Why so cheap? Best 135mm Leica lens?

Today we look at Leica 135mm lenses and discuss why they are so affordable.  Are these cheap Leica lenses really that bad?  Coming up I share sample images and a comparison test so you know what is the best 135mm Leica lens for you.

135mm Leica lenses – Options are

If you are looking to buy a 135mm Leica lens you have a few options. In approximate date release order, most of these lenses were designed in the 1960s –

• Leica Elmar 135mm f4.5
• Leica Hektor 135mm f4
• Leica Elmar 135mm f4
• Leica Tele-Elmar 135mm f4
• Leica Elmarit 135mm f2.8
• Leica APO-Telyt-M 135mm f3.4

Leica 135mm lenses for M mount

For clarity, most of the 135mm Leica lenses listed above were made to fit Leica M mount with the exception of the 1930s Elmar f4.5. 

Early 135mm Leica lenses were made for Leica screw mount. The Elmar f4.5 is screw mount only and the Elmar f4 and Hektor 4.5 came in both LTM and M mount. Leica screw mount lenses can be used with M mount cameras via the LTM-M adapter.

Leica also made Leica R mount lens options for 135mm.

135mm Leica R lenses

If you are here looking for Leica R lenses rather than M mount I have written a full review.  You may have seen me using the Leica Elmarit-R 135mm f2.8 lens and you can see example images and more info in this article.

Prices of Leica 135mm lenses

You are in for a treat if you visit eBay or MBP and search Leica 135mm lens.  (MBP money off code can be found on my GearList page at the bottom of the page*). Prices of many 135mm lenses for Leica are some of the lowest you’ll ever see for a Leica lens. 

It’s not difficult to  find 135mm Leica lenses priced from under £100 / $100.  How is this possible you might ask? Are they really that bad? 

Why so cheap?

So why is it that many Leica lenses cost over £1000 yet some 135mm lenses cost a 10th of the price?  Are they 10x worse?  The reason is lack of demand.  The 135mm focal lens is less popular for Leica M camera users today. 

135mm lenses on Leica M camera

Can you use 135mm lenses on a Leica M camera? Yes, for most Leica M rangefinder cameras you can both focus and compose a 135mm lens.  135mm is the longest focal length compatible with Leica M cameras and most M cameras gives frame lines from 28mm to 135mm. 

Tiny frame lines

Depending on which Leica M camera you use will impact how much you enjoy 135mm lenses.  All digital M cameras (and all film M cameras from the Leica M4-P onwards) have 28mm+90mm, 50mm+75mm and 35mm+135mm frame line pairs. This makes the 135mm frame pretty small to see in the viewfinder and therefore not the most rewarding.

Best Leica camera for 135mm lenses

The best Leica M film camera for 135mm lenses is the Leica M3. It only gives you 50mm, 90mm, and 135mm frames but the 0.91x high magnification finder makes all of those framelines appear larger so easier to both focus and compose. 

The next best option is any Leica film camera with a 0.85x viewfinder. Cameras offered with the 0.85x finder include the Leica M6 and Leica MP.

1.4x viewfinder magnifier

Another option is to add a 1.4x viewfinder magnifier to your Leica M camera and that will magnify the size of both the rangefinder patch and frame lines similar to a 0.85x finder (or the Leica M3 view). I use the Light Lens Lab viewfinder diopter and it works even better than my Leica branded magnifier as I can dial in my prescription too.

135mm finder for Leica M2

Unlike other M cameras the Leica M2 has no 135mm frame lines. You can still focus with your rangefinder patch and then obtain a 135mm external viewfinder to attach to the coldshoe (to compose your images).

An alternative hack for Leica M2 users is to buy the Leica Elmarit 135mm f2.8 lens with goggles. This converts your 90mm frame line in the M2 viewfinder into 135mm. Done.

EVF + Digital Leica

If you use a digital Leica M camera just pick up a Leica EVF. This works on all Leica M cameras with LiveView and makes 135mm lenses so much more fun to use. There are different EVF for the M240, M10 series, M11 series but they all do the same job.

Visoflex + 135mm lens

The most enjoyable way to use 135mm lenses on Leica M cameras (and screw mount cameras) is via a Visoflex. See my article on Leica Visoflex housing but in brief, it converts your camera into a SLR. You see 135mm view filling your full viewfinder and it’s so much fun to use.

Best Leica 135mm lens comparison

To understand what is the best 135mm Leica lens watch this comparison video where I compare optical performance and other factors. See the article below for more details and example images with each lens.

Leica R 135mm lens

When you search for 135mm lenses, say on eBay, be sure to look for Leica M mount lenses if that is your interest. Leica also made 135mm Leica R lenses such as the Leica Elmarit 135mm f2.8 lens shown below. Great lens and the same optics as the Elmarit-M version. I have used this lens on both Leica R film cameras and adapted to digital Leicas.

Leica R lenses on M mount

Did you know that you can adapt Leica R lenses to M mount? You need to get a Leica R-M adapter to attach the lens. (I use the Novaflex adapter brand, see my GearList page). Leica R lenses are not rangefinder coupled so they work best with a digital Leica M camera that has LiveView. I have used them on my Leica M240 in the past, and more recently I use the Leica SL.

Leica R lenses pair beautifully with the Leica SL and the grip and ergonomics make the heavier R lenses more comfortable to carry. Here are a few examples with a Leica Elmarit-R 135mm f2.8 lens on my Leica SL camera.

