Leica is celebrating the 70th anniversary of the M rangefinder camera, but the most precious gift he is giving for the occasion is only for 250 rich people and costs $22,995. How ridiculously expensive Leica M Edition 70 Set includes a platinum-plated Leica MA 35mm film camera with Leicavit rapid winder, a matching APO-Summicron-M f/2 50mm lens, and a metal film container with a roll of black and white film .
Yes, the film container is also platinum, and yes, that is completely ridiculous.
This anniversary edition commemorates the launch of the Leica M3 in 1954 as the first M camera. Leica does its best to honor the M3 and the brand's legacy whenever it can. In 2014, the Leica M Edition 60 did the same to celebrate the M3's 60th birthday, but that model was a little more daring (and polarizing), being the first M digital to remove the rear LCD screen for a quasi-movie. as experience. That “feature” became more available in standard editions such as the MD (Typ 262), the M10-D and, more recently, the M11-D.
The new M Edition 70 looks much safer, with its smaller production run and a repeat of the Leica MA film camera that's been around since 2014. The real devil in the details here is the Leicavit, an old accessory from the heyday of film rangefinders that's been extinct for years. It's basically an alternative bottom plate for the camera, housing a hidden lever that can be used to advance the film after a left-handed shot.
I've never personally used one, but the premise was that it's quicker and a little more discreet than moving your right hand from the shutter to operate the normal advance lever with your thumb. I'm sure there's a reason this wasn't a widely adopted accessory, but Leica fans enjoy this nerdy stuff. (I'm obviously speaking/confessing from experience here).
So maybe the M Edition 70 is really a test to bring back the Leicavit as a standard accessory, like the M60 was a testbed for screenless digital cameras or like the old M9 Titanium I experimented with LED illuminated frame lines. But one thing is for sure: the M Edition 70 is charming and completely ridiculous. It's another chance for Leica to cash in on its rich whales to rake in nearly six million dollars in revenue to fund whatever its next quirky idea is, but boy, it's hard not to enjoy looking at pretty pictures of it.
