FNG: Leitz Minolta CL (Leica CL)

‘The fucking new guy’ in my ever growing camera collection is the illigitimate son of the leica family (No, not the M5 ) THe Leica CL.

The Leica CL 35mm film camera was made as the Leica CL and the Minolta CLE and shared technology. It also introduced three CL lenses together with it, as a compact and economical alternative to the Leica M camera. It was developed as "E530 Compact" internally.

The original Leica CL film camera was introduced in 1973 as a compact and economical alternative to the Leica M. In just three years, Leica sold 65,000 of them, made by Minolta to a Wetzlar design and incorporating features such as a flash hot shoe, a vertical focal plane shutter curtain, more effortless film loading from the back, and TTL light metering (Through The Lens).

When introduced, some critics said it was too light, too small, and too flimsy; however, the lenses are superb and can still be used on any Leica film camera or modern digital Leica M. With the resurgence of film enthusiasm, the Leica CL offers a compact and relatively economical alternative. It's the ideal hipster camera.

Front and back of the 1973 Leica CL film camera.

The corporation with Minolta was one answer to how to modernize everything: A less expensive Leica as an entry point for new photographers. Leica had the lenses and mechanical expertise down to perfection, and Minolta has the electronic know-how and a more mass-production view on things. In short, Leica trained Minolta people in mechanical perfection and lens design, and Minolta contributed the electronics.

Minolta and Leica did other collaborations with the Leica R3 (1976) and Leica R4/Minolta SD-7 (1980) film cameras, that was the Leica editions of modern SLR cameras.

Overall, the corporation was not an economic salvation for Leica, Minolta learned a lot from it, and in the early 1980s, the Leitz family sold the remaining stock in Leica, and soon after, the Leica camera production was separated from the other activities at the Leitz campus in Wetzlar, Germany. Different story, which you can read about in detail in my Leica History page. And also how Leica returned as a strong brand in the 2000s.

Leica CL: A hipster camera 1973

This is how simply it could be done. Half the weight of a traditional Leica M, much smaller, and costs less. Does the same with the excellent 40mm Summicron-C lens (or any other Leica M lens).

Film loading from the back (rather than the bottom), and the second Leica camera to implement a light meter (Leica M5 was the first). And, note that the strap lugs are sitting on one side so that the camera hangs vertically on the chest.