100 Years Of Leica: Witnessing Century Of Vision As First 35mm Camera Is Celebrated In Wetzlar

Leica Camera AG celebrated the 100th anniversary of the groundbreaking Leica I, the first 35mm camera ever mass-produced, with a historic event at the Leica Welt headquarters in Wetzlar. Over 800 international guests from the fields of politics, business, and photography gathered for a diverse program of product launches, exhibitions, and talks.

The Indian delegation included renowned Street Photographer Vineet Vohra, acclaimed Visual & Photo Journalist Smita Sharma, and Aryan Pankhani, one of the nation's youngest and most promising photographers, all of whom continue Leica's legacy of democratizing vision. Joining them were influential storytellers like Bollywood Director Kabir Khan and Celebrity Chef, entrepreneur, and Actor Ranveer Brar.

Further underscoring the deep ties between Leica and India's media ecosystem were Shweta Malhotra, a prominent Media Agency Owner, Bharat Gupta, Chief Officer at Jagran Media and Shruti Goyal, Marketing Manager for Leica India; and Manish Nichani and Sunil Nichani, Managing Directors of the Leica India operations managed under FCE Lifestyles Private Ltd, all celebrating a century of photographic innovation.

Precisely 100 years ago, in 1925, the introduction of the Leica I represented a milestone that revolutionised the world of photography. As a homage to this landmark invention, the Leica M11 100 YEARS OF LEICA "WETZLAR GERMANY", limited to only 100 cameras, was presented along with a number of other exclusive limited editions labelled “100 YEARS OF LEICA”. These include the Leica D-Lux 8, the Leica SOFORT 2 and 10×40 binoculars from the Trinovid range. However, the highlight is the Leica M11-D set, limited to 100 units and including two lenses.

The event also featured several cultural highlights, including three prestigious exhibitions open to the public from June 29 to September 21, 2025. These included a comprehensive retrospective of renowned American photographer Joel Meyerowitz at the Ernst Leitz Museum, a selection of work by French photojournalist Édouard Elias at the Leica Gallery Wetzlar, and a personal exhibition by musician Jamie Cullum, who also performed for guests.

The celebrations also included the presentation of the book 100 LEICA STORIES. The 46th Leitz Photographica Auction wrapped up the celebrations by offering up one of the most remarkable cameras in the world of photography: the 0-Series No. 112, built in 1923 and one of the few surviving prototypes of the Leica I, was auctioned off for 7.2 million euros, including the premium.

Calling the event's success a testament to the brand's enduring legacy of innovation, Dr. Andreas Kaufmann, Supervisory Board Chairman of Leica Camera AG, stated, “Over the last 100 years, Leica has been profoundly influencing the technological and cultural development of photography through its innovative strength, craftsmanship and engineering. The focus is on the essential: passion for photography.”

Echoing this sentiment, Karin Rehn-Kaufmann, Art Director and Chief Representative for Leica Galleries International, spoke about the camera's transformative power: “The Leica camera has changed our view of the world forever.”

Looking ahead, Matthias Harsch, CEO of Leica Camera AG, outlined the pillars of the company's future success. “The camera segment and sports optics make up the essential pillars of our company’s accomplishments. With innovative products and business segments, we will continue to write our company’s success story going forward.”

Sunil Kaul, Managing Director at Leica Camera Asia Pacific, addressed the modern challenges and opportunities presented by artificial intelligence. He emphasised, “In today's age of AI, our focus remains on 'pure photography,' helping creators move from simply 'taking' to authentically 'making' a picture’. We believe the true art lies in the intentionality and the human connection, not in computational perfection.”

In India, Leica Camera is exclusively represented by FCE Lifestyles Pvt Ltd, operating Leica Stores in Mumbai and New Delhi. For all camera and lens-related inquiries, FCE is the sole official contact.