Girls love 135mm lenses

As I model photographer for over a decade and as a guy that wrote the book, Model Photography A-Z guide, I can tell you that girls love 135mm lenses. 135mm is a very flattering focal length for portraits so it’s a nice tool to keep in your kit bag. (Read the book for 100s of model photography tips across 50 easy to read chapters).

135mm Leica portraits 

Below are 135mm Leica portraits captured with various lenses on Leica cameras. 

Leica 135mm landscapes

The first reason I enjoy 135mm lenses is for model photography and portraiture. The second benefit is the added reach and compression from using 135mm lenses. 135mm can be perfect for landscape photos. Here are a few examples.

Close up photography with 135mm lens

Although I’m probably known as a model photographer, my thing before portraits was macro. See my YouTube macro photography tips video for ideas. 135mm can be a great focal length if you want to focus closer. Below are example photos using film and digital cameras with 135mm lenses for macro or detail shots.

Visoflex + Leica MDa + 135mm

More recently I’ve been enjoying the 135mm lenses with the Visoflex. If you watched my YouTube video in Porto you can really appreciate the enjoyment factor when looking through a 135mm lens. Sadly those images failed but I took a similar setup to Poland and here are a couple of sample photos. 

(See the film comparison video for more examples from Poland).

Nikon 135mm lenses

As a photographer that enjoys Nikon SLR cameras (in addition to Leica), check out Nikkor 135mm lenses too. Two 135mm Nikon lenses I enjoy are the Nikkor 135mm f2.8 Pre-AI and the Nikkor 135mm f2.8 E series. I use both lenses with my Nikon F film cameras and adapt them to digital Leica cameras too.

See my Girls love 135mm lenses video for example photos and footage of me using these lenses.

135mm Leica lens comparison 

If you saw my 135mm YouTube video I compare different Leica 135mm lenses to see how they performed. Each lens has pros and cons so let’s go through them.

Leica Hektor 135mm f4.5

This must be the lowest priced Leica lens, period. The Leica Hektor 135mm f4.5 can be found for under $100. I got mine for around £80 which blows my mind.

Although the Hektor is known for not being the sharpest 135mm lens, it is still impressive when used up close with a Visoflex. The lens head is small and lightweight so easy to throw in a bag for a trip. If you are looking for improved performance consider the 135mm Elmar, Tele-Elmar and Elmarit that followed.

135mm Leica Elmar f4

One of the cheapest Leica M mount lenses, the Leica 135mm Elmar f4 lens from the 1960s was from memory THE first Leica lens I ever bought. Money was tight so I was just glad to be able to own a Leica lens.

Performance from the Leica Elmar 135mm f4 is surprisingly good for the money and you can get sharp images even wide open at f4.

Leica Tele-Elmar 135mm f4

The Leica Tele-Elmar 135mm f4 lens is a more recent purchase after owning the Leica Elmar 135mm for over a decade. The main reason to get the Tele-Elmar is my Elmar lens is not compatible with the Visoflex. The beauty of the Tele-Elmar is I can use it as a standard lens or on the Visoflex (like the Hektor and Elmarit mentioned in this article).

If you read enough reviews and MTF charts you’ll see that the Leica Tele-Elmar 135mm f4 is a top performer in the Leica lens line-up. Considering this is a 1960s lens, some describe it as an early APO lens due to the high performance. The Tele-Elmar was available in a few styles and two common versions (with and without built-in hood). All versions have the same optical formula and performance. (Version II with the built in hood may not fit a Visoflex but I’ve not tried).

The 135mm Tele-Elmar weighs more than the older Elmar and Hektor lenses but I’m happy to carry it for the added performance. This will be my travel film photography long lens setup and I’ll likely use the next lens for my portraits.

135mm Leica Elmarit M f2.8

The Leica Elmarit 135mm f2.8 is my top choice as a model photographer. The lens is best on a visoflex (for me) when using Leica M film cameras, for ease of focus and composition.

If you own a Leica M3 look for the Leica Elmarit 135mm f2.8 with goggles. This converts your 90mm view to 135mm to make it easier to both focus and compose. The Elmarit is the biggest lens here but also a stop faster than most for shallow depth of field photos and low light.

You can also get the Leica Elmarit-R 135mm f2.8 which has a near identical performance to the M lens mention here. I own the R lens too, see the video linked below.

Best 135mm Leica lens 

The best 135mm Leica lens will depend on factors such as your budget, needs and preferences. Let’s get more specific. Optically, the best performing 135mm Leica lens is the Leica APO-Telyt-M 135mm f3.4. The best value-performance combo would be the Leica Telyt-Elmar 135mm f4 at the higher price end (under £300) or the Leica Elmar 135mm f4 at the cheaper end.

For close up work the very affordable Leica Hektor 135mm f4.5 is fantastic, even though optically it’s softer than the other mentioned lenses at normal distances. Lastly for portraits, the Leica Elmarit 135mm f2.8 is a real winner if you don’t mind carrying the extra weight. Pick the lens that suits your needs and look on eBay or MBP for great deals.

135mm is just too long?

If 135mm is too long for how your eyes see the world, look at 90mm lenses for Leica instead.  90mm is arguably a more useful focal length, from portraits to street photography. Check out my 90mm lens reviews next.

• Best 90mm Lenses for Leica
• Leica Summicron 90mm f2 Pre-ASPH
• Leica Macro-Elmar-M 90mm f4
• Leica Elmar 90mm f4 
• Leica Elmarit 90mm f2.8
• Leica Thambar 90mm f2.2 – YT
• Leica Summicron-APO 90mm f2 – YT
• Voigtlander APO-Skopar 90mm f2.8
• Voigtlander APO-Ultron 90mm f2 – YT

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