The Leica SL system is one designed to make the lives of professional photographers easy. With a powerful sensor and some extraordinary lenses, there is so much one can achieve once they get the camera. While SL3s have been launched recently, the SL lens portfolio is still building. While the company has 17 lenses so far, it appears that the number will increase with the launch of a new telephoto lens, which may offer brightness and compactness. Let’s take a peek.
Additional reporting for this article was provided by Chris Gampat
First reported by Leica Rumors, the company is working on an APO-SL 135mm for the SL System. The news of the article comes from Leica’s Senior Managing Expert on Optics, Peter Karbe, who spoke about the lens in the latest issue of The Camera from Wetzlar (TCFW), an independent publication for Leica lovers. Per the interview, when Karbe was asked about the 135mm, the expert said, “We’re already working on it.”
In the TCFW interview, Karbe also added, “Our surprise is immense and demonstrates that Leica not only listens to user requests but also knows how to anticipate the market.” While there is not much detail on what the lens is about, the report stated the 135mm lens will have either an f2.8 or an f2 aperture. This will add to the demand of users who want lightweight, high-quality lenses, and also be an alternative to Vario-Elmarit-SL 70-200mm f2.8.
If you’re reading this, you probably aren’t aware of why this lens is incredibly special. You’d probably say, “Oh well, other companies make 135mm f1.8 lenses — so why does a 135mm f2 matter at all?” And you’d be insanely not in the know.
Leica Apochromatic lenses have a special pop to them that basically makes the bokeh of an f2 look like that of an f1.4 but without the thinner depth of field. It’s a masterclass in micro-contrast. Leica is also one of the only brands that makes them. The only other brand with Apochromatic lenses current in production is Laowa with their 25mm f0.95 — which this site rated as one of the best lenses for street photography using a Fujifilm camera.
The last time the industry saw a 135mm f2 is from Zeiss back in 2013 — and Editor in Chief Chris Gampat reviewed it. To this day, he still uses the images he made in that review. Here’s a preview of what images from a 135mm f2 Apochromatic look like.
At the moment, no timeline has been revealed, but this is the first time there has been a confirmation. This lens can also be used for portraits, weddings, sports, and event photography. An f2 or f2.8 lens will also make it easy to shoot in low light while ensuring gorgeous bokeh. As we said in our review of 35mm and 50mm lenses, they are sharp, have great colors and bokeh, and focus is also great. As we said in our review of the 35mm lens, “The Leica APO Summicron 35mm f2 ASPH takes shooting with a 35mm lens to another level. You feel connected to it thanks to it being manual focus only. The images have fantastic qualities to them. Using the lens is a joy, thanks to how it feels in hand. The images it renders are so good straight from the camera that you don’t even have to edit them.”
This also means the new 135mm can improve performance while being lightweight and easy to carry around. The build quality will also be excellent. The only drawbacks will be weather sealing and cost. The latter will likely be higher due to the tariffs in the United States. This seems like an excellent idea since the company does not have a new SL lens in this range. Either way, the growing SL ecosystem is great news, and a telephoto lens can do well. Until then, stay tuned for more updates. There are certainly bound to be more of them.