Leica’s new $23,000 film camera is platinum-plated and destined for collectors’ shelves.

Leica is celebrate the 70th anniversary The most valuable gift of all, the M rangefinder camera, is only given to 250 rich people and costs $22,995. ridiculously expensive Leica M Edition 70 The set includes a platinum-plated Leica MA 35mm film camera with Leicavit fastwinder, a matching 50mm APO-Summicron-M f/2 lens, and a metal film container with a roll of black and white film.

Yes, the film container is also platinum. Yes, that’s complete nonsense.

This commemorative edition commemorates the launch of the first M camera, the Leica M3, in 1954. Leica does its best to honor the M3 and the brand’s heritage whenever possible. In 2014, the Leica M Edition 60 did the same to celebrate the M3’s 60th anniversary, but that model was a bit bolder and more polarizing, being the first digital M to do away with the rear LCD for semi-film. Like experience. This “feature” has become more readily available in standard versions such as the MD (Typ 262), M10-D, and most recently the M11-D.

The new M Edition 70 has low production volumes and Leica MA This is a film camera used since 2014. The real devil of detail here is the Leicavit, an old-fashioned accessory from the heyday of film rangefinders that has been extinct for several years. It’s basically a replacement base plate for your camera, with a hidden lever that you can use to advance the film after shooting with your left hand. I’ve never personally used it, but the premise was that it would be faster and slightly more discreet than moving your right hand on the shutter to operate a regular forward lever with your thumb. I’m sure there’s a reason this isn’t a widely adopted accessory, but Leica fans love this oddball. (I’m obviously speaking/confessing from experience here.)

So the M Edition 70 may actually be a test to bring back the Likebit as a standard accessory, just as the M60 was a test bed for screenless digital cameras. M9 Titanium We experimented with a line of LED light frames. But one thing is for sure: the M Edition 70 is not only adorable, but downright ridiculous. It’s another opportunity for Leica to get some $6 million in revenue from a wealthy whale to fund whatever its next bright idea is. But boy, is it hard not to enjoy looking at innocent photos of it.