Leitz Cine announces three new lenses in the Leitz HUGO series

Joining the 10 existing Leitz HUGO focal lengths, the HUGO II lenses, so named for their slower aperture, introduce new options that offer some size advantages and slightly different looks with the 75 mm and 90 mm, while the 66 mm fills the gap between 50 mm and 75 mm.

The Leitz HUGO 66 mm T2.1 lens is based on the fabled “spy lens” created by legendary Leica lens designer Walter Mandler for the US Navy during the Cold War. Built for ultra high resolution imaging and never intended for the public, it’s estimated that less than 200 were ever produced. By only slightly modifying the elegant simplicity of Mandler’s original design, this lens sits alongside its modern siblings as a great pairing with an impressive pedigree. While considered extremely sharp for its time, the images match remarkably well with the strong character of the modern day HUGO lenses.

The Leitz HUGO 75 mm T2.1 and 90 mm T2.1 lenses come from the Leica Summicron-M lenses. Being one stop slower than the T1.5 lenses allows them to be significantly shorter and lighter, nearly matching the dimensions of the rest of the T1.5 set wider than 50 mm. By designing housings for these lenses Leitz will now be able to convert full sets of Leitz M 0.8 lenses to HUGO without sacrificing the longer focal lengths.

With the addition of the HUGO II series, the Leitz HUGO family of lenses now includes 13 focal lengths from 18 mm to 135 mm. The lenses are available in LPL or L mounts.