One thing I’ve learned in doing this blog for a few years now is that there are people out there, Leica lovers (and haters), with stories to tell, interesting stories, and no place to tell them. Internet photo forums are all fine and good, but tend to bog down with herd thinking and pettiness, or are dominated by that guy, you know, the guy who knows everything, has an opinion about everything and will not brook dissenting and heretical views on his forum. Its all so silly and tiring and stupid, and results in a cacophony of group-think and shared idiocy with nothing really meaningful said.
When I first started Leicaphilia I did it simply as a means to talk about something I loved, i.e. film cameras, and Leica film cameras in particular, without being constantly censored by some know-nothing moderator or the hive-mind of the insider’s claques that dominate internet forums, as best I can tell because nobody in real life will pay them any attention. I assumed I’d be talking with myself, and maybe two or three other folks who might stumble upon the website. It was, essentially, therapy, a way to articulate things about traditional photography that I thought were important or interesting but were being lost in the mad rush to digital, or the banalities of “common sense” (according to David Hume, common sense being that which tells us the world is flat).
To my surprise, Leicaphilia has developed a decent following, and every now and then someone will take the trouble of tracking me down to talk to me about it. Invariably, once engaged, they’ll have a story or an experience or an observation that I find interesting, whether it’s about a camera they own or want to own, or a history they want to share, or a photo project they’re doing, or just a good natured rant about something Leica.
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So accept this as an invitation to submit something for publication on this site. The only parameter is that it have some connection to Leica – an experience, a history, a project, an expectation, an opinion, a reaction. Or something else.* If it’s marginally interesting or germane I’ll publish it, with photos if appropriate (reserving the right to edit it for coherence) even if I strongly disagree. Or you hate this site (just be able to explain why). You don’t have to be Hemingway; just able to express yourself. English preferred, but French and Spanish if you must. You’ll get a few thousand views a day and a link to send to your mom. I won’t have to think of new things to say twice a week. It’s a win/win situation.
*Please, no pictures of your adorable kids, sunsets, your cat, cameras next to fluffy coffee drinks in Parisian cafes, or smiling people at parades either gay or straight.
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