Leica adds APO-Summicron-SL 75mm and 90mm f/2 ASPH lenses to full-frame SL line

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Two handsome, but pricey, wide-aperture additions for SL users arrive – and a further two are in the pipeline

Leica APO-Summicron-SL 75 mm f/2 ASPH and APO-Summicron SL 90 mm f/2 ASPH lenses

Photo specialist Leica has unwrapped a pair of prime lenses for users of its full-frame SL camera.

The APO-Summicron-SL 75 mm f/2 ASPH. and APO-Summicron SL 90 mm f/2 ASPH. lenses both "embody superior performance and the finest engineering in compact designs." 

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Designed and built in Germany, each lens has been crafted with 11 elements spread over 9 groups, and each offers a wide maximum aperture of f/2. While Leica points out that they will suit many types of photography, their focal lengths and wide aperture make them obvious candidates for portrait photography.

Leica promises that the two lenses deliver lighting-fast and silent autofocus when used with the company's SL system. This appears to be largely thanks to the adoption of stepping motor with DSD (Dual Syncro Drive) in each, which is said to move the lenses through their full focusing range in around 250 milliseconds.

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As APO (Apochromatic) lenses, both have chromatic aberration corrected "to a hardly perceptible minimum," and most of the eleven elements are said to feature anomalous partial dispersion characteristics to further help with image quality.

The announcement brings the current range of native SL optics to five, with an additional prime and two zooms already announced. Leica is, however, set to introduce two further prime lenses in the second half of 2018, namely the Summicron-SL 35 mm f/2 ASPH. and APO-Summicron-SL 50 mm f/2 ASPH.

Price and availability

Leica says that the APO-Summicron-SL 75mm f/2 ASPH. will retail for $4750/£3750, while the APO-Summicron-SL 90mm f/2 ASPH. will be sold at a slightly higher $5150/£4100. Both lenses are set to arrive in February.

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Matt Golowczynski
Matt Golowczynski

The former editor of Digital Camera World, "Matt G" has spent the bulk of his career working in or reporting on the photographic industry. For two and a half years he worked in the trade side of the business with Jessops and Wex, serving as content marketing manager for the latter. 

Switching streams he also spent five years as a journalist, where he served as technical writer and technical editor for What Digital Camera before joining DCW, taking on assignments as a freelance writer and photographer in his own right. He currently works for SmartFrame, a specialist in image-streaming technology and protection.