Type35mm
Camera TypeSLR
Ratings and reviews
Most relevant reviews
- 27 Apr, 2016
Interesting alternative to M2
The Leica M1 is often forgotten model in the M line of cameras. It's mechanically the same as an M2 except it has no rangefinder. The viewfinder shows both the 50mm and 35mm framelines at all times and they are parallax-corrected (coupled to the lens cam). From today's perspective, it seems kind of odd they'd make such a camera, but I guess there was a small but important group of Leica customers looking to save a few dollars over the cost of a new M2/M3 back in those days. There seems to be no cost cutting in any other part of the camera (other than the rangefinder) and it seems every bit as well-built as an M2 or M3, for around half the price. The M1 is a great alternative if you like zone-focusing with wide- or ultra-wide lenses with an external viewfinder, and as a back up for a regular M. I'm not sure how useful a 50mm lens would be on the M1, unless you are really good at guestimating distances, or shooting a lot of landscapes at infinity. About buying a used M1: many of these cameras haven't seen a lot of hard use unlike other Ms of the same era. Usually that means they are cosmetically in better shape, but the downside is they will definitely need an overhaul unless the seller states it has had one recently. Even if the shutter 'works', plan on the winding being rough and the shutter very inaccurate. This is true for any used M camera from this era. I've owned Leicas for about 20 years and it was much easier to find a good working one 20 years ago than it is today. It's simply a case of the lubricants drying up. Also the internal shutter curtain springs change characteristics over the years so it is more important now than ever to have the camera serviced before regular use. Also, it seems more and more older Leica cameras are getting dried and cracking vulcanite coverings. Luckily there are several sources for good quality replacement coverings.Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned
- 31 May, 2017
Great camera the M1 and only 1
Still keep up with street style! Great camera!Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned
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