A recent report provided by Jon Fauer of FDTimes (source) have given us a sneak peak at Leica’s newest offering. Jon Fauer generously provides some prudent information on the upcoming set; The Summicron-C primes. Check out the original article with photos here.
My Thoughts
Not to be confused with their top shelf Summilux-C primes. I expect these new Summicron-C primes to fall right in line with the current crop of mid-range, professional primes such as Cooke Mini S4/i, Schneider Cine-Xenar III, and Zeiss Ultra Primes. The Summilux-C primes offer exquisite quality with a maximum aperture of T1.4, whereas the newer, predictably smaller and cheaper Summicron-C primes will provide a maximum aperture of T2.0. (Update below) There is no mention of price just yet but I would imagine they will be competitive with the previously mentioned sets, perhaps a bit higher due to the notorious Red Dot. I’ll be sure to stay on top of this news and release any facts as I receive them. Subscribe!
UPDATE
An unconfirmed source has provided a price of $17,000 per lens which is a $8,000 decrease, per lens, from the high-end Summilux-C primes. This price difference is approximately what I expected. The case is similar to Leica’s other series of lenses. Summilux lenses can range from approximately 20%-40% higher than their Summicron brothers. A very interesting new set of primes indeed. Ill be sure to gather more information at NAB in April, if not sooner elsewhere.
Rumor mill at the ASC Awards after party was that they would come in somewhere around $70,000. Remember, it’s just a rumor and no one is even saying how many lenses will be in the set yet.
This information is worth exactly what you are paying for it….
Great time to be alive, new cameras and lenses weekly!
Ain’t nobody got the budget for that!
I put my name down on a set. BandPro places delivery in the 6 – 9 months range. The set of 6 will go for about 95k. I’m waiting for details on image circle size, exact costs and focal lengths within the set. Matthew, you get any more details at the show? Having these little guys in hand was pretty seductive!