Leica

company

Leica Camera AG is a company which produces cameras, lenses and binoculars. Their headquarters are in Wetzlar, Germany.

history:

• 1849: the mathematician Carl Kellner founds a company in Wetzlar which produces microscopes
• 1855: after Kellner's death his widow leads the company
• 1865: the precision mechanic Ernst Leitz becomes partner
• 1869: Ernst Leitz becomes chief of the company
• 1887: the company produces its 10.000th microscope
• 1920: after Ernst Leitz's death Ernst Leitz II becomes chief
• 1924: the company has 1000 employees. Leitz decides to produce the viewfinder camera for 35mm film which Oskar Barnack had constructed
• 1925: The new product, the Leica, is launched at the spring fair (Früjahrsmesse) in Leipzig
• 1938: foundation of the Leica school, the later Leica Akademie
• 1945: After WWII used old Leicas are among the top products traded on Germany's postwar black market
• 1956: after Ernst Leitz II's death his sons Ernst Leitz III, Ludwig Leitz and Günther Leitz lead the company
• 1986: the camera making activities of the Leitz compay are bundled in the Leica GmbH
• 1988: the new factory in Solms opens
• 1996: Leica buys Minox. The Leica GmbH becomes the stock market company Leica Camera AG
• 2005: Leica Camera AG has lost market shares and starts a rescue plan for economical survival

Rangefinders

Screwmount

• Leica 0, preseries ("null serie")
• Leica A (fixed lens)
• Leica B (only model w/ leaf shutter)
• Leica C non-standardized (requires lens shims)
• Leica C standardized = Leica I
• Leica D = Leica II (first type w/ built-in rangefinder)
• Leica E = Leica Standard = Leica I (improved standardized C)
• Leica F = Leica III (like II but with slow speeds on frontal dial)
• Leica G = Leica IIIa (adds 1/1000 speed)
• Leica IIIb (rfdr. and viewer windows close together)
• Leica IIIc (die cast body, slightly longer)
• Leica IIc (die cast body like IIIc, otherwise similar to Leica II)
• Leica IIIf (postwar improvements, and some have self-timer lever)
• Leica IIf (no slow speed dial, but other improvements like IIIf)
• Leica If (has two accessory shoes, die cast body similar to IIf but without rangefinder)
• Leica IIIg (change in body configuration to facilitate manufacture)
• Leica 250 Reporter (has huge film magazines)
• Leica half-frame (version of IIIc, and was built in Canada)
• Single Exposure Leica

Note: Capital letter model designations were used in Europe; Roman numerals were at first used in USA, and became universal after the Model G (IIIa). There is often confusion between the sub-letters in lower case used on the Roman numeral designations, and the capital letters used in the earlier screwmount models; they do NOT equate! Apparently there were no Models Ie, IIe, or IIIe. Also the III is not the same as the IIIa. There are many minor variations that did not rate a change in designation.

M-mount

• Leica CL / Leitz Minolta CL
• Leica M2
• Leica M3
• Leica M4
• Leica M4-2
• Leica M4-P
• Leica M5
• Leica M6
• Leica M6J
• Leica M6 TTL
• Leica M7
• Leica MP

Fixed Lens

• Leica Minilux
• Leica Minilux Zoom
• Leica CM
• Leica CM Zoom
• Leica C11 (APS)
• Leica C1
• Leica C2
• Leica C3
• Leica ZX2

SLR

• Leicaflex (1964-1968)
• Leicaflex SL and SL Mot (1968-1974)
• Leicaflex SL2 and SL2 Mot (1974-1976)
• Leica R3 and R3 Mot (1976-1979)
• Leica R4
• Leica R4s
• Leica R4s2
• Leica R5
• Leica R-E
• Leica R6
• Leica R6.2
• Leica R7
• Leica R8
• Leica R9

Digital

• Leica Digilux 2
• Leica Digilux 1
• Leica D-Lux
• Leica C-Lux 1

Links

• Leica Camera AG
• Leica page at Wikipedia, with a comprehensive company history.
• Leica FAQ by Andrew Nemeth
• Photo.net Leica Photography Forum
• The inofficial Leica User Forums! - English, German and French
• The inofficial Leica Website and Forum summilux.net - French