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German-based photographer Mario Marino has now been immersed in his “Faces of Africa” taking pictures for two weeks, producing powerfully sensitive portraits of South Ethiopians. His first show, opening at Galerie Brockstedt, Berlin,after in London, Munich, Amsterdam, Gent, Brussels, Nijmegen and Salzburg focuses on the area’s children, who have inherited the tradition of wearing the leaves, chalk, and branches of the landscape as ornaments. Marino’s goal of capturing the extraordinary artistry and individualism of this practice has always existed under the threat of time—as with so many others, the regional custom recedes as tourism and technology increase their presence. But Marino’s portraits show a cultural heritage alive and well in Ethiopia (source: Chloe Eichler, Planet Magazin New York).
This set of Q&A provides some interesting information on the latest Leica Vario X Type 107 camera ($2,850.00), including answers to questions and concerns raised by several readers of this blog:
Is the Leica X Vario the official successor of the Leica X2?
No. Due to its very different possibilities in the photographic use the X Vario is the perfect addition for the X2. Both cameras will be offered in parallel in the market.
Do the X2 and the X Vario use the same accessories?
The X2, as well as, the new X Vario offer a great range of technical and non-technical accessories. Due to the different shape of the bodies; the cases, the protectors and the handgrips are made to individually fit the different camera models. The electronic viewfinder EVF2, the Leica flash, the wrist straps, as well as, the neck straps can be used with both cameras.
Does the introduction of the X Vario have an influence on the M production?
The production of the X cameras takes place in a complete different production line and has no influence on the production output of M cameras.
What factors affected the decision to use the focal length of 28-70 and the f-stop range of 3.5-6.4?
The doctrine for developing the X Vario was – as for Leica cameras in general – to realize the best possible image performance in a comparatively small housing. From an engineering point of view a lens is always the interplay between performance, focal length, aperture and mechanical size. With 28-70mm the focal length covers the most popular and most used by our customers. The aperture has a huge influence on the size of a lens.
The X Vario lens is designed to deliver the best image quality at any aperture and any focal length – so to achieve that and without getting a bulky lens, we decided to compromise in the best possible way and restricted the aperture range from 3.5-6.4. In comparison to comparable lenses of other systems the Vario lens is actually a relatively small lens.
Furthermore, the combination of the APS sized sensor with the Vario lens still offers the customer an enormous play with depth and field, as our dear customers expect from their Leica. The AF lens of the X Vario is actually a unique synthesis between tradition, most modern optical design and precision mechanics.
Yestreday Swiss photographer René Burri received the Leica Hall of Fame Award 2013. The award was presented at the Museum für Gestaltung in Zürich. Burri was also given a Leica M Monochrom for his achievements in 55 years of photography. The Monochrom with a special engraving was handed over to Burri by Dr. Andreas Kaufmann.
The short film “Soul“ which was created for the launch of the M-Monochrom camera in the Leica Store in São Paulo, won five awards at the Cannes Lions Festival and a total of 17 international awards. This controversial production was not associated with Leica Camera AG – it was created independently by Sentimental Filme production company and FNazca / Saatchi & Saatchi agency.
Two new Leica Boutique stores are coming to Sweden and South Africa. The South Africa location (Fourways, just north of Johannesburg) will be a store within a store. My understanding is that currently Leica products are not directly available in South Africa. The store will be operated by The Digital Experience. The official opening will be somewhere in late July, early August, 2013. I have no details about the Sweden location.
