Opticallimits

Thambar 90mm f2.2. 4 elements in 3 groups. $6500.

https://us.leica-camera.com/Photography/...M-90-f-2.2

Wait a minute, is it April fools' day already?

I just cannot fathom how a lens featuring such horrendous IQ could possibly sell for more than say, what? 10 bucks?

Never mind the utterly ridiculous price tag. Truly pathetic.

One has to wonder what the marketing department is currently smoking at Leica...

That would be quite an accomplishment if they even manage to sell more than half a dozen of these worldwide ;-)

Quote:Wait a minute, is it April fools' day already?

I just cannot fathom how a lens featuring such horrendous IQ could possibly sell for more than say, what? 10 bucks?

Never mind the utterly ridiculous price tag. Truly pathetic.

One has to wonder what the marketing department is currently smoking at Leica...

That would be quite an accomplishment if they even manage to sell more than half a dozen of these worldwide ;-)

Totally agree with you, but you will find  collectors who would buy the lens just for the name, at such a price selling half a dozen will already cover the costs, if similar projects didn't succeed they wouldn't do it, go check the yashica new project, from what I read it's among the worst on the market, inferior to phones and you have to change the "digital film" to change settings like ISO without mentioning other limitations, yet many are buying

      As Leica's days of film are basically over (yes, they still make and sell a few all mechanical cameras) but those collecting range-finder cameras are confined mostly to S/H older and rarer models......selling for mega bucks ...

 

      ............Sotherby's do well but not a penny seen by Leica !   

 

  Now, nobody, (in their right mind) will be collecting Leica M8/M9 digitals etc........ Why?...... Because........

 

    .....when it dies before your eyes, and Leica cries "no bits guys....    dry your eyes, say your bye byes" !

 

   ...voilà, no digital collectors!  

 

     

    April fools day, no!.......... kickstarter day, no!......after all the Yashicas and other Christmas cracker nonsense, it must be.......

 

                         ..........the year of the sheep....so prepare to be fleeced!

 

 

  

 

       

   

 

   ..... 

Will be renamed to Dumbbar...   

well if you shoot Leica, want soft focus and crazy onion ring bokeh there aren't many choices...

It's one thing to pay top dollar for a rare antique, but this is clearly a reproduction.

 

If you actually want to shoot a lens like this, just buy a lensbaby and put some vaseline on the front element.

Quote:well if you shoot Leica, want soft focus and crazy onion ring bokeh there aren't many choices...

There are lots of choices... but most of them you can't buy new for decades already

surely Leica man couldn't settle for anything less than the best?

Well, the majority of Leica's customer base can probably be described as "very conservative". They still make a lot of money with their film cameras, for example. And I don't think any other manufacturer would have had any success with a camera like the M-D.

 

Their business works because of their long-standing reputation, the build quality of their products (undeniably outstanding), both combined with above mentioned customers, and lack of competition in their niche.