The Leica L Mount is the second oldest full-frame mirrorless autofocus camera mount on the market. It’s the home to a bunch of beautiful, unique lenses that are also quite durable. And if you like shooting video on the side, you’ll find something here you like. What’s more, if you like photography and want character from your lenses, you’ll love these! Here’s our round-up of the best L mount lenses. Always remember: we’ve tested all of these!
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Table of Contents
Pro Tips on Using and Buying the Best L Mount Lenses
Here are some tips on using this buying guide to the best L Mount lenses:
- All the photos and recommendations in this buying guide are made by our staff. We’ve not only shot the photos, but we’ve also thoroughly tested these lenses. You can find the results in our reviews, hyperlinked in each section.
- Leica L mount is managed by three partners: Leica, Panasonic, and Sigma. Other brands make lenses for the mount, but they’re not recognized as official partners.
- Lenses for Leica L mount tend to be heavy. So we’re focusing on prime lenses because they’re lighter. (And quite honestly, the best L Mount lenses really are their prime lenses.)
- We’re including both Panasonic and Leica lenses in this roundup for a multitude of reasons. Generally, we don’t feel Sigma has it all together yet.
- The best L mount lenses aren’t totally clinical! There’s a bit of character here that you’ll really like!
Panasonic 85mm f1.8 Lumix S
Pros
- Lightweight
- Fast-focusing
- Weather sealing
- Incredibly affordable
- Sharp
Cons
- Very clinical image quality
How’s the Image Quality?
In our review, we state:
“In terms of image quality, the Panasonic 85mm f1.8 is fantastic. It’s a very affordable lens with good image quality. It’s very sharp and the bokeh is nice. While the colors will depend on the camera you’re using, the lens lacks character. Overall though, it’s the best of many worlds.”
Who Should Buy This Lens?
Portrait photographers and photojournalists who want a lightweight lens should grab this as soon as they can. You can pick this lens up from Amazon.
Leica 28mm f2 Summicron-SL
Pros
- The fastest autofocusing Leica lens we’ve used to date
- Great colors
- Keeps distortion down
- Beautiful bokeh
- Does a nice job with portraiture
Cons
- I’m still not sure I’d use it for street photography.
- For a 28mm f2 lens, this is pretty large, but we can understand that considering the elements inside the lens.
- It’s about time Leica starts working with a third-party flash company to take full advantage of what this lens can offer.
How’s the Image Quality?
In our review, we state:
“What’s to hate about the Leica 28mm f2 Summicron SL’s image quality? Honestly, nothing. Leica’s colors are always outstanding. The bokeh from this lens is beautiful, and it also has a bit of character. On top of that, it’s an incredibly sharp lens.”
Who Should Buy This Lens?
If you’re using a camera that focuses faster, then try this lens. You’ll like it (and we ended up buying it). You can pick this lens up from Amazon.
Panasonic 50mm f1.8 Lumix S
Pros
- Beautiful image quality
- Fast focus to get the first target
- Weather sealing
- Small size
- Lightweight
- Incredibly affordable for what it is
Cons
- I wish it were metal.
- Not so fantastic and reliable autofocus tracking, but good for one shot. When it hits, it nails it.
How’s the Image Quality?
In our review, we state:
“The Panasonic 50mm f1.8 S excels in pretty much every category of our testing. It can offer nice bokeh, beautiful color, and sharpness. It doesn’t have character per se, but it also doesn’t exhibit anything folks these days would consider to be flaws. Again, we used the Panasonic 50mm f1.8 S with the Leica SL2s in vivid mode.”
Who Should Buy This Lens?
If there were any bargain buy for the Leica L mount, this would be it. You can pick this lens up from Amazon.
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 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.