Jack Nicholson using a Leica III/A and VIDOM finder in Chinatown.
Jack Nicholson using a Leica III/A and VIDOM finder in Roman Polanski’s Chinatown 1974
Each time I see any of my movies, there are plenty of things that I would like to change. It doesn’t mean that the movie would be any better. For example, when Gittes is photographing on the roof, the couple downstairs, and I wanted to see the reflection of it in the lens of his Leica. I was hesitating a lot and discussing it, which way to put it, put it upside down or the way it is, in the lens normally it should reflect upside down. And I thought for the audience’s sake, we won’t put it upside down. Today, I would definitely put it upside down.
-Roman Polanski
Jack Nicholson using a Leica III/A and VIDOM finder in Roman Polanski’s Chinatown 1974
Nice image. Too bad Nicholson wasn’t shown the proper technique for focusing a split image rangefinder camera. Keep the focusing hand down and focus from below, so as to stay out of the line of the rangefinder!
You’re so right! Did not catch that before.
Doug