Leica MD with 15mm Voigtlander
The Leica MD was introduced in 1963 and produced until 1966. The MD took the purpose-built nature of the M1 to the next level and eliminated the viewfinder. The MD was specifically designed for more limited use as a camera to be attached to a microscope, document scanner, or other specialized equipment, or with a Leica Visoflex or similar. It was not intended as a general-use camera.
The limited use case for the MD is also reflected in a more limited production of about 3,200 units, with a short production run of only three years. In 1966 the MD was replaced by the MDa. The MD was based on the M2 body without a viewfinder or rangefinder.
In total there were four industrial “blind Leicas.” The M1, not fully blind because it kept the viewfinder but lost the rangefinder, was based on the M2. The MD was also based on the M2 but lost the viewfinder to become totally blind. The MDa was based on the M4, and the last of the bunch, the MD-2, was based on the Leica M4-2.
Because the M1 shows the 50mm and the 35mm frame lines of the M2, you can reasonably use it by zone focusing and still compose through the finder. With the MD, MDa and MD-2, you are limited to guessing composition, slapping on a Visoflex, or using an auxiliary viewfinder (like I did). Unless you have a microscope or similar device with an M-mount, that would be cool too.
My Take:
Don’t get a blind Leica as a replacement for a standard film M. The rangefinder is what makes a Leica M an M. If you take away the rangefinder and the viewfinder, is it still an M? Too deep for me. What you do get is a well-engineered film box that is nice in the hand and fun to shoot. But you will need to overcome the lack of viewfinder. I tried the Visoflex on the MDa. That was entertaining but not very practical. On the M1 I used a zone-focus lens and the viewfinder for 35mm, not an option on the MD. On the MD-2 I hit a sweet spot with the Voigtlander Super-Wide-Heliar Aspherical 15mm f/4.5 lens. So I repeated that lens on the MD. A blind Leica and a zone-focus lens with a viewfinder feel like a perfect match.
I love the MD as a wide-angle shooter. 15 mm is not a go-to lens for me, but taking it out forces me to see differently, and that is always a good thing.
A word of caution when looking for an MD or any of the blind Leicas: they were used differently than the standard cameras. They may have been mounted to an instrument and never removed, but had significantly more rolls of film put through them than a standard M. They may have been attached and unattached many times a day. Or they may have sat in a box and only been used occasionally. My MD looks brand new on the outside but has a sticky shutter that likes to stay open. Could be just lack of use or could be excessive use. The good news is it is a Leica and is reparable. Mine will be going in for a CLA and then back to waiting on a shelf for me to get that wide-angle itch.
Lens: Voigtlander Super Wide-Heliar Aspherical 15mm f/4.5
Film: Kodak 5222 Double-X 250
