Bonhams is offering a rare chance to own a piece of photography history as Avedon's Leica is auctioned
(Image credit: Bonhams)
The Leica M6 is cemented as one of the greatest cameras in history and was used by some of the most notable photographers of all time. The 35mm analog camera was incredibly popular in documentary, photojournalism, and what is now considered street photography, and was a particular favorite of one of its founding fathers, Henri Cartier-Breeson.
Bonhams, an auction house in London, has an exceptional piece of photography history going up for auction. Not only is it one of the best Leica cameras of all time, it belonged to a legend of the medium - Richard Avedon.
(Image credit: Bonhams)
This one-of-a-kind camera is an apple green Leica M6 that was specially commissioned by Sheikh Saud bin Mohammed Al-Thani and gifted to Richard Avedon in 2001. Renowned as a huge photography enthusiast, Al-Thani commissioned six M6 cameras from Leica and gifted them to Irving Penn, Helmut Newton, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Khalifa Al-Obaidly, Richard Avedon, and Sebastião Salgado – 6 of the most eminent photographers of the time.
Avedon's apple green leather-bodied camera was number 4 of 6 and was presented to him while working in his New York studio in 2001. The camera is inscribed 'As a gift to Richard Avedon', and features the signature of Al-Thani. The M6 also comes with a Summilux-M f/1.4 50mm lens, a classic combination.
It is stated that Avedon never in fact used this camera for taking photographs. A lot of Avedon's work was created with either large or medium format cameras, such as an 8x10 or a Rolleiflex, and with the uniqueness of the piece, this camera was likely kept as a keepsake and most likely has never been exposed to a roll of film (or exposed one!)
Avedon's Leica M6 with lens is lot number 65 in an upcoming auction at Bonhams on April 24, 2024, and the estimated cost of taking home a piece of photographic history is between £30,000 - £50,000 / $37,000 – $62,000.
Kalum Carter is a photographer, photo editor and writer based in the UK, and for almost a decade he has worked with brands and publications to create, edit, and sequence imagery. Having recently graduated with a Master's Degree in Photography from the University of the West of England (UWE), Kalum joined Digital Camera World as a Staff Writer, covering news, reviews, and his biggest passion – photography books!
Kalum's photography has been published and exhibited around the world, and he continues to photograph on a project-by-project basis. He is currently working on a personal project capturing the people and landscape of Gower, South Wales. Currently untitled, this body of work will be exhibited for the National Trust later this year.
