This camera was the Prototype Leica MP made exclusive for the Japan Market and only 250 units made out of the factory, making it extremely rare and collectible.

The MP-6 was basically the same as a regular MP, but it comes with the classic vulcanite leather found on the older Leica cameras, a Leica Camera AG Germany engraving on the top plate and on some of the later models an M6 iso selector. These simple cosmetic differences may not sounds like much, but they really make a difference and are instantly noticeable. They set the camera apart from the regular MP.

Leica MP Anthracite

February 25, 2019

This Limited Edition Leica MP was designed exclusively for the Japanese market and limited to 600 units with only 400 actually made out of Leica factory.

Its lacquering is entirely hand-applied with Anthracite, and is resistant to abrasion. Anthracite came from Greek word, literally means "a type of coal", from Anthrax. It is a hard, compact variety of mineral coal that has a high lustre. It has the highest carbon count and contains the fewest impurities of all coals, despite its lower calorific content. It is one of my favourite Leica MP Editions.

Leica MP Olive

February 25, 2019

Leica MP Olive Set which was released to commemorating the opening of the Leica Kyoto store.

Leica MP olive set combines a Leica MP analog film camera with a 35mm f1.4 Summilux-M in silver finish and a cognac color strap. The body and the top and blase plate are made with a olive-colored finish. All operating parts are finished in silver chrome. The set is limited to 100 sets worldwide. It is one of the rarest Leica film cameras.

Leica MP Classic

February 25, 2019

Leica MP Classic Limited Edition

Leica has produced a limited run of 500 units as the Leica MP Classic Set with Leica 50mm Summicron Anniversary Black Paint Edition Lens. The difference is mainly cosmetic with a Cassic Leica look, Black frame counter and a different ISO dial.

Leica MP3

February 24, 2019

LEICA MP-3 LHSA

Leica MP-3 was produced for LHSA back in 2005. The Leica MP3 retains that Classic M3 look whilst incorporating the convenience of a Leica MP body, this combination is what is making it highly desirable. Leica produced 1000 sets of the MP3 including 500 in chrome and 500 in black paint. All of the sets came in a very nice presentation box, with the camera, Leicavit winder and a Special edition 50mm Summilux APSH Lens.

The Leica MP3s are a close reproduction of the original Leica MP from the 1950s and 1960s. Only the front battery cover and the back adjusting dial for film speed indicate that the MP3 body is based upon the M6. The MP3 has the raised viewfinder window frame, extended eye bolts for attaching the strap and an external frame counter.

Leica M6 Green Paint

February 24, 2019

Leica M6 TTL Green Paint

Only 300 pieces were made comparing to the 2,000 pieces of the M6 TTL Black Paint Millennium.

Special features included:

* Green paint finish, Top and base plate are brass

* Leica Script top plate engraving

* M3 style rewind and advance lever

* Besides the usual serial number, there is also set number marked on the hot shoe "xxx-300"

Leica Camera Collectors Guide

February 24, 2019

This Collector’s Guide is a reflection of personal preferences. It contains rare and collectible limited edition Leica Cameras. The guide will be continuously updated with Leica collectibles.

Leica Cameras

Leica KE-7A

Leica M3 Olive

Leica M6J

Leica M6 LHSA

Leica M6 Millennium

Leica M6 Green Paint

Leica MP3

Leica MP6

Leica MP Olive

Leica MP Classic

Leica MP Titanium

Leica MP Anthracite

Leica MP Hammertone

Leica M3 Olive Bundeseigentum

February 24, 2019

Leica M3 Olive Bundeseigentum Camera

The Bundeseigentum cameras produced by Leica are actually some of the rarest and most sought after of all. They were made during the period from 1957 through to 1968 and only made in very small batches for the military. This is one of the early batch with the obvoius sign of what we call "Buddha Ear" strap lugs.

According to records there were around 214 pieces made, although that is only the shipping record and it is inaccurate as there may have been a couple more that were not put on file. According to the current Leica list there are only 144 of these cameras left now.

Leica KE-7A

February 24, 2019

Leica KE-7A with 50mm F2 Elcan Lens

The Leica KE-7A was manufactured in Canada for US Army in the 1970s and this M4 special model can withstand temperatures down to -20 degrees with dust sealed. Only 505 units were produced and 460 were acquired by the US military, identifiable as Army issue due to engravings and the rest were sold to the civilian market.

To make the military KE-7A, the company took their standard M4 beefed it up with weather sealing and a burlier shutter that could function in subzero temperatures, finished it in black chrome and removed the red dot from the front.

