15 months with the Leica Monochrom 246
In January 2022 I bought a Leica Monochrom Typ 246 (M246). I wrote last November about my experiences with it up to that point. For me, as someone that has pretty much shot film for the last 10 years, it has been quite a bit of a learning curve.
So let’s see where I’m at now, 15 months and a few thousand photos later.
Practical issues
On the camera itself, it has been a joy to use. I bought the camera used and it looked to be in pretty mint condition. It is not looking like that any more but that’s just down to some light scuffs it picked up, plus a bit of rubbing around the strap lugs. I do not baby it, so happy to say the paint is quite durable. I calibrated the rangefinder myself when I bought it (the vertical was a tiny bit off) and has been spot-on since.
The operation of the camera has been faultless and battery life is excellent. Note that I hardly use the LCD beyond a quick exposure confirmation. I generally do not review or delete images on the go.
For lenses, I have now settled on the Voigtlander 35/1.4 SC II, which is a brilliant and compact lens. I just love the rendering it produces, especially up close and at wider apertures. I also bought an ancient 9cm Elmar, which I use for some longer shots but that gets very little use overall.
