The First Roll: Leica Minizoom in San Francisco

Buying a camera as a gift for your girlfriend/fiancée/wife/etc. is the way to do it. Just trust me on this one. I’ve been gifting her (myself) cameras for years.

Confession: I’ve purchased four (yes - 4) digital cameras over the past few years as gifts for my now fiancé, and subsequently, sold each of them to fund the next until I (we) had my precious Leica Q2 in hand. I guess this is more of a brag than a confession - but don’t fret - I maintain, and she would concur, that she is also getting some great use out of them along the way. In December, I decided to kind-of start the cycle over on the film side of things and work my way up to a Leica M6/M7 and/or a Mamiya 6/7ii. Enter the Leica Minizoom 35mm point and shoot.

Leica & Schnitzel | Radhaus Restaurant, San Francisco, CA | Shot on Leica Q2.

I was lucky enough to grab this Leica (my second) for Liz as a Christmas gift off Craigslist from the daughter of the original owner. It’s been a great companion over the last month as I dip my frostbitten toes (you know, Minnesota in the winter) back into the film world for the first time since I was a shutter happy eight-year-old pulling the camera off my parents' necks on hiking trips in the Canadian Rockies.

Now, there will more to come from me on what it means to me to shoot film and why it’s something that I’ve reverted to, but for now, I’m just going to share some images we made during the first few days of 2020. I may even do a write-up specific to my use of the Minizoom in the near future, but I’d like my writing focus to be more on the practice of making photographs vs. reviewing gear. There’s plenty of that out there, already.

Below are some of my favorite images and thoughts from the first roll of Portra 400 that I put through the Leica Minizoom - from beautiful, San Francisco, CA.

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Beach Love & Layers

Liz and I were fortunate to take a quick road trip loop down to Santa Cruz and back up the coast (thx for the car borrow, big bro!). This shot was at one of our many beach stops. We strolled down from the parking lot to sand and sat back to watch the waves roll in.

I turned to find this older couple taking it all in from the picnic table above and had to capture it. I love the layers of colors from the rocks to the sky and the sliver view of the subjects peeking over the greenery.

See the full set for another shot of these precious two - linked below.

The Palms on Nob Hill

I’ve shot about 99% of my images in the last year at a 28mm focal length. Now, that’s not necessarily by choice, as my Leica Q2 has a fixed 28mm Summilux lens (*heaven’s bells ringing*). I’ve come to love this approach, though, as a consistent focal length adds an element of continuity to my images and has started to feel like part of my photographic style.

That being said, beyond having this Minizoom as a catalyst for experimenting with another format (35mm film), it gives me some reach to play with compression, like you’re seeing here.

This one I love for the colors, simple composition, and the memory of it being one of the first few shutters of the roll.

Bay Bridge Glow

We trucked up the steep SF slopes to Coit Tower in a hurry to catch the last moments of golden hour. I love how the grainy glow of the image came out in the scan, which is something I’ve tried in the past through editing digital files. Quick tip: take the time to turn away from your next sunset and shoot in the opposite direction for some of my favorite, soft light.

I’ve always been charmed by San Francisco’s blend of both palm and deciduous trees - and really glad that I captured both in this frame.