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

Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 (v3, built-in hood)

Leica · Leica M + LTM · 1992 · Seven elements in five groups

Also known as: Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 v3 · Summilux 50 pre-asph E46 · Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 (third version) · Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 (third version) · Summilux 50 v3 · Summilux 50mm v3

Variants & identification

Variant Mount Years Serial ranges Production
Black anodised (11868) Leica M 1992–2005 — Part of 18,132+ lenses
Silver (11855 / 11856) Leica M 1992–2005 — No separate figure published
Titanium (11869) Leica M 1992–2005 — No figure published
Screw mount, limited edition (11621) LTM 1992–2005 — No figure published
Scalloped focusing knurl (SFK) Leica M 1992–2005 — No figure published
  1. Weights, which the entry otherwise lacks: Ken Rockwell gives 275 g for the black anodised aluminium version and 380 g for the heaviest chromed brass one — 105 g apart on identical optics. He lists the third version as 11 868 in black and 11 856 in silver, and dates it 1992–2004.
  2. "All LEICA SUMMILUX 50mm f/1.4 lenses made from 1961 through 2004 have identical optics and coatings" (Rockwell) — a second source for the entry's claim that the third version changes the barrel and not the glass. He counts three cosmetic versions of that one optical design, and separates them from the 1959–1961 lens of serial 1 844 000 and below, which uses an earlier and different computation.
  3. Buyers number the 50mm f/1.4 Summiluxes v1 to v4: v1 of 1959, the Summarit-derived design; v2 of 1961, the classic, and v3 of 1992, the same glass in a barrel with a built-in hood; v4 the ASPH of 2004. This entry uses that numbering; the other pages carry the rest.
How to tell them apart (expand)
  • A telescoping hood built into the barrel — no separate hood to lose
  • Focuses to 0.7 m, where the second version stops at 1 m
  • E46 filters, changed from the E43 the first two versions used

Black anodised (11868):

  • Black anodised aluminium, sold as black chrome

Silver (11855 / 11856):

  • Silver lacquered brass

Screw mount, limited edition (11621):

  • 39mm thread, in silver

Scalloped focusing knurl (SFK):

  • A scalloped focusing ring

Specifications

Formula
Seven elements in five groups
Construction
7 elements / 5 groups
Aperture range
f/1.4–f/16
Diaphragm blades
12
Min. focus
0.7 m
Dimensions
47.7 × 54.5 mm
Filter
46 mm
Years manufactured
1992–2005
Country
Germany
Material
Black anodised aluminium, or black, silver or titanium lacquered brass

What reviewers say

History

The third Summilux 50 keeps the optics and fixes the handling. Same seven elements in five groups as the version that ran through the 1960s, 70s and 80s — but it focuses to 0.7 m instead of a metre, which changes what the lens is for at portrait distances, and it carries a telescoping hood built into the barrel so there is nothing separate to lose. The filter size moves from E43 to E46, which is shared with a good deal else in the modern catalogue.

18,132 or more were made in thirteen years. It sits in an awkward spot in the market: not the celebrated pre-aspherical lens that the second version has become, not the aspherical one that replaced it in 2004, and cheaper than either. For a photographer rather than a collector that is the argument for it.

Leica also made it in screw mount as a limited edition, order number 11621, in silver — the same gesture as the aspherical Summicron 35. Two modern lenses, computed in the 1990s, built for a mount whose last camera left the factory in 1960.

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 taken with the Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 (v3, built-in hood)
A pre-ASPH Summilux 50mm f/1.4 in black, version not stated (Daft racer) — Daft racer, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Sample photo taken with the Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 (v3, built-in hood)
Pre-ASPH Summilux 50mm f/1.4, chrome (Daft racer) — Daft racer, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)

Sample photo wanted — shot with a Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 (v3, built-in hood)? We'd love to feature it (with credit).

Live listings

Asking price, USD: a median of $2,200 across 27 fixed-price listings on 2026-09-11 (middle half $1,900–$2,800). Tracked since 2026-09-06, 2 days: unchanged from $2,200.

By day
DateMedianMiddle halfListings
2026-09-11$2,200$1,900–$2,80027
2026-09-06$2,200$1,900–$2,80025

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

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

Related: Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 ASPH (v4) · Summilux 50mm f/1.4 (v1, 1959) · Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 (v2, 1961)

Sources (2)

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.