Today Leica announced that it had acquired the smartphone photography startup Fjorden Electra AS and introduced a new smartphone app called “Leica LUX” that can simulate the “Leica look” of different lenses:
“With Leica LUX, users can experiment with well-known Leica lenses without having to physically take a camera in their hands. In ‘Aperture-Mode’, iPhone photographers can take pictures with the characteristic signatures of a range of classic Leica lenses, among them, the Summilux-M 28 mm f/1.4 ASPH and the Noctilux-M 50 mm f/1.2 ASPH. Thanks to Leica’s proprietary image processing engine, which is based on machine learning and computer-aided photography, these lens simulations reproduce the unmistakable look for which these lenses are famed, including, of course, the characteristic bokeh effect. This means that an iPhone can also emulate photos with the unique aesthetic of the legendary Leica M lenses.”
Additional information:
Leica Camera AG presents the professional photo app for the iPhone
Today, Leica Camera AG presents the Leica LUX app, a professional camera app that brings the iconic Leica Look to the iPhone. Leica LUX enables iPhone users to immerse themselves in the world of Leica photography and lenses and create the Leica Looks with their unmistakeable photographic aesthetics for the first time with an iPhone. The app addresses both experienced and entry-level photographers for everything from spontaneous snapshots to artistic photos.
The ‘Leica Lens Look’
With Leica LUX, users can experiment with well-known Leica lenses without having to physically take a camera in their hands. In ‘Aperture-Mode’, iPhone photographers can take pictures with the characteristic signatures of a range of classic Leica lenses, among them, the Summilux-M 28 mm f/1.4 ASPH and the Noctilux-M 50 mm f/1.2 ASPH. Thanks to Leica’s proprietary image processing engine, which is based on machine learning and computer-aided photography, these lens simulations reproduce the unmistakable look for which these lenses are famed, including, of course, the characteristic bokeh effect. This means that an iPhone can also emulate photos with the unique aesthetic of the legendary Leica M lenses.
The world of Leica Looks
Leica LUX uses Leica color science to offer a selection of color gradations and film presets that emulate those of Leica cameras. These include options such as Leica Classic, Leica Contemporary, and Leica Black and White. When using the Leica Standard Look, the proprietary image processing in Leica LUX already displays colors and contrast differently and more naturally than the native iPhone camera app. With Leica LUX, the iPhone camera becomes the key to a world of powerful artistic expression, rich textures, and impressive nuances. Each Leica Look has been developed to lend the captured image depth and character.
Leica LUX features a powerful and intuitively usable automatic mode and also offers photographers creative freedom through manual control of important parameters such as exposure compensation or shutter speeds. This means that every aspect of a photo can be composed to reflect the photographer’s personal preferences. Whether used by an experienced professional or an enthusiastic amateur, Leica LUX is a tool that enables all photographers to capture professional images and simultaneously maximise their creative freedom. The unique feature: the app is regularly updated with new Leica lens profiles, Leica Looks and functions.
Leica Camera AG takes over Fjorden Electra AS
On 1 December 2023, Leica Camera AG took over the Norwegian company Fjorden Electra AS in the course of the development of Leica LUX. The strategic acquisition took place within the framework of the development of new business areas in the Mobile Business segment.
The business models of both companies ideally complement one another: Fjorden Electra AS brings extensive know-how in the development of apps and smartphone accessories, while the Leica Camera AG Mobile Imaging development team contributes its expertise in the areas of image processing and imaging quality.
Marius Eschweiler, Vice President Business Unit Mobile, Leica Camera AG: ‘With the takeover of Fjorden, we systematically press ahead with our strategic growth strategy and further consolidate our positioning in the smartphone photography segment. In the future, customers will benefit from the combined expertise of two innovation leaders who have bundled their core competencies to open up new creative capabilities in smartphone photography.’
