15MM BAYONET MOUNT LENSES

15mm f/8 Hologon 

• Carl Zeiss will supply the 15mm f/8 Hologon in Leica M-mount for sale by Ernst Leitz, Inc⁵¹
• Catalog number 11003¹⁸³
• Angle of view 110°¹⁸³
• 3 elements¹⁸³
• graduated density filter available¹⁸³
• There is no lens hood¹⁸³
• Focusing range is “infinity to 0.2032 meters”, not rangefinder-coupled¹⁸³
• Finder is supplied with lens, fits accessory shoe¹⁸³
• Case has catalog number 98281 (#1)¹⁸³
• introduced at the 1972 Photokina and entered the Leitz catalog in 1973. The lens was sold alongside a special viewfinder (catalogue number 11003) and a graduated neutral density filter (catalogue number 13002). A fitted leather case (catalogue number 98281) was also available. This lens could be easily used with any M camera, including the M5, which required the meter cell to be locked up, as the lens does not permit through-the-lens metering with the Leica M5. However, poor sales and high production costs led to the 15mm f/8 Hologon’s removal from the Leitz catalog by 1976¹⁸³
• The serial number range assigned by Zeiss was 5735851-5736300, although the Leitz 15mm f/8 Hologon brochure of 1974 features a lens with serial number 2593021. This must have been a prototype, as no other 2593XXX numbers have been reported¹⁸³
• The rear elements of the 15mm f/8 Hologon lens extend significantly into the camera body, which partially obstructs the metering cell. As a result, the meter may fail to obtain an accurate reading of the white spot on the shutter curtain, leading to incorrect exposure. The only solution is to meter with another lens first. Additionally, the metering cell for flash exposure control on the M6 TTL is also obscured. In this case, the flash unit should be switched to 'A' instead of 'TTL' to use the flashgun’s independent metering cell²³⁵