Rehoused Leica R lenses are sought after in the film industry for their vintage character, beautiful bokeh, and strong color rendering while offering the mechanics and robustness needed for professional cinema use. The TLS rehousing makes the lenses suitable for modern filmmaking and cinematography.
The Leica R lenses are renowned for their sharp, non-clinical resolution mixed with good contrast and subtly warm colors. The bokeh is smooth when wide open, but still produces the iconic look when stopped down. This is the reason why TLS uses the original iris during the rehousing process. The TLS rehousing makes the lenses suitable for modern filmmaking and cinematography. The rehousing process is also designed to improve their functionality, such as adding smoother focus and aperture mechanisms, as well as standardizing lens housing to fit professional cine lens mounts and accessories.
Key features
- Focus Mechanism: The focus throw is increased to allow for more precise focus pulling, a crucial feature in cinematography.
- Improved close focus: Most of the rehoused Leica-Rs have an improved close focus once rehoused at TLS.
- Aperture Control: The aperture is smooth, allowing continuous iris adjustments.
- Lens Mount: The original Leica R mount is replaced and is available in PL mount.
- Housing: The lens is rehoused in a high-grade aluminum alloy and stainless-steel housing, eradicating any backlash/image shift from the original mechanics.
- Focus and iris Gearing: The rehoused lenses have standardized gear positions for focus and iris, making them compatible with cine lens control systems.
- Improved Durability: The new housing improves the durability and reliability of the lens for use in demanding film production environments.
The Leica R lenses were part of Leica’s line of 35mm single-lens reflex (SLR) cameras. These started with the Leicaflex cameras in 1964 and continued through the Leica R-series cameras until production ended in 2009. As the lenses were originally designed to cover the 36mm x 24mm film area, these lenses cover full-frame cine cameras. Even though the Leica R cameras were discontinued, the Leica R lenses live on today as they can be adapted for use on various digital mirrorless systems due to their excellent optical performance.
You can contact TLS about pricing and expected waiting times.
