making camera lens' black

don't really know about a specific shop, but I've seen tons of re-painted leicas on different forums. rangefinderforum.com can be a good start to hunt for some info about that...

thanks, marius. posted there. i was hoping someone on LS had done this before and found it successful, or at least heard of someone who did. i don't think it's all that rare of a desire?

One of the people listed here might be able to help you out with that: http://nemeng.com/leica/004b.shtml

get an M6 mate. G2s are really noisy, the Af is worthless and the viewfinder is super small. i had both G2 and G1 and i was never happy with them. even better, go for the mamiya 7 with a 65.

masking tape and a penol 1000 or a can of black spraypaint will also do the job, although not as pretty :P

If you dont wanna ruin the camera there is a factory that produces protective rubber-casings to many cameras. Could be an option if you want the black color in order not to draw so much attension. Cant remember the name though.

I think it's actually just bare titanium not chrome on the G2, right? If so, you might be able to get it blackened using a chemical process by industrial outfits such as... http://www.finishing.com/Chemicals/russamer.shtml It will be pricey though and I'm not so sure if they are suited to take apart cameras and put them back together. There are also enamels like DuraCoat, it's very durable (people use it mostly for guns) and it doesn't need to be baked like other heavy duty enamels. You have to spray it on though, which means a lot of masking. Finally you could brush on hobby paint, but it won't last long and won't look very good either. I think Ty is talking about Camera Armor, I don't think they make any covers for G2s though. If I were you, I'd just keep it as is.

If you are just trying to make the camera less obtrusive for shooting in candid/street situations, you can do what I did with my first SLR years ago (black SLRs were much more expensive)...use electrical tape to cover all of the bright surfaces. It is not as hard as it sounds, and if you cut and apply it it carefully it looks surprisingly good. And everybody will think there is a Leica beneath it! Doing this with the lens might be a little more challenging...I've never tried that. I think the first person I heard of who did this was some PJ icon of the 60s, like Alfred Eisenstadt, who did it to a Leica (which at the time I believe was not available in all-black). I still use electrical tape to cover the trade marks on my digital stuff -- I don't want subjects to judge me based on the labels on my equipment.

Wonder if there is anyone the CamerArmor could drum something up for the G2.

thanks for the feedback guys. the purpose for this is because i'll be using it in some of the worse neighborhoods of Philadelphia as well as in the prison systems. i had previously owned a Eos-1v and Eos-1n as my film cameras. good pieces of equipment, but they served as too bulky to carry and too obvious to use sometimes. hence my desire for a jet black range-finder that won't require my soul. neal: i already use electrical tape on my canons and it does a good enough job. i used to own a G2 but had to sell it because it wasn't making me any money. now i regret it. guy: i really want to, dude. maybe i might be able to sidestep all this and just go for the big purchase by sept. just finished reading all those links...i think the CamerArmor might make it too bulky anyway. i'll go off topic. anyone know a good Leica reseller in NYC?

If there's any way you could swing it, I'd go for a used beater leica. I've carried them in some pretty rough neighborhoods and had no problems, most people mistake it for a cheap and/or old compact camera. A g2 might look just as expensive as an m6. Photovillage is a great shop, but prices are maybe not the best and their stuff tends to be in great condition and therefore more expensive. I've had good luck ordering stuff from keh (online, it's not in nyc), they have good prices and conservative ratings.

How paint for model kits, like the Tamiya brand. Most are water base but you can get oil base versions also.

concealing a camera try this tip ,,,,,,,,,,,,,, put it back into the box and send it back ......... no one will ever know that you had a camera

Mustafah mate, just keep your eyes open for other photogs that are selling their stuff. stay away from all the leica collector's world. many people, me included sold film cameras years ago. B&H buys for cheap and sells for lots, but you have a guarantee on the used product. if you go for film go medium format. so much better. cheers

Check out Voigtlander's Bessa r2m [M-mount]. A great but loverlooked piece of gear. Plus, Voigtlander make a tiny 35mm 1.4. Get both new for under $1,500US.

imants....yeah.....that's wisdom you just can't buy.... gonna check out the m6 and mamiya 7. thanks guys.

what about the Konica Hexar 35mm fixed lens... it is black and nearly mute... super stealth.