Camera rumors in 2025: what cameras are coming, officially and otherwise!

Leica rumors 2025

Last year was a busy one for the Red Dot specialist, between the launch of the Leica SL3 (the latest model in its mirrorless system), the Leica Q3 43 (a sister model to the Leica Q3) and even a "new" (well, its newest upcycle of the Panasonic LX100 II) compact camera, the Leica D-Lux 8.

And the company hit the ground running this year with the launch of the Leica SL3-S, the first new camera of 2025, along with commemorative cameras to celebrate its 100th birthday (along with 100th anniversary teddy bears and other collectibles). But what does it have in store next?

Leica M EV1

Rumors have been rife for years that Leica will introduce an M camera with an electronic viewfinder – and it looks like this will be a distinct product line, rather than an addition to the core M series lineup (much to the relief of rangefinder purists like my colleague Seb!).

It's being whispered that this will be a pure EVF, rather than an optical hybrid as found on a number of Fujifilm cameras. It's said to be a 0.5-inch affair with an enviable 5.76 million dots of resolution – which will feel absolutely luxurious to shoot with.

Internally we're looking at the same 60.3MP sensor featured in recent Leica cameras, along with 64GB of internal memory and support for Content Credentials. If the water cool is accurate, a release could come as soon as the end of October – along with…

Leica Q3 Monochrom

Word is that we're getting a Monochrom version of the Leica Q3 this month – and if it's anything like as popular as the base model, this could be one of the most popular cameras for black-and-white photography.

Mono sensor aside, this looks to be a like-for-like translation of the original Q3 – which means it will feature the 28mm lens of the OG model. It's been suggested that a Monochrom version of the Leica Q3 43 (with a 43mm lens) may arrive in 2026, if this release proves popular.

Leica M12

Could this finally be the year that the M series goes all-electronic – and gets in-body image stabilization (IBIS), to boot? Leica has previously lamented that the M bodies are too small to implement IBIS, but later noted that omitting the mechanical shutter would free up the necessary space.

There are also rumors that the M12 will be some 3mm smaller than the Leica M11, and that the screen could be almost an inch bigger – with chatter that this could be done to replace some or all of the physical buttons, as was the case with cameras like the Leica TL2.

According to FCC certification documents, the camera (or at least, a camera) was set to be announced on May 16. That obviously hasn't happened, though – and subsequently it appears that Leica has abandoned the M12 trademark. Perhaps the company is waiting to see how the EVF-equippped M EV1 (above) is received before deciding its next step for the M series…

Leica S4

After teasing us with Easter eggs and coy comments for what feels like an eternity, Leica has confirmed that a new medium format camera is on the way.

Leica chief Andreas Kauffman is shy about specifics, saying only that the camera exists and is being developed, because its development has proven difficult – perhaps due to the growing pains, moving from the DSLR technology of the Leica S3 to match the mirrorless medium format of the GFXes and Hasselblads of the world.

Cyril Thomas, CEO of Leica France, has noted that he doesn't think we will see the camera in 2025, which underlines just how challenging the product seems to be.

No more APS-C cameras

Leica's last APS-C camera was, in fact, Leica's last APS-C camera. Dr Kauffman recently stated that the company "wants to move away" from APS-C, as the company's strategy is built almost entirely around full-frame sensor technology.

In short, there will be no successor to the Leica CL or the Leica TL2 (unless you count, as Kauffman does with a twist of lemon, the Sigma BF as the modern update of the TL).

However, Leica obviously makes cameras using non-full-frame sensors – the medium format Leica S4 is in development, for starters (see above), and the long-running D-Lux line continues to see sales success with Micro Four Thirds sensors. Just don't go expecting any L-Mount APS-C bodies.

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