Robert Capa and Leica

[rodinal]

I've just finished reading Robert Capa's autobiographic book "Slightly Out of Focus" and an old question began to bother me again. This question originated, years ago, after reading the "official" Capa's biography by Richard Whelan.

Both books show Capa as a user of Contax cameras. The photographer himself mentions his two Contax cameras many times in his own book and not a single time does he mention the Leica brand. Wheland's book shows him carrying/using a Contax II (or a Rolleiflex, also mentioned by Capa in his book) in photographs dated as early as 1938 (China), 1940 (Mexico), 1943 (Napoles) and 1954 (Laos, his last assignment).

The question is: Why is Capa so often cited as Leica user ? I recall that even the Leica website mentions him as a "Leica photographer", but a harder example is Allesandro Pasi's book "Leica, Wiitness to a Century" that even publishes some of those famous D-day photographs although Capa himself declares he took them using a Contax with a latex water shield.

Of course, I know that Capa's excellence does not depend on what equipment he did use, but Leica prestige seems to have been borrowing from Contax merits here. Any thoughts ?

[ItsReallyDarren]

I believe Robert Capa used Leicas early in his career (Spanish Civil war). Afterward he used Contax cameras, around the Second world war.

[wlewisiii]

IIRC, he used a (used?) Leica II or IIIa (my sources are contradictory) while covering the Spanish Civil War. Once he had the money to buy new he seems to have gotten his Contax & Rollie.

Good luck finding anything more substantial.

William

[Mablo]

Feeling bored after the war Capa and John Steinbeck travelled around Soviet Union in -47 (see Steinbeck's "Russian Journal"). In the book Steinbeck describes Capa's photographing gear as "mostly the same gear I saw him carrying around during the war, Contaxes and a few Rolleis".

[Highway 61]

In the middle of the 1960s Leica survived as the lone high-end 35mm rangefinder cameras manufacturer while the big two (Nikon and Canon) totally switched to SLR and Zeiss Ikon sold the Contax brand to Yashica after the demise of the Contax RF system in 1961. So for everyone a rangefinder camera with some VF/RF windows on its front panel and interchangeable lenses became a "Leica". People looking at some pictures of Robert Capa carrying a Contax II in 1938 still deeply think it's a Leica M. And since you can't be a great photographer if you don't use a Leica, so was Capa a Leica user eventually.
There is absolutely NO picture showing Capa with a Leica (even from the Spanish civil war era and since the Contax II came out at the end of 1935 he could very well have got one when he first went to Spain already) while many pics show him with a Contax II, a Contax IIa and a Nikon S. And with some Rolleiflexes of course but who could confuse a Rolleiflex with a "Leica".
But - yes Capa was a Leica user, just because some Leica chairmen told he was, and because some journalists wrote he was.

[Lilserenity]

I seem to recall something about him getting his Leica destroyed by accident in the early 30s and his employer being none too happy! I think this was in the BBC's Genius of Photography programme.

[saturnales]

Gerda Taro, he lover during Spanish War, was using a Leica for sure. When she died, her body full of metal, she was asking abour the condition of her Leica... Crazy users of Leica even at this time! They are dying and ask for the condition of a camera!

[Highway 61]

Originally Posted by saturnales

When she died, her body full of metal(...)

Gerda Taro wasn't shot, she was crushed after she had covered the battle of Brunete by a Republican tank going backwards. This happened after the battle had ended and it was 100% by accident.
Unless her body was more solid than the tank, which was very unlikely to have happened, no way for her to have got "full of metal" while she was whispering about her Leica, telling "I feel... sooo cold...".

Less romantic, but true.

Please.

[peter_n]

Originally Posted by ItsReallyDarren

I believe Robert Capa used Leicas early in his career (Spanish Civil war). Afterward he used Contax cameras, around the Second world war.

Pretty accurate, he apparently switched to Contax during the Spanish civil war. I spent my lunchtime looking into my various Capa-related books. In terms of the question posed here, the most useful was Gerda Taro, the catalog of the ICP exhibit in NYC of her work in 2007-8, beautifully printed by Steidl. Irme Schaber writes (p.25) "during the first months of the war, Taro worked with a Rolleiflex… she later switched to the more expensive Leica, which used cheaper film. Capa favored the still more expensive Contax…"

Later in the catalog, Richard Whelan writes (p.44) "on their first trip*, Capa used the Leica exclusively and Taro used the Rolleiflex exclusively…" (p.45) "Capa bought a Contax 35mm camera and gave his old Leica to Taro**…" Then in a footnote: (P.51 Note 3) "Capa did not begin supplementing his Contax with a Rolleiflex until 1943, and then only because Life editors insisted. The Contax remained his favorite camera for the rest of his life."

So it seems that Capa did originally use a Leica but moved on to a Contax which he preferred.

* Their first trip to Spain was in 1936
** This occurred prior to their second trip in 1937

The big plus for my time this lunch was was my re-acquaintance with Capa & Taro's work. Absolutely unbelievable and if you're interested in Capa's Spanish pictures I strongly recommend Heart of Spain which accompanied the Capa exhibit in the Reina Sofia in Madrid, 1999. It's published by Aperture.

[furcafe]

I still kick myself about missing that exhibit, so I'll have to settle for picking up the book as a souvenir the next time I go to NYC.

What I find almost surprising is that Capa was actually paid enough money to buy a Contax, considering 1 body w/a lens or 2 easily cost the same as an automobile in those days, but I guess you don't skimp on your tools.

As far as Capa being misremembered as a Leica shooter, in addition to the factors Highway 61 mentioned (e.g., to non-photographers all RFs are "Leicas"), I think a lot has to do w/the fact that most of his colleagues @ Magnum (Chim, HC-B, Rodger) were Leica guys.

