Leica Reintroduces M6 Rangefinder

Leica is back on the scene with a new camera. Twenty years after being superseded by the M7, the M6 ​​rangefinder is back in production. It may be a worrisome timing for digital-only creators, but it is a time when photochemical films are enjoying a renaissance. As NBC News detailed in a recent report(opens in new window)millennials and Gen Z flocks bought film cameras during COVID lockdowns, driving up prices on the second-hand market.

This is great news for old camera hoarders looking to downsize their collections, but young, junk and hungry people will be left out in the cold. But at the time it was easy to find an M6 in good condition for under $1,500.Today, the price of a cheap body tops his $3,000 at second-hand gear store KEH(opens in new window).

What’s special about the M6?

It’s a little easy to throw superlatives around when it comes to consumer tech, but if there’s one camera that deserves to be called a legend, it’s the Leica M6. This camera is seen by many as the camera that saved Leica after the market failure of the M5.

Photographers who loved the M body design, which has remained consistent since the series’ introduction in 1954, didn’t embrace the redesigned M5 (first sold in 1971). The M5 reimagines camera ergonomics, nesting the shutter speed control under the film advance lever and shutter release, making it larger and heavier than its predecessor.

(Credit: Leica)

Photographers who had grown accustomed to the M3/M2/M4 body styles for years decided against the M5, even though it had real technical advantages. The M5 includes an exposure meter built into the camera itself. Previous models required you to attach a meter to the accessory shoe or use a handheld unit to measure exposure.

As a stopgap measure, Leica put the M4 back into production, followed by the M4-2 and M4-P. The 70’s were considered his decade for the M5, but it wasn’t. The M4-P was used until his early 1980s when the M6 ​​debuted with his one big modification. In-body exposure meter. It was the camera every Leica M photo coveted in 1971.

Over the years Leica has sold a ton (approximately 175,000) of M6 bodies. The original model continued to be sold well into his mid-90s, and the M6 ​​TTL (which added a meter for flash) survived until the turn of the century.

The M6 ​​certainly has a sentimental appeal. It has been a popular camera for a long time. For many Leica fans, especially those who are still actively using cameras today, this was the first camera they picked up.

I made a self-portrait in 2009 with the M6 ​​TTL. Super-Angulon 21mm f/3.4 / Fuji Superia 400 (Credit: Jim Fisher)

That applies to me too. I grew up in a house full of SLRs, Pentaxes and Hasselblads, but my dad never carried a rangefinder. I hadn’t seen the M6 ​​until I was in my twenties, but it was impressive. One day a colleague of his who knew I was studying film photography brought him into his B&H office and he held it out and begged me to look through the viewfinder. Did. “Trying to concentrate is like being really drunk,” he said. “When it’s out of focus, it looks double. He in the middle puts the two images on top of each other, and it’s in focus.” I suddenly fell in love with the rangefinder. A while later, I borrowed the same M6 to try it myself, but bought a CL that beat up as my first Leica film his cam.

new M6

(Credit: Leica)

The new M6 for 2022 is a little more refined than the older version. Its exposure meter matches that of the Leica MP, with overexposure, underexposure and proper exposure indicator LEDs, and the 0.72x viewfinder is also an updated MP viewfinder. In terms of materials, the top plate of the new M6 is finished in black lacquer, whereas zinc was used on the classic M6. In honor of the original, the red dot logo reads “Rights” instead of “Leica”.

Along with cameras, Leica is bringing vintage lenses back into production. The Summilux-M 35mm F1.4 is part of the Classics line, a reissued version of a long discontinued favorite. The original very bright wide-angle is much smaller than his recent Summilux-M 35mm ASPH., and is well known for painting pictures with a slightly softer touch and a distinctive background.

Summilux-M 35mm F1.4 on Digital M11 (Credit: Leica)

The Summilux-M is available now for $3,895. The M6 ​​will go on sale on his November 3rd for $5,295. Both products are sold exclusively by Leica and are not available through traditional photo retail channels. Instead, you have to go to a physical Leica store or boutique or buy from Leica’s online store.