Dr Victor Henning, founder and CEO of Fjorden Electra AS, adds: ‘Our vision was to bring more joy and professionalism to mobile phone photography. The iconic Leica cameras were role models in our development processes when it comes to functionality, design and haptics. As long-standing Leica fans, our team is eager to further develop this vision as a part of Leica and simultaneously benefit from the company’s technical and optical excellence’.
Pricing and availability
Leica LUX will be offered as a so-called ‘Freemium’ model: the free version of Leica LUX includes access to the Automatic Photo mode and the Aperture Mode, including emulation of the Leica Summilux-M 28 mm f/1.4 ASPH. and five Leica Looks.
Leica LUX Pro (from €7.99 per month) additionally enables access to manual control of the exposure, focus and white balance and the complete – and constantly growing – current range of 11 Leica Looks and five Leica lenses. The range of functions, including access to exclusive Leica content and events and a series of other functions, is being continually expanded.
Leica Camera AG is strengthening its Mobile Business segment through the takeover of the smartphone photography startup Fjorden Electra AS. With ‘Leica LUX’, the company presents the first jointly developed iPhone photo app for professional mobile photography.
In the course of its strategic growth strategy, Leica Camera AG is strengthening its Mobile Business segment and is further expanding its portfolio through the takeover of the Norwegian company Fjorden Electra AS, a developer of smartphone apps and accessories. From today, Leica LUX, the first photo app developed for the iPhone within the framework of the takeover, is available as a download in the App Store. Leica LUX enables iPhone users to immerse themselves in the world of Leica photography and lenses and create the iconic Leica Looks with their unmistakable photographic aesthetics for the first time with an iPhone.
Through the takeover, Leica Camera AG expands its portfolio for professional mobile phone photography and opens up a further important business segment in the mobile sector. Together with the Xiaomi partnership and the current Xiaomi 14 series with Leica optics and the company’s own Leitz Phone, now available in its third generation in Japan, the Leica LUX photo app represents the third pillar of the powers of technical innovation in the Mobile Business segment and underlines the strategic importance of this segment for the successful further development of the company.
At the beginning of 2023, the German premium manufacturer already worked with the Norwegian company Fjorden Electra AS within the framework of a technological partnership. The business models of both companies ideally complement one another: Fjorden Electra AS brings extensive know-how in the development of iOS camera apps and iPhone accessories, while the Leica Mobile Imaging development team contributes its expertise in the areas of image processing and imaging quality. In this collaboration, both teams established an important basis for the further development of professional camera apps for high-quality photography with mobile phones.
Matthias Harsch, CEO of Leica Camera AG: ‘With the takeover of Fjorden we have united the expertise of two drivers of technological innovation and have expanded our already strong mobile imaging development team by the integration of proven specialists and digital know-how. We have expanded our digital ecosystem in the Camera, Mobile, and Optical segments with a product range that above all addresses younger target groups and enables them to take their first steps on their journey to the world of Leica products. Our first jointly-developed camera app, ‘Leica LUX’ brings the Leica experience and the unmistakable visual signature to the iPhone.’
Dr Victor Henning, founder and CEO of Fjorden Electra AS, adds: ‘Our vision was to bring more joy and professionalism to mobile phone photography. The iconic Leica cameras were role models in our development processes when it comes to functionality, design and haptics. As long-standing Leica fans, our team is eager to further develop this vision as a part of Leica and simultaneously benefit from the company’s technical and optical excellence.
Fjorden Electra AS was founded by Dr Victor Henning in Oslo (Norway) in 2020 with the aim of developing iPhone apps and accessories and successfully establishing them in the global marketplace. In their daily project work, the development teams from Fjorden and Leica work in close collaboration at the Leica headquarters in Wetzlar, the home of German optical engineering excellence, or at the Leica Mobile Competence Centre in Cologne, an engineering and design office with a testing lab, which is primarily the workplace of the photographic engineering specialists of the Leica Mobile Business segment.
Fjorden Electra AS has an impressive track record as an innovator: Since its founding, the company has registered three patents and won a 2022 iF Design Award for its Fjorden Grip for iPhone photography, 15,000 of which have been sold since its market launch.