The Leica KE-7A was most often paired with the high performance resolving 50mm f/2 Elcan Lens. The 50mm Elcan f/2 lens uses infrared-absorbing glass made with lanthanum, a radioactive element that helps achieve an exceptionally high refractive index for heat control in making the optics. Also the 50mm Elcan lens was designed and manufactured to withstand a blast using special gaskets, which helped absorb the shock of an explosion.

Leica M6J

February 24, 2019

Leica M6J with Elmar 50mm f/2.8

The M6J is a rare special edition Leica M released in 1994 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Leica M series. The "J" stands for "Jubilee" and was manufactured to celebrate the 40 years passing since the M3 was first released. The M6J was a homage to the M3, the first model of the M series. The special edition was produced with total number of only 1640 units with 40 cameras for each year of the 40 years of M production.

They are a hybrid of the M3 and the M6 and new M6J was built into the camera body of the M3. It has the heft and solid feel of the M3 as mainly due to the fact that the M6J was actually built with a lot of the original M3 components. The M6J's viewfinder magnification was increased to 0.85x – bringing it very close to the 0.91x magnification of the popular viewfinder of the M3. Its illuminated framelines were borrowed from the M4, with the viewfinder being adapted to the focal lengths of 35, 50, 90 and 135 mm.

Som Berthiot Flor 50mm F1.5 Lens

January 20, 2019

Som Berthiot was one of the most famous French lens manufacturer in the 20th Century and it competed with Angenieux in making Cine lenses. In 1964, SOM Berthiot merged with OPL and became SOPELEM.

Som Berthiot made series of famous lenses named:

Flor
Angulor
Olor
Cinor

The Som Berthiot Flor 50mm F1.5 produces extraordinary colours with excellent sharpness and renders with oil painting brush style for its out of focus areas. The Lens offers Som Berthiot signature look with strong French romantic mood. It is a Legend among Cine Lenses and rarely seen or found, even more so than it’s already extremely rare little brother the Som Berthiot Flor 55mm F1.5 Lens.

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Som Berthiot 50mm F0.95 Rank Taylor Hobson Monital

January 20, 2019

Som Berthiot was one of the most famous French lens manufacturer in the 20th Century and it competed with Angenieux in making Cine lenses. In 1964, SOM Berthiot merged with OPL and became SOPELEM.

The Som Berthiot 50mm F0.95 is one of the most mysterious and anticipated cine lens. They were finished in either Chrome or Black Chrome and produced under series named Cinor, Rank Taylor Hobson and Monital. Som Berthiot named their lens “Cinor” and made the same lens for Taylor Hobson named “Sopelem Monital”

The Som Berthiot 50mm F0.95 produces extremely creamy bokeh when shooting wide open with high sharpness at the same time. The Lens is a myth and a legend, which is extremely rarely seen and fetches astonishing prices at auctions.

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Dallmeyer Speed Anastigmat 2inch 50mm F1.5 Lens

January 20, 2019

Dallmeyer is an English Lens Company made by J.H. Dallmeyer. Their cinematic lenses are famous for its out of focus rendering and oil-painting quality bokeh. Dallmeyer can be graded from Kinematogrph, Super-Six, Dallac, Speed and Septac. This is Speed, which falls between Dallmeyer most well known Super-Six and Highest graded Septac.

The Speed is in fact even rarely seen than both and it is a mix of characteristics from the Super-Six and Septac. The Lens renders with oil painting style but integrated with swirl bokeh background, which makes the rendering truly unique and one of a kind.

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Angenieux P2 100mm F2.5 Lens

January 20, 2019

The extremely rare Angenieux P2 100mm F2.5, the little brother to the ultra rare Angenieux S3 100mm F2 and even less frequently available on the market. If you don’t have the big budget of $50,000+ for the Angenieux S3, then the Angenieux P2 is a great alternative at one third of the price.

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Nikkor-O CRT 55mm F1.2

October 25, 2018

The Nikkor-O 55mm f/1.2 CRT lens was produced in the early 1970's by Nikon to take photos of oscilloscope screens. This very rare speciality lens was made for industrial use to record faint cathode-screen traces and came with a long Leica Thread mount. It can be mounted on any Nikon camera with the LF adapter and a restricted focusing range is achieved by rotating it in the adapter. Alternatively, it can be modified by a master technician and converted to Leica M mount to be used on Leica Rangefinders.

The uniqueness of Nikkor-O CRT 55mm f/1.2 lens is not because of its curvature as used in monitoring CRTs but how incredibly sharp and good it is at resolving images. Once converted to Leica M Mount, the unique character is completely presented through its motion-like bokeh provides a sense of movement for still images.

