Kristian Dowling shortly tested the 2 million dollar Leica Apo-Telyt-R 1600mm f/5.6. He writes:

Testing in-store at ‘the Classic Store’ Leica Camera, Wetzlar Germany. Liam Arning of the store was kind enough to let me take his portrait. While never created as a portrait lens in mind, I decided to see what the compression of the 1600mm focal length would do to his face when taking a portrait – watch the video and see. disclaimer: this was not meant to be a promotional video nor anything serious. Just something fun to try the lens out on the new Leica SL3. It was quite sharp at the closest focusing distance I shot at, however it’s performance was optimised for longer distance shooting, so don’t look too much into the quality – just the compression of the very simple image.

BACKGROUND ON THE LENS:

In 2006, Leica Camera AG unveiled a groundbreaking creation: the Apo-Telyt-R 1600 mm f/5.6 lens, a true marvel of engineering. This extraordinary lens, weighing in at a staggering 60 kg and boasting dimensions of 1.2 meters in length (expanding to 1.55 meters with the lens hood attached) and a barrel diameter of 42 cm, redefined the limits of telephoto capabilities.

The genesis of this colossal telephoto lens traces back to a unique request from Sheikh Saud Bin Mohammed Al-Thani, the former Minister of Culture of Qatar. His vision for an exceptionally large and heavy lens pushed the boundaries of traditional optics, resulting in a piece that stands out not only for its technical prowess but also for its sheer size and weight. While its practicality may seem daunting, its creation marks a testament to Leica’s dedication to innovation and the pursuit of excellence in optical design.

And nope, you cannot buy this lens even if you sell your organs. Leica only made three copies of this lens and is to jealous to sell them!

One more video:

Mapcamera shared the list of the most sold 20 cameras during their fiscal year 2023 (April 1 2023 to March 31 2024):

1. Nikon Z8
2. Nikon Z f
3. Sony α7C II
4. Canon EOS R6 Mark II
5. Sony α7RV
6. Sony α7IV
7. Fujifilm X-T5
8. Ricoh GR IIIx
9. Sony α6700
10. Canon EOS R8
11. OM system OM-1
12. Fujifilm X-H2
13. Fujifilm X-T30 II
14. Ricoh GR III
15. Nikon Z fc
16. Fujifilm X-S10
17. Sony ZV-E10
18. Leica Q3
19. Canon EOS R10
20. Sony ZV-E1

With six camera Sony has the most products that made it into the top 20. Followed by Fujifilm with four and Canon and Nikon with three each. Ricoh has two cameras and Leica and OM one only.

Tamron Q1 financial report has been published. The operating Income increased significantly by approximately 1.7 times YoY with Significant record-high profits for the 1st quarter.

Tamron also stated that a total of 7 lenses will be launched in 2024. Two of them have been already announced:

• 28-75mm Z-mount
• 11-20mm RF-mount

We don’t know yet what the next five lenses will be…

Launched 15 years ago the Lumix G1 was the first mirrorless camera

Dpreview had a chat with all major manufacturers and asked them about their most important products in the past 25 years.

Nikon:
Nikon Z9: Because it’s a landmark in technology, pointing to the capabilities made possible by its parallel readout sensor.

Fujifilm:
Finepix X100: That was the first camera when we stepped up from selling point-and-shoot, entry-level compact cameras. This was our first attempt to do that, using the APS-C-sized sensor. X100 was a huge success, which gave us confidence. We wouldn’t be here if we didn’t have the X100,” he says Fujifilm’s “If that failed, we would have been in a very difficult position.”

Sony:
Sony RX1: The RX1 is the beginning of our photography culture. Before that, we had launched RX100 series but still inside the world of Cyber-shot, kind of. RX1 is definitely a different world compared with our previous circumstances. That was a very memorable development period.”
Sony G Master lenses: From these G Master lenses, our technology improvement accelerated and our customers also changed. Customers rated our product highly and that’s become a very big motivation for our designers and our engineers. This generated a very positive momentum from this point onward.

Tamron:
Tamron 28-75mm F2.8 Di III RXD: That was a new concept because it was a fast lens, but we changed the focal length from 24mm to 28mm, and users accepted this concept. We knew that if we had a unique concept and we could let users know what that concept was, then people would understand. After that, we started to change, and we started developing unique lenses.”

Sigma:
Sigma 35mm F1.4 Art: If we’d failed with the launch of the 35mm F1.4, Sigma may not have survived until today. It was very fortunate that the customer received it very well and we could survive in the industry.
Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 Art: After we launched the lens, we realized that videographers and cinematographers really loved that lens. So with the introduction of this lens, we started getting interested in joining the cine lens business, so I love these two lenses.

OM System:
Olympus Camedia C-2000 Zoom: The change from film to digital left a big impression for me.

Canon:
Canon EOS Digital Rebel: It played a very important role in shifting [the market] from film to the digital DSLR,” says Go Tokura: “Since 2003, Canon has sold more than 1 million of them.

Panasonic:
Lumix DMC-G1: It was the first camera of its kind. Fifteen years ago, no professional photographer used mirrorless, but now almost all professional photographers use mirrorless.