L-mount. At left, L-mount of a camera. At right, L-mount as seen from the rear of a lens.
Leica launched the L-mount with their Leica T (APS-C) mirrorless, interchangeable lens camera in 2014. It was the 100th anniversary of Oskar Barnack’s Ur-Leica.
A year later, the Leica SL (Typ 601) arrived: Leica Format (36x24mm), mirrorless, autofocus, with the same mount, now renamed “L-mount.”
The L-mount has a Flange Focal Depth of 20mm. The mount’s inside diameter is 51mm.
Here’s an edited press release directly from Leica at Photokina:
Developed by Leica Camera in collaboration with Panasonic and Sigma, the L-Mount Alliance marks the start of a new era of photographic freedom and flexibility. One lens mount standard allows for a wide array of options in combining different interchangeable lenses with cameras featuring different sensor sizes and formats. Leica Camera, Panasonic and Sigma offer photographers a way to ‘mix and match’ the three manufacturers’ APS-C and full-frame cameras with lenses from each other’s product portfolio. This strategic partnership will allow customers to choose from a much wider selection of cameras and lenses without limiting themselves to one specific brand. Photographers can expect future product announcements from Leica Camera, Panasonic and SIGMA that will adhere to this new standard.
Dr. Andreas Kaufmann, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Leica Camera AG and majority shareholder notes, “In the rapidly growing market for mirrorless system cameras, users seek increasingly greater product diversity to fulfill a wide range of different photographic needs. To meet these needs, we have decided to work together with prominent partners in the photographic segment. Our long-established partnership with Panasonic is a collaboration based on mutual trust, and the company’s expertise in the area of electronics is unquestioned. SIGMA is also a highly respected company that has become firmly established, especially in the areas of optical design and lens manufacturing and is able to perfectly complement our existing portfolio of L-Mount products.”
Mr. Tetsuro Homma, Senior Managing Executive Officer, Panasonic Corporation said, “Panasonic has always focused on revolutionizing the camera sector to make the lives of photo enthusiasts easier, more sophisticated and more enjoyable. Our longstanding partnership with Leica has brought many high-performance and high-quality digital cameras to the market; fusing Leica’s superior optical technology with Panasonic’s digital technologies. Our partnership has enabled us to accelerate the development of excellent digital camera products, and the L-Mount alliance with Leica and SIGMA is a great example of such acceleration. This is an alliance of growing players, which will make a fundamental difference to the future of the imaging industry.”
Mr. Kazuto Yamaki, Chief Executive Officer, SIGMA Corporation, said, “As SIGMA strives to develop high performance, high quality and innovative products, this alliance will strengthen the level of completion and the extensibility of our camera system and provide greater user benefits. Leica is a magnificent company that has been contributing to photographic cultures for more than 100 years, and Panasonic is leading the industry by developing reliable technologies across various fields. Together with SIGMA’s unique, high performance and high quality products, the L-Mount will evolve as an extremely attractive system for users.”
