First Photos of the Special Edition Jony Ive-Designed Leica M Released

We’ve heard a lot about the one-of-a-kind Jonathan Ive-designed Leica M as rumors turned to official word that the camera would be auctioned off at a (RED) auction in November, but until now, we had no clue what the thing actually looked like.

Admittedly, there’s only so much you can alter a Leica M, but now the company has finally released press images of the Ive-designed shooter, and as you might expect, it could be described as “unapologetically simple.”

Jokes aside, the camera basically looks like what you would expect an Apple-Leica hybrid might look like. The aluminum design is to be expected, but apparently it actually took some serious time to get right. According to Leica, the camera you see below is the result of 561 models and nearly 1000 prototype parts made over the course of an 85-day design marathon:

The camera will feature a full-frame CMOS sensor, “high performance processor” and a new Leica APO-Summicron 50mm f/2 ASPH lens. It’s set to go up on the blog at the (RED) auction at Sotheby’s New York on November 23rd, with funds going to The Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

To learn more, head over to the Sotheby’s website or check out the announcement on Leica’s Google+.