If you’re like me, you’re infatuated with Leica cameras and lenses. They’ve got something completely different that the rest of the industry doesn’t have. And if you shoot with one consistently, it will change the way you approach subjects and scenes. With that said, we’ve reviewed a ton of Leica M lenses. So we dove into our Reviews Index to find some of the most popular. And lucky for you, we’ve reviewed them! Check this out!
This piece is presented in partnership with Leica. We’ve independently and ethically reviewed all the products in this round-up already without sponsorship. And we worked with them to recommend a few key gems to you.
The Phoblographer’s various product round-up features are done in-house. Our philosophy is simple: you wouldn’t get a Wagyu beef steak review from a lifelong vegetarian. And you wouldn’t get photography advice from someone who doesn’t touch the product. We only recommend gear that we’ve fully reviewed. If you’re wondering why your favorite product didn’t make the cut, there’s a chance it’s on another list. If we haven’t reviewed it, we won’t recommend it. This method keeps our lists packed with industry-leading knowledge. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Pro Tips on Using Popular Leica Lenses
Here are some pro tips on using the most popular Leica lenses:
- The most popular Leica lenses are M-mount, obviously. They’re some of the most unique lens offerings on the current photography market.
- The great thing about these lenses is the metal build quality, small size, and light weight. Coupled with a rangefinder, they’ll be wonderful as they’re not too large.
- Give these lenses more life by using an adapter to put them on something like the Leica SL2-S.
- Zone focusing is key with the most popular Leica lenses. Give it a try. You’ll see it can outdo most autofocus performance on the market.
- When in doubt, shoot at 5 feet away at f8 and just be there.
Leica 35mm f2 Summicron-M ASPH
Tech Specs
- Diagonal angle of view: 63 °
- Working range: 0.7 m to infinity
- Biggest scale: 1: 17.4
- Number of lenses/groups: 7/5
- Length * 1: 35.7 mm
- Weight * 1: 252 g
- Lens hood: can be screwed on
- Filter/filter thread: E39
- Made in Portugal
In our review, we state:
“With the Leica 35mm f2 ASPH Summicron, you’re getting solid image quality for a pretty affordable Leica price point. For the photographer that is bound to stop the lens down and use it anywhere at around f5.6 or so, you’re going to get solid results consistently.”
Leica 50mm f2 Summicron-M ASPH
Tech Specs
- Diagonal picture angle: 47 °
- Working range: 0.7 m to infinity
- Largest scale: 1: 11.5
- Number of lenses/groups: 6/4
- Length * 1: 43.5 mm
- Weight * 1: 240g
- Lens hood: Pull-out
- Filter/filter thread: E39
- Made in Germany
In our review, we state:
“The Leica 50mm f2 Summicron M is a stunning beauty in the image quality department. If you’re a pixel peeper, you’ll probably be impressed here. But honestly, this site was designed for folks who don’t pixel peep. Instead, you’ll appreciate how sharp it is without using tricks like contrast or saturation to make it appear sharper than it really is. Sharpness isn’t everything, though. The bokeh is smooth. The colors are beautiful. And, of course, there’s lens character.”
Leica 35mm f1.4 Summilux-M ASPH
Tech Specs
- Diagonal angle of view: 63 °
- Working range: 0.7 m to infinity
- Biggest scale: 1: 17.4
- Number of lenses/groups: 9/5
- Length * 1: 46 mm
- Weight * 1: 320g
- Lens hood: can be screwed on
- Filter/filter thread: E46
- Made in Germany
In our review, we state:
“The Leica 35mm f1.4 Summilux ASPH is beautiful in so many ways. The contrast isn’t that high, but the colors are very saturated, so it might seem otherwise. The lens is sharp overall. Plus, there’s nice bokeh. It’s hard to find a flaw with the image quality from this lens.”
