Leica - Zenit Collaboration

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Mike Farley
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Leica - Zenit Collaboration

Postby Mike Farley » Thu 27 Sep 2018, 08:40

One of the more unusual announcements for this year's Photokina is the collaboration between Leica and Zenit. The former is known for its high quality cameras and lenses which remain exclusive by virtue of price. The latter became famous for its cheap and cheerful film SLRs produced by the millions in the USSR to garner much needed foreign currency. For many, they were the introduction to photography. Built like tanks, a good few of the cameras are still going strong and the lenses performed well due to be being based on pre-war Zeiss designs. As just one example, the 58 mm Helios f/2 has become a cult classic which can still be bought used inexpensively simply because they are available in large quantity.

Times change. The new Zenit camera will be built by Leica in its Wetzlar factory, reportedly in limited numbers, and will cost €4000 - €5000. Actually, in Leica terms, that looks to be something of a "bargain". The camera appears to be a rebodied Leica M (Typ 240), only without the facility to add an external EVF, and will be supplied with an intriguing Russian made 35 mm f/1 lens. While the lens is currently unknown quantity, if Leica had produced it the price would undoubtedly be in excess of what is being asked for the complete Zenit kit. Leica's 50 Noctiilux, which is only slightly faster at f/0.95, currently demands a whopping £9,300 new.

More details at DPReview:

https://www.dpreview.com/news/903430384 ... th-zenit-m
Regards

Mike Farley
(Visit my website and blog - www.mikefarley.net)

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