Legendary Leitz Cine Launches its First Lenses for Mirrorless Cameras

Sep 10, 2025

Jeremy Gray

Five silver Leica camera lenses are arranged on a white background, with four standing upright and one lying on its side. The lenses feature engraved markings and red Leica logos.

Leitz Cine, a legendary brand in cinematic optics, has entered the mirrorless lens market. The new Leitz Cine Hektor lens lineup comprises six T2.1 primes, ranging from 18mm to 100mm, all designed for full-frame mirrorless cameras.

The fully manual Leitz Cine Hektor 18mm T2.1, 25mm T2.1, 35mm T2.1, 50mm T2.1, 73mm T2.1, and 100mm T2.1 lenses include user-interchangeable mount options for Sony E, Canon RF mount, Nikon Z, and, of course, L-Mount.

Close-up view of a silver Leica camera lens marked “18 mm,” featuring a prominent red Leica logo and detailed focus and aperture rings.

 Like Leitz Cine’s other lenses, the new Hektor series prioritizes character and build quality. The German company tailored the “Hektor” look by examining Leica’s classic M lenses from the mid-20th century as well as Petzval lenses from the 19th century. The team wanted to capture the timeless rendering from the past century-plus of cinema.

A silver Leica 35mm camera lens with a red Leica logo, textured focus and aperture rings, and a large front glass element is shown against a white background.

The Hektor lenses promise interesting dynamic flare, field curvature, and spherical aberration to deliver “wholly unique” rendering characteristics. By using non-aspherical designs, similar to those from 30-40 years ago, the lenses promise a less clinical, softer look with warm color rendering, and lively flare.

A silver Leica camera lens with engraved focus and aperture markings, a red Leica logo, and a ribbed grip, displayed against a white background.

Since they are Leitz Cine primes, they are designed and assembled in Germany by the same team that works on Leitz’s very expensive high-end cinema lenses. Leitz admits that its new Hektor lenses are “more expensive than most mirrorless lenses,” but notes that its lenses are built to last, easily serviced, and will be supported by readily available parts for many years to come.

A person holds a professional camera with a wide lens, focusing on bright blue flowers in the foreground. The background is blurred, highlighting the camera and flowers in sharp detail.

All six lenses cover the same 47.8mm image circle and feature unified 80mm front diameters, which is relatively narrow in the full-frame cinema lens space. Five of the lenses, the 18mm, 25mm, 35mm, 50mm, and 73mm primes, are 88.2mm (3.47 inches) long, while the 100mm T2.1 is 123mm (4.8 inches) long. Weighs range from 0.66 kg (1.5 pounds) to 0.97 kg (2.1 pounds). The entire Hektor series features 120 degrees of focus rotation, 49 degrees of iris rotation, and nine-bladed aperture diaphragms. Every lens, except the 18mm T2.1, accepts 77mm front filters, and they all have 0.8 MOD gears.

Close-up of professional video cameras with large lenses and external monitors set up outdoors, with blurred greenery and sunlight in the background.

“We spent a lot of time exploring and testing to get the character of these lenses right, to make them something that would be appealing to modern cinematographers but timeless in their beauty,” says Leitz Cine’s managing director, Rainer Hercher. “Too often lenses are designed to be as fast, clear and as inexpensive as possible without giving attention to the attributes that create a great, compelling image. In listening to our customers we heard them asking for something with soul, with emotion, something that could help elevate their work. The Leitz Hektor lenses are for them.”

The name “Hektor” comes from the original Leica Hektor lenses built in the 1930s by Leica’s legendary lens designer, Max Berek. These lenses were originally built for Leica’s early screw-mount 35mm cameras. While the new cinema primes are not a recreation of these original lenses, they pay homage to those nearly 100-year-old lenses through their anodized silver finish and, in the case of the 73mm lens, their unique focal length.

Sample Stills

An older man with long gray hair, round glasses, and a mustache, wearing a black-and-white striped shirt, stands outside in front of modern circular buildings with a curved walkway.

A sleek black sports car speeds around a curve on a racetrack under a clear blue sky, with motion blur emphasizing its fast movement.

Close-up of a person's face with a beard and mustache, wearing round glasses, looking thoughtfully into the distance with soft lighting creating a moody and introspective atmosphere.

A man with glasses and a beard stands in the dark, illuminated by light coming through a metal fence, looking thoughtfully toward it. The background is blurred with some lights visible.

A rugged coastline with steep cliffs covered in greenery meets the blue ocean below. White waves crash along the shore. Low clouds rest on the mountain tops, and some coastal plants are visible in the foreground.

Close-up of the front left headlight and hood of a sleek, red sports car with carbon fiber detailing, reflecting light in a dimly lit setting.

A rocky island with a few buildings sits off the coast, surrounded by deep blue ocean. A sandy beach curves along the shoreline, meeting grassy and rugged land under a partly cloudy sky.

A smooth blue gradient background that gets lighter toward the center and darker toward the edges. — Vignette example

A single green leaf with serrated edges is in sharp focus against a blurred background of green and white bokeh, creating a fresh and natural atmosphere. — Cats eye effect example

A close-up of a pale pink rose in sunlight, with soft focus and rays of light streaming across the flower, creating a dreamy, ethereal effect. Green leaves and blurred flowers appear in the background. — Flare example

Out-of-focus golden and yellow lights create a soft, blurry bokeh effect against a dark background. — Bokeh example

A bright, white light source shines in the center of a dark background, creating colorful lens flares and circular reflections in shades of blue, green, and red radiating outward. — Flare example

Pricing and Availability

The Leitz Cine Hektor lenses are available to order now and will begin shipping soon. They ship in E-mount versions, and the 25mm to 100mm primes are $7,390 each. The 18mm T2.1 is slightly pricier at $7,590. The lenses come in a three-lens set as well, including the 25mm, 50mm, and 73mm primes, for $21,590. A complete six-lens set is $42,490. The bundles offer slight discounts compared to buying the lenses separately.

Image credits: Leitz Cine