Leica Camera's digital electronic viewfinder (EVF)-equipped Leica M EV1, the newest member of the M family announced October 23, 2025, combines the benefits of an EVF with the traditional values of the M-System, making it easier to enter the world of M photography" (Leica Press Release) was released with a 5.76M internal EVF.

Today, Leica announced an interesting variant based on the successful Leica M11 platform introduced on January 13, 2022, equipped with an EVF that offers significant ease of use. Images straight out of the camera are lovely and just what you would expect from a camera of this caliber. This is an extremely easy way to get into the Leica M experience without the rangefinder learning curve.

(Editor’s note: since I received a pre-production camera images shot with Leica M EV1 shown herein may not fully represent final image quality.)

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Wetzlar, DE, and Montréal, CA, October 23, 2025: LSI Viewfinder editor, Bill Rosauer, and associate editor, Amitava “Chats” Chatterjee, sat with Stefan Daniel, Vice President, Photo & Design, Leica Camera AG, to get his perspective on the recently launched Leica M EV1. Read on to learn Stefan’s thoughts on how this camera came about, why Leica decided to build it, and more. LSI members who attended its Montréal conference also received a special preview of the newly announced Leica M EV1.

When we were in Wetzlar in late June 2025 to celebrate the Centennial celebrations of the Leica I, Stefan gave Bill a loaner M EV1 which he graciously passed on to Chats for the duration of our stay. Subsequently, Bill and Chats spent a good amount of time with “Elsie.” Stefan Daniel mit "Elsie" in Wetzlar, June 24, 2025 mit Leica M10 Monochrom und Leica Noctilux-M 1:0.95/50mm ASPH.

*Stefan Daniel mit "Elsie" in Wetzlar, June 24, 2025 mit Leica M10 Monochrom und Leica Noctilux-M 1:0.95/50mm ASPH.*

This article came about as an idea from Chats who wanted to do a unique writeup of the Leica M EV1 because it is “different” from the traditional opto-mechanical rangefinder M cameras. It is important to note that Leica remains passionately committed to the seventy-year-old rangefinder and is not doing away with it. Rather, Leica Camera is giving its patrons another choice. In Stefan’s words, and we quote verbatim, “This is NOT the nd of the road for the Leica rangefinder”... and that is a beautiful thing. On to the interview!

Question 1: When you first heard of the idea to replace the opto-mechanical rangefinder what went through your mind?

Answer: Abandoning the rangefinder for an EVF was never in question, but the Leica M11 was conceptualized so that a version with EVF would be feasible some day.

A couple of years later, at the LSI meeting in Dublin, Ireland, I was grilled by many attendees, all asking for an EVF-equipped camera based on an M camera body, capable of utilizing M lenses. I came back to Wetzlar and relaunched the initiative to bring this to life, and our decision-making was further aided by LUF and LSI through surveys and inputs.

However, the Leica M11 architecture had been laid out to accommodate an EVF at some point, but it wasn’t followed up.. This allowed us to have a ready launch platform if the concept proved viable. The Leica M EV1 is exotic – such cameras typically offer autofocus, but Elsie would continue to rely on manually-focused Leica M lenses, which is a clear differentiating factor for Leica.

Question 2: Did you think about a hybrid viewfinder as an option?

Answer: We certainly did. A hybrid viewfinder was a pre-development concept, but it very quickly became clear that it would not be a good user experience owing to the low magnification and low field of view. It was a solution based on compromise. Remember, in addition to the optical and electronic view there is the third light pathway for rangefinding – we just could not make it work effectively so we gave it up. People often tend to think of another company that offers hybrid viewfinders, but it is important to bear in mind that their cameras possess optical viewfinders and NOT rangefinders with their opto-mechanical complexity. It just did not make sense, and we will not touch that again.

Leica M EV1 with the 5.76M dot EVF. Image Courtesy Leica Camera AG.

*Leica M EV1 with the 5.76M dot EVF Closeup. Image Courtesy Leica Camera AG.*

Question 3: So, the driving force was…?

Answer: As I said, the Dublin LSI meeting really catalyzed us into action, owing to the discussions while I was on stage with folks grilling me to build this for them. This sentiment forced a rethink of our initial decision to shelve the idea. In some respects, the Dublin LSI meeting feedback was the catalyst that “re-sparked” the idea. Based on surveys coordinated and conducted by LUF and LSI, we decided to develop this. (Editor’s note: Leica listens to its customers, and LSI has played a role in helping bring the Leica M EV1 to life – all of our members should be proud).

Question 4: An M-like camera without a rangefinder is a polarizing concept, is it not?

Answer: To be honest, this camera is a polarizing concept outside and inside Leica (at least initially). Let’s be realistic – the Leica M EV1 is another tool, perhaps not primary and maybe secondary. We are aiming for people who have difficulty focusing correctly with a traditional M body because of issues with their eyesight, or those who have difficulty with wide-angle lenses or wide-open lenses. Also, this camera is a great solution for people who want the M experience but are not as confident with manual focusing using an opto-mechanical rangefinder mechanism.

