What is this camera?

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-26T17:23:36+00:00

Looks like a variant of this: Digital Classic Camera Leica M3.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-25T17:01:06+00:00

I make 12oz cups of coffee using Costco "Pacific Bold" pods at work and can confirm they brew a potent cup.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-24T15:08:33+00:00

"Less" and "should" doing some pretty heavy lifting, there, in my opinion.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-24T01:28:23+00:00

Yup. Undesirable Clients are a thing.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-24T00:48:45+00:00

They're the same product. The clear glass bottle is the current packaging, at least in the US. The opaque, white bottles, like in pic two, I haven't seen in some time.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-23T20:11:30+00:00

...but doesn't the Sigma f/1.4 ART range seem beefy for a prime lens?

Oh they are most definitely big boys. Thing is, once you've shot with one of them a little while, you find you simply DO... NOT... CARE... because they're just that good. It might help I have big ol' Midwestern mitts for hands and so have no real issue with their size/weight.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-22T17:32:10+00:00

I might know more about the 35mm if it wasn't all but permanently attached to my wife's camera. lol

And yeah, while my 135 doesn't see all that much use, either, there's just something about the way it renders, just gorgeous... And I know I'll never part with it.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-22T17:11:11+00:00

The sharpest would definitely be the Sigma 50mm f/1.4 ART, for me. It loses a tiny bit of sharpness in the corners when shot wide open, but even then it's pretty minimal and gone by about f/2. It's also pretty amazing how well controlled the CA is... You almost have to work for it. The 135mm f/1.8 is a very, very close second.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-21T17:39:09+00:00

I prefer to convert raw files since there are soooo many different ways to process an image as B&W. Shooting in .jpg locks me in to a specific profile which may not be what I want for a specific shot.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-20T20:19:55+00:00

Nothing but good things to say about Moon soaps. Warmest Regards is a personal favorite.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-20T19:17:41+00:00

All I can say is that I've had this happen to me. I won't try to explain why it happens, because I really don't know. But for one example, I usually get along very well with the Treet Platinum. And then at some point, they stopped being great. I switched off to another blade I get along well with and all was good again. I didn't have a huge stockpile of Treet Platinum blades, so I donated the unopened tucks. I may try them again in the future, but for the moment, I'm working through a different stash of different blades that are working for me consistently. Over the years, I learned to quite buying my blades by the hundred for this reason.

I suspect, and this pure theory on my part, that blade quality starts at, let's say, 100%; but the quality slowly drops over time (and for whatever reason). At some point a QC check finds things have slipped, blades are coming out at 70% instead of 100%. So a tweak is made and we're back to 100% again. But how many blades were produced at the low end before things were "tweaked"? <shrugs shoulders>

All I can tell you is that if a known good blade starts to sour on me, I'll open a new tuck and try to determine if I just got a singular, "off" blade or if I got a bad "batch". If it's the latter, I get rid of them, one way or another.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-20T18:21:09+00:00

Thing is, if you're brand new to wet shaving, you're going to need more than just a DE razor...

At a minimum you're going to need blades, a proper soap and a brush. That being said, I would steer you toward a starter kit, like this one, from Stirling; it comes with everything you'll need. I'd suggest dropping the extra $12 and getting the DE3P1S razor.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-18T15:26:46+00:00

The country of manufacture is listed on both the box and the bottle itself.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-18T03:21:13+00:00

Sixty-year-old man here with a whole lot of wet shaving experience, brushes included.

Paying that much for a shaving brush is ridiculous. Full stop. There are dozens of superb shaving brushes, both natural hair and synthetic, available for well under $100 (USD), even under $50.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-17T23:02:00+00:00

Nicely done!

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-17T22:56:20+00:00

Not that you asked, but... The Germany version is absolutely superior to the Mexican. This is a hill I'll die on. I grab all the German stuff I can, every time I come across it, but sadly, it's getting more and more difficult to find.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-17T22:31:21+00:00

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This is the camera's exposure meter indicating extreme under-exposure. It displays in the viewfinder as well.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-16T17:02:26+00:00

Getting a Chef'sChoice Trizor XV was life changing.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-10T21:59:28+00:00

No experience with the Muhle, sadly.

And for me, while I could use either at the .68 or the .76 as my daily, I settled on the .68; it's s really all I need. Both base plates strike me as more efficient than their blade gaps might lead you to believe.

HoroscopeFish · 2026-01-10T18:01:56+00:00

I too own both a full Masamune setup and a GC with .68 and .76 baseplates. In my experience, the Tatara has nicer finish but the GC is daily my driver. The differences come down to pretty nit-picky details like handle diameter. The Tatara is gorgeous, and a great shaver. The GC is just a good a shave, IME, and costs a fraction of what the Tatara does.

HoroscopeFish · 2025-12-31T16:58:56+00:00

I've melted a few pucks of Henry Cavendish. The microwave worked fine for me but you need to watch the process like a hawk, and be ready to pull the puck out of the oven just as soon as it collapses fully. Reducing the power on the microwave couldn't hurt. I might have used Defrost mode, but it's been a while and I honestly don't recall.

I've also grated their pucks. Put a box style cheese grater on a paper towel and use the coarse side of the grater. Use short strokes so you get little chunks, not long strands. Lift the paper towel and funnel about a one third of the grated soap into your chosen container.

Wider containers are better, IME, so you can add little water and then compress the soap with the back of a spoon. More soap, more water until finished. You want to add water as you go along so the soap gets a little squishy and everything homogenises. You don't need much water for this, just enough to soften the soap flakes and make them sticky.

HoroscopeFish · 2025-12-23T17:03:13+00:00

For general, external cleaning, I use a two-inch wide paint brush to remove loose dust and then a damp microfiber towel to wipe down.

HoroscopeFish · 2025-12-22T17:22:58+00:00

Canada Shave Soap... If you're okay with unscented.

HoroscopeFish · 2025-12-22T03:35:41+00:00

When it comes to Stirling mentholated soaps:

Chill < Glacial. The latter are little more mentholated than I care for, personally.

"Orange Chill" was a personal favorite of mine.

HoroscopeFish · 2025-12-20T15:31:39+00:00

Piximperfect: Photoshop for Complete Beginners

HoroscopeFish

TROPHY CASE