New cheap Chinese 7Artisans 50mm f/1.1 lens for Leica M-mount



The Chinese company 7Artisans has a new 50mm f/1.1 lens for Leica M-mount. The lens is rangefinder coupled and is probably the cheapest M-mount lens available today at $369 (listed for sale on Amazon and on eBay). A silver version is also available:


7Artisans 50mm f/1.1 lens specifications:

  • Full frame: yes
  • Compatible camera mount: Leica M-mount
  • Focal length: 50mm
  • Aperture range: f/1.1-f/16
  • Angular field of view: 46°
  • Minimum focusing distance: 0.7m
  • Number of blades: 12
  • Lens design: 7 elements in 6 groups
  • Aluminum body and copper core, Sonnar design
  • Weight: 14.1 oz / 400 g
  • The box contains:
    • 7artisans 50mm f/1.1 lens
    • two lens caps
    • lens bag
    • Pergear cleaning kit
  • Sample photos: Xitek 1 | Xitek 2 | WXhaowen

This lens could be a copy of the MS Optical Sonnetar 50mm f/1.1 MC lens Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f/1.1 lens.

Update: additional information on this lens can be found here.

Additional information and pictures:

Read More »

Posted in Leica Lenses| Tagged , , | 83 Comments

Used Leica finds

 

Here are a few interesting Leica cameras and lenses I spotted at the B&H used department during my recent trip to New York:

Read More »

Posted in Deals| Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Leica digest


→ “Fake Leica” by Liao Yibai has been listed for sale at Meister Camera / Leica Store Hamburg for €100,000:

This Leica weights about 40kg and is made out of stainless steel. The size of the sculpture is ca. 41 x 81 x 46cm (17 5/8 x 32 1/4 x 191/4 inches) and has got serial number 6/12. It comes with the wooden crate included which is especially designed for shipping this sculpture. One similar “Fake Leica” sold at Westlicht Auction in November 2013 for Euro 96.000. There are more and different models of the Fake Leica such as one gold plated, a black paint fiberglass and 3 giant models of wich one was bought by the museum of the Leica Camera AG.

Additional information on the sculpture can be found here.


→ 5 months, 20,000+ pictures, 12 countries, the Leica M10 review by Thorsten Overgaard is now online:

Let’s start with the bottom line: The Leica M10 is worth having. That is the short and sweet conclusion you might have come here to find out about. The Leica M10 is the most relevant digital Leica M of them all. I wasn’t overly impressed and enthusiastic to begin with, but none of that takes away from the fact that you’ll love the M10 after a few months. I don’t remember another camera that grew on me like that. Just slides in under your skin for no apparent reason…

Only when we consider that there are other Leica M models that are nice to have, and that the Leica M10 is still extremely hard to find in stock in any camera store, does the decision-making process become a little more cluttered. Which to get? I will get into that as we move on, but as a single statement, you may take this with you:

Yes, the Leica M10 is worth having.


Lensrentals also published their Leica M10 review:

Leica made a fantastic camera in the Leica M10. It’s the most classic Leica I’ve seen in years, and it plays to all their strengths, while still maintaining all Leica look and feel that so many have come to love. With mirrorless cameras so plentiful and much cheaper than Leica, it’s hard to justify the price for a Leica in the modern age. Sony and Fuji have made some amazing cameras at less than half the price of a Leica, and there are adapters to use M mount lenses on those cameras. But the romance of rangefinder work has its merits and is worth trying once or twice, maybe just for a weekend. I’m glad Leica got back to what they’re best at, and I look forward to more of this new “old” direction in the future.


High ISO comparison: Leica M10 vs. Fuji X-T2 vs. Fuji GFX 50S:

In conclusion, you can be the judge between the high ISO performance between the Leica M10 and GFX 50S. You can clearly see the X-T2’s smaller APS-C sensor can not keep up with the larger sensor cameras at higher ISO, something that won’t bother most cropped sensor shooters. You pay a premium for the luxury of high ISO performance of the Leica and the GFX, something that many of us are unwilling to pay for, myself included. At lower ISO, there is very little difference in visible noise, and the differences I do see have less to do with sensor size, and more to do with the lens I use and how the camera processed the image. What difference you do see between the sensors is micro contrast and dynamic range. As a general rule, larger the sensor the better, but how much better? This again is for another article. This was just a test comparing high(er) ISO performance.

Read More »

Posted in Other Leica Stuff| Tagged , , | Leave a Comment

5 tips on how to get the most out of your Leica rangefinder camera


Five tips on how to get the most out of your Leica rangefinder camera by Stefan Daniel from Leica:

More “5 tips” videos from LHSA:

Read More »

Posted in Other Leica Stuff| Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Leica TL camera price drop, new model expected to be announced in July


Some updates on the current and upcoming Leica TL cameras:

  • The price of the latest Leica TL model has dropped to $1,495
  • The Leica TL Titanium is still listed as discontinued at B&H
  • The new TL camera will have a 24MP sensor and will be much faster compared to the current TL
  • The new TL was initially rumored to have a built-in EVF, but this may not be the case
  • The official announcement is expected to be before September – most likely in July
  • Price: around $2,500
  • The new Leica TL camera has already been registered with different government agencies under the code name 5370

Leica is rumored to announce also another camera in October, but I do not have any additional information yet.

Posted in Leica TL, Leica TL2| Tagged | 48 Comments

More info on the MS Optics Fluorit Super Apochromat Aporis 135mm f/2.4 lens for Leica M mount


Some additional information on the new MS Optics Fluorit Super Apochromat Aporis 135mm f/2.4 full frame lens for Leica M mount (the lens is currently available for pre-order). There are two versions of the lens: one for Leica M cameras (coupled) and one for other mirrorless cameras (not coupled). Here is how Mr. Miyazaki came up with the idea for this lens:

Read More »

Posted in Leica Lenses| Tagged , , , | 16 Comments

More upgrade options for Leica M9/M9-P/M-E/Monochrom cameras with CCD sensor corrosion


Leica is now offering more upgrade options for Leica M9/M9-P/M-E/Monochrom cameras affected by the CCD sensor corrosion issue:

Read More »

Posted in Leica M Monochrom, Leica M-E, Leica M9, Leica M9-P| Tagged , , | 1 Comment