Leica makes wonderful rangefinder cameras. I have been a fan of the Leica 'M' approach ever since I bought my first Leica, the Leica MP film camera. The MP's 'mechanical perfection' combined with a Leica Summicron 35 mm f/2 ASPH lens treated me to many wonderful photographs. I replaced my Leica MP with the full-frame digital Leica M9 when it was released a few years ago, and I take it everywhere with me when I travel. I've been shooting with a variety of Leica lenses over the years from 18 mm to 90 mm and they all have a remarkable ability to produce exceptional photographs. I've sold all my Leica lenses but one (the Elmarit 90 mm f/2.8), and have decided to settle in with a set of three Leica lenses that always seem to impress me: the Elmarit 90 mm f/2.8, the Noctilux 50 mm f/0.95 ASPH, and the Summilux 35 mm f/1.4 ASPH. The Noctilux 50 mm f/0.95 ASPH and the Summilux 35 mm f/1.4 ASPH have been hard to come by for a while, but supplies are starting to loosen up a bit now. While it can't go toe-to-toe with the Leica glass, I've been making due with the very nice Voigtlander Nokton 50 mm f/1.1 lens. If the economy gets going again maybe I'll be able to realize my three Leica lens dream!

I fell in love with the Leica Noctilux 50 mm f/0.95 ASPH when I had a chance to shoot with it for a while in Seattle at a Leica workshop. I've also fallen in love with the Leica Summilux 35 mm f/1.4 ASPH lens after seeing the photographs of Danny Bar's as he's traveled the world with his Leica M9 camera. Here's a couple of photos of Danny's using the M9 and Summilux 35 mm f/1.4 ASPH combination that he took while traveling in Greece (click on the photos for bigger versions):

I'll tell you what, the M9 can shoot some wonderful Black & White photos with Summilux 35 mm f/1.4 ASPH, and every time I see what the 35' Lux can do I'm impressed all over again.

Danny really likes shooting B&W, so when the new Leica M Monochrom was released Danny sold his M9 and bought one, and boy-oh-boy is it amazing on B&W. I really think the digital Leica M Monochrom is the digital spiritual heir to the film Leica MP, as it's a purist's ultimate tool for digital B&W just like the MP was for film. Here's a couple of photos Danny took with the Monochrom and Summilux 35 mm f/1.4 ASPH - I think they're amazing. You can click on them about four different times for larger versions. The ability of the MM to reproduce lots of B&W detail in very natural fashion is amazing!

Many thanks to you Danny for sharing these great photos from your new Monochrom with us!