While the big Japanese camera makers dominate the high-end camera and lens market, Leica remains an iconic brand with a loyal (and often high-spending) legion of fans.
Leica continues to mine the rich seam of its heritage, as well as bringing out special editions in associations with celebrity photography fans from the world of entertainment (for example, Andy Summers of the Police, Lenny Kravitz and Seal).
The company’s latest special edition is a limited-run Leica Summilux-M 35 f/1.4 lens. Dubbed ‘the true king of bokeh’ by Leica enthusiasts, this classic first appeared in 1961, and was the world’s fastest wide-angle lens at the time.
Leica Summilux-M 35 f/1.4 special features
The design is based on this first 1961 iteration of the Leica Summilux-M 35 f/1.4, with a black anodised finish featuring the celebrated steel front ring. Leitz Wetzlar is engraved on the front, and the engravings on the focus ring have also been adjusted to echo the original as much as possible (in addition, the arrangement of the feet and metre scale are modelled on the 1961 lens).
Buyers also get a lens container, a clip-on lens hood and an extra round lens hood with E46 thread, with retro-styled packaging thrown in too.
Warn your bank manager, however as the special edition, black anodised Leica Summilux-M 35 f/1.4 lens is priced at £8,600 (just under $11,000). Available now from Leica Stores worldwide.
If you want the cachet of Leica without spending quite so much cash, why not consider the excellent Leica Q3 premium compact, or even the Leica Summilux-branded Xiaomi 14 smartphone.
Further reading
Leica SL3: hands-on first look
Leica: ‘our products are not cheap but they keep their value’
