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which digital camera would Cartier Bresson have taken back in time with him ?
- Thread starter TRIODEROB
- Start date
Cartier Bresson was fortunate in that he could afford to snap away without
the worry and expense that others had to look at in that time period.
Today there are many Cartier Bresson equals, many of them right here
on DPREview.
edhannon
Senior Member
I understand (from the profs at school) that Cartier-Bresson was terrible at technical aspects of photography. He would take the images then turn the camera over to another member of the photo group to deal with developing and printing the images that often were badly exposed and out of focus!
So he would use the simplest P&S!
So he would use the simplest P&S!
Cailean Gallimore
Veteran Member
The assumption is that he would choose digital, but he might not... Not everyone does.
Draek
Senior Member
Considering he was:
- Filthy rich
- Appreciative of small, inconspicuous cameras
- Obsessed with the perfect framing
Most likely it'd be something like a Sony RX100, I'd suppose, or it might've been something a tad larger but with an integrated EVF such as the NEX-6 and Fuji X-E1 plus prime lens; it all depends on how he would've fared with a rear-LCD in place of an eye-level viewfinder. I'm pretty sure he would've loved modern cameras' AE functions, though.
- Filthy rich
- Appreciative of small, inconspicuous cameras
- Obsessed with the perfect framing
Most likely it'd be something like a Sony RX100, I'd suppose, or it might've been something a tad larger but with an integrated EVF such as the NEX-6 and Fuji X-E1 plus prime lens; it all depends on how he would've fared with a rear-LCD in place of an eye-level viewfinder. I'm pretty sure he would've loved modern cameras' AE functions, though.
Gary Martin
Veteran Member
He was a product of his time, which means he would probably still shoot film with his Leica. If he was a product of OUR times, he probably would have stuck with painting, now that *everyone* is a photographer.
DFPanno
Veteran Member
SONY RX1
The Davinator
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Well, to stay true to his roots, a Leica M7. He'd send the film out for processing and scanning to enjoy the best of the hybrid workflow.
GeraldW
Veteran Member
A Leica M240 with a 35 mm f/1.4 lens. The right frame size, the right focal length, and close in function to his early Leicas. Perfect for his street photography and for capturing the "decisive moment".
He would be using the simplest camera. A camera similar to this one
jriachi.wordpress.com
Zeiss Ikon
Design Philosophy: “If you are busy thinking, you are not seeing”. This camera is designed to help you quickly switch off your brain, and elevate your senses so you can start seeing. It…
jriachi.wordpress.com
No, but I suspect he would have. He depended on others to develop and print his images because he wasn't interested in the technical aspects of film and printing. With digital he could have eliminated much of that. He still might have left the pp to someone else, but at least he would have been able to review his shots immediately. I suspect being able to see what he had captured right away would have appealed to him.
Deleted1929
Forum Pro
If he had access to a time machine in the 50's or 60's he'd have instead gone backwards to 1920's France with proof that the then minor figure of Hitler and the Nazis had to be stopped ASAP. Maybe he'd have done the job himself.
Yeah, I know what you're thinking : time paradox.
But then if he'd instead gone to 2013 and brought back anything from our present and his future, he'd have created a paradox anyway.
Thank heaven all those hours watching Star Trek weren't wasted, hey ?
Yeah, I know what you're thinking : time paradox.
But then if he'd instead gone to 2013 and brought back anything from our present and his future, he'd have created a paradox anyway.
Thank heaven all those hours watching Star Trek weren't wasted, hey ?
tex
Veteran Member
Leicas have been mentioned, as has the NEX 6 (I think he would have found the NEX 7 too fiddly). I think another good bet would be one of the Fuji's with a VF. Possibly a Canon G, though, or a Nikon V1-V2 with their fast AF. No need to print large.
I'm more of a believer that history is more robust than that. You sure could have killed Hitler before he came to power, but I'd bet good money someone very similar would have appeared in his place, if anything helped along by the guys murder, the war still would have happened and millions still would have died.sjgcit wrote:
If he had access to a time machine in the 50's or 60's he'd have instead gone backwards to 1920's France with proof that the then minor figure of Hitler and the Nazis had to be stopped ASAP. Maybe he'd have done the job himself.
Yeah, I know what you're thinking : time paradox.
Ignoring any issues of paradoxs I'd go for either a leica, olympus of fuji. Leica for the obvious reason, fuji or olympus due to the various film modes and punchy OOC jpegs, combinded with the probably vaugely familiar feel of the cameras. Maybe the X100(s).Thank heaven all those hours watching Star Trek weren't wasted, hey ?
Deleted1929
Forum Pro
> I'd bet good money someone very similar would have appeared in his place, if anything helped along by the guys murder, the war still would have happened and millions still would have died.
I'm pretty sure most people who lived through the war ( as HCB did ) would have been quite willing to risk that.
Given he was a Leica user and how obsessive those guys are ( and rightly in Leica's heyday ), you gotta think he have just grabbed an M7 or M9 and some lenses if he had time.
Even if he thought about, it humans are nothing if not habitual creatures and he'd have plumped for the Leica options just out of habit, I think.
Even with sixty years of inflation he'd probably still have been able to afford a Leica now from his stash of cash then.
I'm pretty sure most people who lived through the war ( as HCB did ) would have been quite willing to risk that.
Given he was a Leica user and how obsessive those guys are ( and rightly in Leica's heyday ), you gotta think he have just grabbed an M7 or M9 and some lenses if he had time.
Even if he thought about, it humans are nothing if not habitual creatures and he'd have plumped for the Leica options just out of habit, I think.
Even with sixty years of inflation he'd probably still have been able to afford a Leica now from his stash of cash then.
Undoubtably. I was mereley referring to the fact that I don't think it would result in any sort of paradox. This isn't the place to discuss whether allied forces could have killed him and decided not to.
I dunno, I think he would have liked the autofocus of newer cameras, and something like the X100 has a similar style/viewfinder/controls. Potentially requiring less PP as well (fuji users rave about the JPGs whereas I hear Leica you really should use raw)Given he was a Leica user and how obsessive those guys are ( and rightly in Leica's heyday ), you gotta think he have just grabbed an M7 or M9 and some lenses if he had time.
Even if he thought about, it humans are nothing if not habitual creatures and he'd have plumped for the Leica options just out of habit, I think.
Even with sixty years of inflation he'd probably still have been able to afford a Leica now from his stash of cash then.
Your right though, the fact that he was a Leica user chances were nothing else would have been good enough =P.
edhannon
Senior Member
Given that he was all about capturing the "moment" and could care less about the technical part of photography, I believe he would opt for a camera the felt and operated as much like what he was used to and leave the processing to others.
So something that felt close to a Leica range finder. Raw vs JPEG, AF, and all that would be something that he would ignore - leave it to whoever processed the images.
But processing would mean that he would most likely have to stay in this time rather than take it back! Unless he could travel back and forth to get his images processed ;-)
So something that felt close to a Leica range finder. Raw vs JPEG, AF, and all that would be something that he would ignore - leave it to whoever processed the images.
But processing would mean that he would most likely have to stay in this time rather than take it back! Unless he could travel back and forth to get his images processed ;-)
MichaelToyeImages
Leading Member
specifically designed as an homage to HCB.
If all he cared for was composition and the moment, then even color is a distraction and the Monochom would actually be his perfect camera.
Of course, I'd mention this one as I shoot exclusively with one lol
Michael
If all he cared for was composition and the moment, then even color is a distraction and the Monochom would actually be his perfect camera.
Of course, I'd mention this one as I shoot exclusively with one lol
Michael
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