Originally Posted by peter_n

Pretty accurate, he apparently switched to Contax during the Spanish civil war. I spent my lunchtime looking into my various Capa-related books. In terms of the question posed here, the most useful was Gerda Taro, the catalog of the ICP exhibit in NYC of her work in 2007-8, beautifully printed by Steidl. Irme Schaber writes (p.25) "during the first months of the war, Taro worked with a Rolleiflex… she later switched to the more expensive Leica, which used cheaper film. Capa favored the still more expensive Contax…"

Later in the catalog, Richard Whelan writes (p.44) "on their first trip*, Capa used the Leica exclusively and Taro used the Rolleiflex exclusively…" (p.45) "Capa bought a Contax 35mm camera and gave his old Leica to Taro**…" Then in a footnote: (P.51 Note 3) "Capa did not begin supplementing his Contax with a Rolleiflex until 1943, and then only because Life editors insisted. The Contax remained his favorite camera for the rest of his life."

So it seems that Capa did originally use a Leica but moved on to a Contax which he preferred.

* Their first trip to Spain was in 1936
** This occurred prior to their second trip in 1937

The big plus for my time this lunch was was my re-acquaintance with Capa & Taro's work. Absolutely unbelievable and if you're interested in Capa's Spanish pictures I strongly recommend Heart of Spain which accompanied the Capa exhibit in the Reina Sofia in Madrid, 1999. It's published by Aperture.

[peterm1]

Originally Posted by ItsReallyDarren

I believe Robert Capa used Leicas early in his career (Spanish Civil war). Afterward he used Contax cameras, around the Second world war.

In general this reflects my understanding but I have no idea how authoritative it is. He certainly seems to use Contaxes and other cameras later in his career. In fact from memory the camera he was using on the day he died was a Contax RF.

[furcafe]

Richard Whelan's work quoted by peter_n is probably the most authoritative.

He was using a Contax IIa & Nikon S when he died in Indochina, 1 loaded w/B&W & the other w/color. This thread shows 1 of the last photos he took & the Nikon:

http://photo.net/classic-cameras-forum/00CROR

Originally Posted by peterm1

In general this reflects my understanding but I have no idea how authoritative it is. He certainly seems to use Contaxes and other cameras later in his career. In fact from memory the camera he was using on the day he died was a Contax RF.

[rodinal]

Thanks everybody for the comments and valuable information, especially Highway 61 and peter_n.

Highway 61 got the essence of my question and ventured an excellent explanation (in my humble opinion, of course).

Now I have no doubt about what cameras Capa did use and when, but I was quite sure about that already. What bothered me (and still does) is why "reputable" sources insist to call him a "Leica photographer" when is quite clear that he actually chose not to use that particular camera.

[Chris101]

I love the book, Blood and Champagne by Alex Kershaw. It's very exciting and romantic, and even a little sad in the middle, a much better read than Wheland's Capa, and of course, more substantive than Capa's own Slightly Out of Focus. It needs to be made into a chick-flick.

However if you make a drinking game out of it, taking a shot every time Kershaw says "Leica", you will be messed up in short order.

[Carterofmars]

"Slightly Out of Focus" was fantastic. I liked that book a lot. We should all have a 'Pinky' in times like those he went through.

[peterm1]

Originally Posted by Carterofmars

"Slightly Out of Focus" was fantastic. I liked that book a lot. We should all have a 'Pinky' in times like those he went through.

I had a red headed girlfriend that I used to call Pinky (inspired by Capa who is one of my personal heros.)

As Chris says, "Blood and Champagne" is a pretty good read too if you can lay your hands upon it. The sub title could easily have been how to bonk and carouse your way around the world with a camera in one hand and a glass of booze in the other.

(All of which kind of reminds me of one of P.J. O'Rourke's humerous essays "How to drive fast on drugs while getting your wing wang squeezed without spilling your drink"

http://www.heretical.com/miscella/reptile.html

Which probably was also relevant to Capa except I think he had a reputation of being the worlds worst driver.

[silverbullet]

The same marketing related 'bending' happens at the moment with Steve McCurry and Leica:

He is the first member of the Leica Hall of Fame and uses/used Nikon gear for decades.

In ten, twenty years people only remeber the HoF thing and will forget the truth.

Clever marketing.........

[LeicaTom]

I personally saw a Black Leica II back in 1984 that was supposely Capa's, it had some sort of travel paperwork with it and his name with the serial number noted (the papers were prewar like 1938 or 39 I don't remember?) ~ it was offered to me for like $7,000, which I thought at that time was crazy, today the same camera at the same price would sell to a crazy collector in less than 5 mins, but I wonder what ever happened to that camera now?

Tom

[rodinal]

Earlier this year, there was an exhibition called "The Mexican Suitcase" at the International Center of Photography in NY. There, they showed the original customs' paperwork identifying a Leica camera (and lenses) that Capa introduced to the USA in 1939. I don't remember having seen the camera exposed.

[N-L Leica]

I found this story about Taro and Capa it mentions alot about the camera's they were using very interesting read.

For the complete story: Capa and Taro



Between 20-25 May 1937, Robert Capa managed to acquire a Zeiss Contax II, the best 35 mm rangefinder camera in the world at those moments, with a Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 5 cm f/2.

This new choice of photographic gear by Capa made a lot of sense, since for him the most important thing over technical sides was always to get the picture, and for the sort of war photojournalism he made, the rangefinder Contax II was undoubtedly the best professional picture taking tool at that moment, because of a number of important reasons:

[whitecat]

Nice read, thanks.