Here is an analogy – getting to Mount Everest requires effort – training, acclimating to high altitudes, breathing bottled air, and more. Our new EVFequipped Leica M EV1 is an “assistant” that will help a user get to base camp. It will allow her or him to be a member of the Leica M owners’ group without learning to be a rangefinder user. Another target user group is our Leica SL users who would like a second body and the Leica M experience.

An interesting observation for us is that the most popular lenses in our portfolio are 28mm, 35mm and 50mm. Leica M EV1 will allow users to boldlytake advantage of a variety of lenses of varying focal lengths, and they can be assured that those lenses will operate effectively with this new camera, thereby giving them the confidence to step outside their comfort zone. Our new Leica M EV1 becomes a new tool in the toolbox.

Question 5: What challenges did you encounter while developing the Leica M EV1?

Answer: Since we had already thought about this in the design and build of the Leica M11 platform architecture, it was not that difficult, however, we did grapple with the choice of EVF. Initially we considered the Visoflex 2 as the basis for the EVF, but we ultimately decided on the same tech used in the Leica Q3. This however caused another challenge because an M is thinner than a Q. Solving this became a mechanical challenge, but we found an elegant solution, despite having much less thickness to play with in a Leica M body.

Question 6: Now that the Leica M EV1 is out, will you continue providing your customers with a choice of options as new models come to market?

Answer: Let me be clear – if it succeeds in the market and our customers ask for it, we will provide options. However, I reiterate: the Leica M EV1 or any possible successor is NOT a substitute of the rangefinder. Leica is currently working on new evolutions of the opto-mechanical rangefinder. We are merely listening to our valued customers and responding, but we will never give up on seventy years of storied Leica M history. Stefan Daniel mit "Elsie" in Wetzlar, June 24, 2025 mit Leica M10 Monochrom und Leica Noctilux-M 1:0.95/50mm ASPH. (Editor’s note: This is the new Leica that listens to its customers while making decisions based on financial logic. So glad to see this transformation.)

Before we end, we want to share that Stefan detailed some of the Leica M EV1 specifications including the fact that it is based on the M11 platform with 64GB of internal storage. Despite this, it offers Leica Content Credentials, which will give users the best of both worlds.

Our take: Leica M EV1 brings a slew of benefits to the global Leica community customers who start using one:

Effortless use with long and wide lenses - the EVF will render an image as the sensor sees it. This was not possible using a rangefinder alone - you had to use Live View or the External EVF.
Precision focusing with ease - Leica M EV1 very smartly utilizes the frame selector lever to toggle magnification and focus peaking and allows for precision in those situations where critical focus accuracy is super-important.
Effortless focusing in dim environments - the EVF does a great job attenuating or maximizing available light in dim situations, allowing a user to focus.

*BIG GUN on a Leica M EV1. Image Courtesy Bill Rosier.*

*Hat mit BIG GUN und Leica M EV1. Image Courtesy Bill Rosauer.*

*Hat Crop mit BIG GUN und Leica M EV1 - Precision Focusing with Ease. Image Courtesy Bill Rosauer.*

*Superb in dim environments mit Leica M EV1 und Leica APO-Summicron-M 1:2/50mm.*

*Superb in dim environments CROP mit Leica M EV1 und Leica APO-Summicron-M 1:2/50mm.*

There are other benefits such as Leica Content Credentials based on the Content Authenticity Initiative, less weight and a lower price point compared to Leica M11 and its variants, but for Chats personally, it helps users with bad eyesight. For photographers apprehensive about rangefinder focusing,

Leica M EV1 provides an M experience without the labor (and missed focus on initial images). We are grateful to Stefan for his openness and willingness to talk to us about this exciting camera. Thank you so much!

One more thing…

Before I forget, please check out Jonathan Slack's superb review of the Leica M EV1. Jono is a personal friend, and he, along with Dr. Andreas Kaufmann, Nathan Kellum-Pathe, Bill Rosauer, Craig Semetko, Hari Subramanyam, Milan Swolfs, Evris Papanikolas, Luigi Vaccaro, Paulo Silveira, Marke Gilbert, John Pegouske, Sean Cranor, Mike Giannattassio and countless others are why I feel blessed to be in our global Leica Camera Family.

I was thrilled to meet many of you at the Leica 100 Year Celebrations in Wetzlar this past June, and look forward to chatting with others at the LSI Montréal meeting this week.

mit freundlichen grü.en,

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Chats aka Chatsphotog // Bill aka der LeicaMan

chatsphotog@chatterjees.com

Amitava “Chats” Chatterjee ("Chatsphotog") is very active in the global Leica community. A Leica Society International board member (come join us!), He is published in The Viewfinder and its Associate Editor/proofreader-at-large. He frequents various Facebook Leica Photography groups and believes he is the founder of the IG hashtag #ChasingLeitz. You can find him at www.chatsphotog.com, Facebook (@Chatsphotogpilot), Instagram

(@Chatsphotog) or Medium (@Chatsphotog). You can also buy him a coffee! Bill Rosauer is past president of Leica Society International, Chief Editor of The Viewfinder, and dear friend who runs fantastic tours to Wetzlar - reach out to him!

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