The L-Mount Alliance Gains a New Leica 70-200mm f/2.8 Lens
posted Thursday, September 5, 2024 at 2:56 PM EDT
The L-Mount Alliance continues to prosper, with popular third-party lenses like this Samyang zoom lens being updated for the mounting, as well as new camera units continuing to employ it in their design. And with the announcement of this Leica 70-200mm f/2.8 zoom lens, their repertoire continues to grow. Adding this high-end constant-aperture zoom lens to their arsenal is sure to delight Leica fans - those who can afford it, anyway…
Leica 70-200mm f/2.8 Lens Out Now: Price and Pre Order
The Leica Vario-Elmarit-SL 70-200mm f/2.8 ASPH. Lens is now available, in-person via Leica stores or at a range of select retailers - though it may take some time for stock to arrive in. It is currently listed with an RRP of $3,295. The following sites have pre order pages listed for the zoom lens, if you want to secure your purchase:
Leica 70-200mm f/2.8 Lens Specs
In terms of what to expect from this Leica lens, the name alone gives away half of the core features: a focal length in the ideal zoom range of 70-200mm, with a constant bright f/2.8 aperture. But those are merely bare essentials of what this lens is capable of. Built with 20 optical surfaces - inclusive 6 aspherical lenses - this unit is a fast and bright L-Mount lens, capable of exceptional visual performance. Weather-sealed with a high-quality metal build, the unit also comes with Aqua-Dura lens coatings, meaning that water more readily slides off the optics rather than sticking to it.
With built-in Optical Image Stabilization (or OIS), the Leica lens is capable of as much as 3.5 stops of image stabilization (though the press release stresses that it’s only on select camera bodies). The focus distance starts at 65cm at 70mm, and 1m at 200mm. This gives you plenty of options for shooting a wide range of subjects: portraits, wildlife, sports or wedding photographers will all be quick to jump on this lens.
They will have to pay a premium for it, however: at over $3,000, this lens is nearly $1,000 more expensive than Sony’s equivalent G Master II. Leica is known as a premium camera brand, and paired with one of their mirrorless units, this will be a deadly (but expensive combination) - but other brands may not be so amenable to such an expensive lens. Given that you can buy multiple Panasonic Lumix L-Mount cameras for the same price, this lens has a high-end niche to fill.
Regardless, we’re happy to see the L-Mount Alliance continue to expand, with a new addition to Leica’s diverse set of lenses. Though fewer photographers use Leica than brands like Canon or Sony, the company continues to maintain a steady share of the market. And with this high-quality and ultra-practical lens, we can only see more in the future.