Teaneck, NJ—One of the most versatile Leica M lenses was redesigned and refined to provide more flexibility for creators: the Leica Summilux-M 35 f/1.4 Asph.
“The history of Leica optical design dates back more than 150 years and speaks to innovative engineering, uncompromising precision and outstanding quality,” the company announced. “It is a story about legendary tools which rank among the best in the world. This applies especially to Leica M lenses.”
Leica Summilux-M 35 F1.4 Asph Redesigned
The redesigned lens combines subtle wide-angle characteristics with natural-looking dimensions. In addition, the versatile lens is a solution for detailed landscape shots, high-contrast pictures in difficult lighting conditions and subjects in close-up range with shallow depth of field.
Moreover, now eleven instead of nine aperture blades are used for a visibly improved bokeh. In addition, the Leica Summilux-M 35 f/1.4 Asph’s closest focusing distance was reduced from 28 to 16 inches. This extended range was made possible by the pending double-cam unit patent newly developed by Leica engineers.
As a result, the rotation angle of the focus ring is almost doubled to 176° in comparison to the previous model, for reliable, precise control over the entire focusing range. Notably, that’s with the same compact size of the lens.
When shooting up to 28 inches, this works as usual via the rangefinder on all digital and analog M cameras. What’s more, after a slight perceptible resistance, photographers can control the extended close-focus range between 28 and 16 inches via live view on-screen using the Visoflex viewfinder or the Leica FOTOS app.
Furthermore, Leica brought the lens’s industrial design up to date with almost unchanged dimensions. The new Summilux-M 35 f/1.4 Asph is 2 millimeters shorter while 2 millimeters were added to the diameter.
As with the Summilux-M 50 f/1.4 Asph, the lens hood is round, integrated into the lens for easy access.
Leica is making two color variants of the Leica Summilux-M 35 f/1.4 Asph available globally. The retail price of the black version is $5,395, and the retail price of the silver is $5,595.
