Ernst Leitz Museum is Open

The Ernst Leitz Museum located at Leica Park I’m Wetzlar, Germany is now open. It opened to the public on June 27. It has high hopes to become not only a destination for Leica users but also for anyone interested in Photography as a fine art.

This is a good move by Leica but is also a benefit for the entire photography community. Leica’s glory days ended in the 1960’s and has declined and become less relevant in the camera market. With the amazing turnaround that Mr. Kaufmann and Leica have engineered it is a good sign that they are taking their place as a supporter to the industry.

Most of the Leica boutiques have an area to display the work of Leica photographers. They understand that promoting Images taken with a Leica is as important as selling the camera to the customer. Leica has a long tradition and to remain successful in the future they need to connect the link to the past to show that Leica has always been in photographers hands and will continue to be there in the future.

Daido Moriyama - How I Take Photographs

There is a new book that will be of interest to Street Photographers that is short and to the point but is really quite educational. It is How I Photograph by the legendary street photographer Daido Moriyama. It is only 208 pages and includes only 36 pages of text but if you listen closely to what he has to say and study the included images you will understand how he works.

I’m a little unorthodox in my views. I’ve always said that photographers should put aside “concepts” or “themes” when they go out to shoot. Of course, I understand young people want to have a conceptual basis for their work I was the same way, starting out. But even in my earliest photographs, the collection titled “Yokosuka” for example, I knew I wanted to take pictures of Yokosuka”, but I had no agenda- I never thought to myself, Right, I’m going to explore the political tensions of Yokosuka”, or anything like that.

Daido Moriyama

Moriyama talks about his transition from film to digital and makes it clear that it really makes little difference to him how his images are captured. His images show that he shoots with the same style with film and digital and proves that it is the photographers vision not equipment that is paramount to making great images.

Photographs taken near water always come with an element of risk, Moriyama tells me. They can often feel quite dreamy and poetic, but this can be both good and bad.

Daido Moriyama

Daido Moriyama has 2 distinctive elements to his shooting style. First he like to shoot with wide-angle lenses but he doesn’t like to take scenics. He likes to get in close and fill the frame and he also will compose to get as much as he can into the frame. He doesn’t like dead space in his images. Next he believes in shooting into the sun not having it to the back like most photographers prefer. This is what gives his images the high contrast look with deep dark shadows. It is an effective style that gives his images their signature look.

When you’re taking shots in neutral, in different places like this, you should match the mood, and take equally neutral and indifferent pictures.

Daido Moriyama

I’m a big fan of books when the artist explains why they make the art that they create. In How I Take Photographs we get glimpses of how Daido Moriyama uses his unique vision to create his work. My only complaint is that the book is so short. I wish this book was twice as long, 36 pages of text is too short and it is a crime that it is not longer. I’m sure that I will read this book multiple times and will use some of the things that I have learned in my own photography. Studying the images after reading his thoughts has given me a deeper understanding of his work. I highly recommend this book.

Ona - The Oslo Strap

Since I have been a fan of Ona Bags it seemed natural to give their strap a try. The Ona Oslo Strap is a premium quality leather strap. It attaches to the camera with standard “O” rings and has leather tabs to protect the body from scratches. The tabs are nice but I wish makers would finish the back sides of the protection tabs. I have a Vi-Vante strap that finishes the front and back of the tabs and this gives a more finished look to the strap. After an extended period the unfinished tabs wear to the point that they give the strap an tattered look even though the strap can be relatively new. The strap is adjustable to from 40 - 46 inches so it is comfortable if you like to wear it crossbody like I wear them. It seems more secure that way.

I really like the retro vibe that the strap exudes. The Oslo is 2 layers of leather so it has a padded feel that is very nice. The leather strips that connect the attachment pieces to the main strap are secured with rivets and thread which adds to the stability of the strap. Some lesser quality straps use one or the other method and rarely both.

It seems like no matter the maker camera straps these days are of high quality. So it comes down to the attention to the details. The Oslo strap pays attention to the little things which makes it easier to justify the premium price. Ona frequently runs sales so you want to be patient and when the opportunity arises I would say treat yourself to a really nice strap.