Glass Bodies a variant-level encyclopedia of vintage lenses and cameras by iwillpat

Elmarit-M 21mm f/2.8

Leica · Leica M · 1980 · Retrofocus

Also known as: Elmarit-M 21mm f/2.8 · Elmarit 21 pre-ASPH · エルマリート 21mm F2.8

Variants & identification

Variant Mount Years Serial ranges Production
Early, no rangefinder coupling Leica M 1980–1985 — About 5,500 lenses, to serial 3363299
Later, rangefinder-coupled from 0.7 m Leica M 1985–1997 — The remainder of 13,930 lenses
Ernst Leitz Canada Leica M 1980–1990 — No separate figure published
  1. First version (1980): 49 mm filter, 0.4 m; second version (1987): 60 mm filter, 0.7 m — The Lens DB
  2. Two Leitz Photographica lots bear on the filter thread. Lot 150 of Auction 43 was a "very rare first version Elmarit 21mm for E49 filter size, with 0.4m focusing scale", no. 2993703 of 1979, which the catalogue says "never reached the market and was used for testing and evaluation" with only a few known to exist; estimated €8,000–10,000 against a €4,000 start, unsold. Lot 197 of Auction 24 was a production lens also carrying the 0.4 m scale, no. 3194794 of 1982, catalogued as "E60 filter size, lens hood 12537 with two cut outs" and sold for €1,920 including buyer's premium against a €1,200–1,500 estimate. So an E49 thread exists on a pre-production 21, and Leitz Photographica records the 0.4 m scale together with E60 and hood 12537 on a 1982 lens.
How to tell them apart (expand)
  • 92 degrees, like the Super-Angulons, but from a retrofocus design that clears the meter
  • The first 21mm for the M that works normally on a metered camera

Early, no rangefinder coupling:

  • Focuses to 0.4 m by scale, with no rangefinder coupling between 16 and 28 inches
  • E60 filter thread; hood 12537. A small 1979 pre-production batch carries E49

Later, rangefinder-coupled from 0.7 m:

  • Coupled from 0.7 m; E60 filter thread and hood 12543

Ernst Leitz Canada:

  • Canadian markings

Specifications

Formula
Retrofocus
Construction
8 elements / 6 groups
Aperture range
f/2.8–f/16
Diaphragm blades
8
Min. focus
0.7 m
Weight
290 g
Filter
49 mm
Years manufactured
1980–1997
Country
Germany

What reviewers say

History

The 21mm Elmarit is Leitz taking its widest lens back from Schneider. Twenty-two years of Super-Angulons had all been symmetrical designs with rear elements deep in the body, incompatible with metering; the Elmarit is a retrofocus, eight elements in six groups, which pushes the back of the lens forward and lets a metered M work normally. It costs light — f/2.8 rather than the effortless f/4 of a symmetrical design of the same era — and buys compatibility.

There are two quite different lenses under the one name. Up to serial 3363299, about 5,500 lenses, the focusing is not coupled to the rangefinder below 0.7 m: the barrel turns down to 0.4 m and you set the distance by scale and trust the depth of field, which at 21mm and f/2.8 is a reasonable bet. From 1985 the later version couples from 0.7 m in the ordinary way.

This entry said until recently that the filter size jumped from E39 to E60 between the two versions. It does not: both take E60, and the auction record settles it — Leitz Photographica’s catalogue describes an early 0.4m-focusing example as taking E49, a small pre-production size, while the rest of the run is E60 throughout. What actually changes at serial 3363299 is the rangefinder coupling, and the hood part number with it. The mistake is left visible here rather than quietly deleted, because a reader who bought filters on the strength of it deserves to know it was wrong.

Expand Collapse

This history is AI-written, from the sources listed at the foot of the page. Where the record is silent it says so rather than filling the gap — but no human wrote these sentences.

Example photos

Sample photo wanted — shot with a Elmarit-M 21mm f/2.8? We'd love to feature it (with credit).

Live listings

Asking price, USD: a median of $1,500 across 20 fixed-price listings on 2026-09-11 (middle half $1,400–$1,700). Tracked since 2026-09-06, 2 days: unchanged from $1,500.

By day
DateMedianMiddle halfListings
2026-09-11$1,500$1,400–$1,70020
2026-09-06$1,500$1,400–$1,70020

Asking prices from the listings scanned, not sales; junk-flagged rows and auction lots excluded; other currencies are not converted.

Show 78 more listings

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Listings updated 2026-09-11. Links go to the shop or marketplace that carries the item.

Related: Elmarit-M 21mm f/2.8 ASPH · Super-Angulon 21mm f/3.4 · Super-Angulon 21mm f/4

Sources (5)

Every page here is assembled from public sources, and the gaps are real ones. If you own this lens, know a serial number I'm missing, or can see where I have it wrong, tell me — corrections, serials and sample photos are all worth having.