For the past 10 years, Leica Store San Francisco has focused on bringing to light some of the most interesting modern and vintage Leica Cameras and Optics. We would like to highlight some of our favorite products and content that we have produced around these items as we share our enthusiasm and enjoyment of these beautiful tools of time.
Leica Q Typ 116 “Leica Store SF Edition”
The very first special edition Leica that Leica Store San Francisco had the privilege of producing was the Q 116 “Leica Store SF Edition” in 2017. This Leica Q featured stunning red leather covering and a matching leather strap, resembling the Chinatown gates in downtown San Francisco. The Leica Q 116 SF Edition was also the first Leica Q to sport the classic Leica script on the top plate.
We knew the Leica Q would become an icon of Leica’s modern era, so we thought it fitting that it embody the same aesthetic as Leica’s most iconic cameras, such as the Leica M3 and Leica M9-P. This special camera was limited to only 50 units, available exclusively through Camera West and Leica Store San Francisco.
Leica M Monochrom (Typ 246) “Your Mark” Edition
In 2019, just two years after the success with the “Leica Store San Francisco” Edition Leica Q, we had the opportunity to partner up with Leica Camera once again, but this time, to create a special edition M. In the spirit of the long lineage and heritage of black paint Leica cameras, Leica M246 “Your Mark” Monochrom Set was designed in collaboration with Leica Store San Francisco and Horween Leather Company to pay homage to its predecessors.
The Leica M Monochrom (Typ 246) “Your Mark” Edition, complete with matching Leica Summicron-M 35 mm f/2 ASPH lens was limited to just 80 sets available exclusively to USA Leica Stores. The Leica M Monochrom (Typ 246) “Your Mark” Edition and matching lens have a glossy black paint finish over the top plate, bottom plate and lens – all crafted from brass. The vintage-inspired vented round lens hood is also made of brass and coated in the black paint finish, matching the lens and perfectly complementing the red and white enamel paint filled in on the lens engravings. The Leica script logo engraving atop the camera, unique from the standard Monochrom (Typ 246), is filled in by hand with white enamel.
The covering of the camera is a very special naturally-tanned black leather made for this edition by Horween, and the set is completed by a matching carrying strap in the same black leather. Horween Leather Company is one of the oldest continuously running tanneries in the USA, founded in Chicago in 1905 and currently still based there to this day. Their products are world-renowned for their top-level quality that is still crafted by hand in America. They have supplied leather for products ranging from luxury watch bands, belts, wallets and handbags to professional sporting goods such as basketball leather for the National Basketball Association, and as the exclusive supplier of football leather for the National Football League.
Both the black paint finish of the camera and lens as well as the Horween leather covering aged beautifully over time and usage to show the photographer’s wear as a lovely patina, allowing its user to truly leave their own signature mark on their camera and making each set a one of a kind. This special combination paid homage to so many legendary Leica cameras before it in the way the exposed brass shined through more and more over a lifetime.
The Leica M 246 “Your Mark” special edition remains a favorite among customers and friends of the Leica Store San Francisco. Renowned Leica photographers, including Mark De Paula, continue to use it as a daily companion throughout their travels. The “Your Mark” embodies an important ideology of purchasing and using well-made, long-lasting, and enjoyable photographic tools. These tools age beautifully and become a part of a photographer, enabling them to tell unique stories from their journeys.
We’re always thrilled to see these cameras come through our store, hear the stories, and, of course, see the photos made possible by these unique tools.
Thumbprints & Signatures and Product Highlights
It was crucial for us to engage with our online community by sharing tidbits about Leica’s history and highlighting unique lenses and cameras with the Thumbprints & Signatures series on Instagram. These posts proved to be great resources and references for both customers and online followers! This wealth of knowledge would soon be the catalyst and driving force for the Thumbprints & Signatures Series on Camera West TV. We did deep dives into legendary optics, such as the 50mm Noctilux, where we expanded and explored other Mandler-era optics and how that led to the Karbe era of optical design.
We also touched on the uncommon but highly regarded 40mm f2 Summicron-C and its importance and influence on the compact Leica cameras that would follow such as the rare Leica CM.
Building on the Thumbprints & Signatures series, we have also had the privilege to showcase a range of vintage Leica Cameras and optics as well as get a first look at Leica’s latest generation of cameras and optics!
Camera West TV has grown so much over the years. From exploring the streets of San Francisco with a Leica IIIf all the way to visiting Leica HQ in Wetzlar Germany to test the Leica SL3, we continue to be a useful resource for both our in-store and online customers. If you haven’t already, please make sure to like our videos, subscribe to Camera West TV, and leave us a comment on what you’d like use to cover next!
Highlighting Leica Photographers
Being intune with the SF Bay Area photo community is extremely important to us as without community we would not be where we are today. Sharing their individual stories and the work they make with their Leica Cameras further enriches the community. We have had the pleasure of highlighting talented Leica photographers from or who have ties to the SF Bay Area photo community.
LSSF Feature and Few Frames
While videos are a larger undertaking, we have done our best to highlight our community in other ways such as resharing and engaging with their work on social media as well as spot lighting their work through our Few Frames Series on the Tools of Time Blog.
In reflection, it is amazing what we have accomplished over the past 10 years. It is for these reasons we, the LSSF team, extend a heartfelt thank you each and everyone that has engaged with us in-store, online, watched our videos, or read our blog. As we continue to grow with you, the photographic community, we look onward in our continuing efforts to share the latest in Leica Cameras, Optics, and historical tidbits.
Follow along If you don’t already!
Instagram: @leicastoresf • Youtube: Camera West TV • and here on the Tools of Time Blog