How could I resist a lens they wrote a book about. Predictably, I soon pulled the trigger on buying the Leitz Elmar 10.5cm f/6.3. Leitz Elmar 10.5cm f/6.3 mounted on a Leica M Monochrom typ 246 via an LTM to M adapter Only 4 lenses were used to capture the 88 photos illustrating this book, and in the case of 15 of them that lens was the Mountain Elmar. Like his transition from larger formats to 35mm and how “the mere suggestion was met with scornful smiles and was considered beneath one’s dignity to go further into the matter.” My past 300mm-f2.8-wielding self would surely meet my current incarnation with some scornful smiles! What I like about him is he doesn’t resort to the camera doesn’t matter, the photographer does truisms and instead unashamedly puts his gear front and centre in his stories. Some of his shooting habits rang true as well – using filters to increase the contrast of black and white photographs, the tendency to underexpose, and seeking out light shining at an acute angle which brings out the texture of otherwise flat and dull surfaces such as snow (or in my case the crisp white rendering typical of a lot of Brighton architecture). But despite very different circumstances, the author’s motivations behind selecting his gear certainly overlapped with mine – his fondness for long focal lengths, need to keep it light and compact, good sharpness and contrast, large aperture being low on the list of priorities. It is unclear whether the Mountain Elmar was designed with mountaineering in mind (there were some mountain enthusiasts in the midst of the Leitz lens design department at the time) or was this book responsible for its nickname (which nonetheless doesn’t appear in it).

As a skiing pioneer and early 35mm photography protagonist, Kruckenhauser offered a unique perspective on the very narrow genre that is mountain photography.įor once I don’t blame Ebay, I blame Oxfam for having this book in stock for a mere tenner. It’s not as testosterone-driven as the title would lead you to believe, it’s actually a pretty nerdy (in a good way) account of the author’s pursuit of his two life passions – skiing and photography. Reading through forum threads about it I came across the book entitled “Snow Canvas: Ski, Men and Mountains with the Leica” by professor Stefan Kruckenhauser. I wasn’t necessarily one for Leica lenses either, finding the pearls among third party lenses was more my thing. Not really sure why, this lens seems as unpopular nowadays as it was back when it was released in 1932.

I still had the other mountain in the back of my mind. The Leitz Elmar 10.5cm f/6.3 – Third time’s the charm! Read the exciting conclusion of my search for a pocketable telephoto lens. Don’t miss the comparison of all three lenses’ characteristics at the end of this chapter!

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