Bright Spots from Wetzlar - The History of Leica Camera
It is now more than 100 years old - the Leica photography. The great Henri Cartier-Bresson, who reinvented the photo reportage during World War II, once said, the Leica camera is the visual extension of his eye. With the Leica generations of professionals and amateurs have learned to see things differently. Glad that the company boss Ernst Leitz jr. gave his green light for a serial camera production in 1924. A journey through time.
In 1914 Oskar Barnack designed the fore-Leica for the Ernst Leitz GmbH in Hessian Wetzlar. It was an unusual compact, but visually high-class device for those times. Since the company already had decades of experience in the construction of microscopes and telescopes, due to the war and the crisis the head of the company Ernst Leitz jr gave his go for the construction of the camera. "There are more reasons for than against this camera." How right he was.
Already in the 20s of the last century, the Leica camera revolutionized the world of photography. It launched the great history of photojournalism. It was small, light and you could already shoot 36 images with it in quick succession. The first "Leica Ia" had one of the fixed lens. Not long ago the lenses became replaceable via an exchange thread. The Leica thus became a system camera.
In 1954, the first time the series "M" entered the market. The "M" had a rangefinder, with which one could sharpen and compose the image at the same time. The latest model from the series "M" now comes with TTL Flash Exposure Metering (TTL = Trough the Lens) and aperture priority.
In 1965 then the first SLR camera made by Leitz Wetzlar appeared on the market. The "Leicaflex" series was replaced by the series "R" at the beginning of the 70s. The Leica R is larger and heavier than the classic system cameras. However, it provides more automatic functions, comfort and a greater range of lenses. For the Photokina in 2004 the first small picture hybrid camera was introduced. It can be operated either way analog or digital. The Leica Camera AG also produces basic web cameras, video cameras, digital cameras, binoculars, spotting scopes and slide projectors. Cameras can combine lenses and accessories from several decades through a high system compatibility. For this reason, there is probably a world's great collector scene for Leica cameras.
The latest addition from Leica is the recently released "Leica X-U". It is a waterproof compact camera, which can be taken down to a water depth of 15 meters without additional housing. A flash is attached to the lens. However, the "X-U" comes without zoom.
We are excited about what to expect the next few years in terms of technical innovations from Leica in Wetzlar. The Leica is without doubt one of the best cameras in the world.