Specifications

Lens Mount: M39

Production Year: 1970s

Construction: 8 Elements / 6 Groups

Diaphragm: 13 Aperture Blades

Maximum / Minimum Aperture: F1.2 - F11

Closet Focusing Distance: ~1m

Filter Size: 52mm

Weight: 260g

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Nikkor P.C 8.5cm F2 LTM

October 24, 2018

The Nikkor-P.C 8.5cm f/2 was a significant lens introduced by Nikon. The medium telephoto lens was introduced in 1953 as Nikon’s first attempt at this focal length. The lens is based on the popular Zeiss Sonnar design and It was one of their best selling lens. The Nikkor 8.5cm f/2 was competing against likes of Leica and Canon with similar focal length offerings. The size advantage and smooth rendering makes the Nikkor stands out from the rest of the competition.

Lens Version

Chrome Barrel

Nikon S
Contax
Leica Screw Mount

Black Barrel

Nikon S
Leica Screw Mount (Rare)

Specifications

Lens Mount: Nikon S | Contax | LTM

Production Year: 1953

LTM Mount

Construction: 5 Elements / 3 Groups

Diaphragm: 10 Aperture Blades

Maximum / Minimum Aperture: F2 - F32

Closet Focusing Distance: 1m

Filter Size: 48mm

Weight: 425g

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Rollei Planar 80mm F2.8 HFT LTM

October 24, 2018

In 2002, Rollei made the commercial decision to commission an improved version of the Cosina-Voigtlander Bessa R2. This was known as the Rollei 35, which includes a reproduction of their three most successful lenses:

1) The 40mm f/2.8 Sonnar that had incorporated the original compact Rollei 35S

2) The improved 80mm f/2.8 Planar with HFT coating as used on the Rollei GX/FX Medium Format Camera

3) The 50mm f/1.8 Planar as used on the Rollei 35 series of SLRs, which never made into actual production.

The Rollei Planar 80mm f/2.8 was designed by Carl Zeiss and made in Germany by Rollei of Braunschweig. This 80mm lens is based on the design of the famous twin lens Rolleiflex 2.8GX/FX TLR, which is an amazingly sharp and high resolution performance lens.

Despite being marketed as an Leica M mount or Rollei M RM mount lens, this lens is actually a Leica screw mount lens sold with an LTM to M adaptor. Therefore, it can be mounted on earlier screw mount cameras as well. Unlike the Rollei Sonnar 40mm f/2.8 HFT, which had an option of an external 40mm viewfinder, there is no external 80mm viewfinder by Rollei for this lens.

Specifications

Lens Mount: L39 | LTM

Production Year: 2003

LTM Mount

Construction: 5 Elements / 4 Groups

Diaphragm: 10 Aperture Blades

Maximum / Minimum Aperture: F2.8 - F22

Closet Focusing Distance: 1.2m

Dimension: 55mm X 73.5mm (90mm with Hood)

Filter Size: 43mm

Weight: 475g

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Angenieux S3 75mm F1.8 Lens

October 14, 2018

Angénieux is a French optics company in Paris founded by Pierre Angenieux in 1935. It has manufactured lenses for still and movie cameras, and also for military applications.

The Angenieux Type S3 Lenses are the rarest and most expensive offered by Angénieux Paris. The Angenieux S3 75mm F1.8 is arguably more rare and better portrait performer than the Amazing Angenieux S3 100mm F2. It is the Holy Grail of Angenieux Lenses due to its insane rarity but also it’s magical rendering, thus demands astronomical prices in the current market.

What’s so magical about the Angenieux S3? It combines the best of both worlds, the sharpness and charmastic rendering from the Angenieux S5 & P1, with slight hint of the magical glow from the S21. The bokeh is very unique with a swirly character and is extremely smooth.

Specifications

Lens Mount: Leica M

Format: 35mm | 120mm (Covers Medium Format)

Focusing: Manual Focus (MF)

Diaphragm: 12 Blades

Maximum Aperture: F1.8

Minimum Aperture: F22

Closet Focusing Distance: ~0.8m

Filter Size: 49.5mm

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Futura Freiburg BR. Frilon 50mm F1.5 Lens

October 14, 2018

The Frilon Freiburg BR. Frilon 50mm F1.5 Lens was produced briefly in the Freiburg Factory Germany during the 1950s and it was the Fastest of all the Standard FL Lenses available for Futura 35mm Cameras.

The Futura 50mm F1.5 lenses have a unique M34 mount with the focussing mechanism part of the camera body rather than on the lens. There were a few examples available in Leica M39 Screw Mount and the rest could be modified to be used on Leica M Cameras.

It is a Rare Cine Lens due to its short production run and Seldomly Seen on the Market.

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