A one-off “spy Leica” thought to have been produced for West Germany’s intelligence services is among the items to be auctioned at the Leitz Photographica Auction in Germany in November.
The modified Leica If camera sports a dummy front lens and a real 90mm Elmar portrait lens looking up from the top of the camera instead – allowing the photographer to take pictures with the camera pointed in another direction.
One of the organisers of the auction told Kosmo Foto the camera is “the only one of its kind ever to surface” and was produced in almost complete secrecy.
“This extraordinary prototype Leica camera, based on the Leica If, was designed for discreet, undercover photography – most likely developed for the West German secret service during the Cold War era,” Leitz Photographica Auction said in the listing. “Ingeniously modified, the camera features an imitation Elmar 9cm lens mounted on the front, while the actual functioning lens is cleverly concealed on the top plate, pointing upward.
“This innovative design allowed the photographer to simulate conventional shooting, while secretly capturing images either straight ahead or to the side, depending on how the camera was held. A precisely engineered internal mirror redirects the image to the film plane, enabling covert operation without attracting attention.”
The camera is believed to be a unique design produced by Leitz and is the only known example of its kind. It is expected to sell for as much as €100,000 when it goes under the hammer in Wetzlar, Germany on 22 November – and has already attracted bids of €50,000.
Michal Kosakowski of Leitz Camera auctions told Kosmo Foto: “Unfortunately, no official records survive about its origin or any cooperation with West German intelligence services. It’s also very unlikely that it was ever used; most probably it remained a one-off experimental or presentation piece.
“Leitz did make a number of cameras for government and military purposes – such as the Leica KE-7A and Elcan optics for the Us Army, Bundeswehr M3s, and Nasa-modified MDa cameras – so a special covert version certainly fits into that broader context,” Kosakowski added.
“As a related example, in our upcoming November auction we also have a Leica 250 GG Reporter with Leica-Motor MOOEV – a rare motor-driven version of the 250-exposure “Reporter” model, originally designed for surveillance and aerial documentation. It’s a perfect reminder of how Leitz adapted its cameras for specialised professional and governmental use.
“We would love to know more about the “Spy Leica,” but so far it remains unique and largely undocumented — the only one of its kind ever to surface.”
The one-off Leica is just one of dozens of rare or unique cameras up for sale at the auction, and the entire catalogue can be viewed here.
I'm a New Zealander who has been living in London since the mid-1990s, shooting film seriously since the year 2000. Kosmo Foto was launched in 2012 and has since become a film brand, with the release of my first films Kosmo Foto Mono 35mm (2017) and Kosmo Foto Mono 120 (2019).
I’m doing everything I can to promote film photography in the 21st Century, and help it survive and thrive. If you want to write something for Kosmo Foto, please drop me a line at foto.dowling@gmail.com.
