100 years of the Leica camera

In 1914 optical engineer Oskar Barnack was working for Ernst Leitz when he designed the very first Leica, the Leitz Camera, or so-called Ur-Leica. The small handheld camera, one of the first to use 35mm film, finally went into production in 1925 following a long delay caused by World War One. It went on to revolutionise photography in the hands of the first photojournalists who set out to record the world on the brink of change.

100 years of Leica, 100 years of history:

The Hindenburg conquers the skies, the Russians conquer Berlin, and James Dean conquers the hearts of women. Always on the spot at such decisive moments were photographers who had an eye for the visual impact of the scene – and a Leica in their hands.

LZ 129 “Hindenburg” at its mooring mast at Rhine-Main airport, Dr. Paul Wolff and Alfred Tritschler, 1936

1953. “The Painter of the Eiffel Tower”, Paris. Marc Riboud / Magnum Photos

New York, Ernst Leitz II, 1914

Flood in Wetzlar, Oskar Barnack, 1920

Self-portrait in mirrors, Ilse Bing, 1931

Oskar Barnack at his workplace, Julius Huisgen, 1934

Sunday on the banks of the river Marne. 1938. Photograph: Henri Cartier-Bresson/Magnum Photos

Death of a Loyalist Soldier , Robert Capa, 1936

Harlem race riots, New York, 1964.Photograph: Neil Libbert

Normandy, 6 June 1944. Photograph: Robert Capa/Magnum Photos

South Vietnamese forces follow terrified children, including nine-year-old Kim Phuc, centre, as they run down Route1 near Trang Bang after an aerial napalm attack on suspected Viet Cong hiding places on 8 June 1972. Photograph: Nick Ut/Associated Press

Hyeres, 1932. Photograph: Henri Cartier-Bresson / Magnum Photos

2000. New York City. From his phototoons series.Elliott Erwitt

Portugal, 1976. Photograph: Josef Koudelka/Magnum Photos

Children in the gorbals, Glasgow, 1948. Photograph: Ben Hardy/Hulton/Getty

Overcrowded housing in London’s Elephant and Castle in 1948. Hardy modified his Leica so it would perform better in low light conditions. Photograph: Ben Hardy/Hulton/Getty

Sailor kissing the nurse’, New York, 14 August 1945. Photograph: Alfred Eisenstaedt/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty

42nd Street, New York City, 1960. A long-time Observer photographer, Neil Libbert used a Leica M3 camera with a 35m Summicron lens. Photograph: Neil Libbert

Caravan park in Kerry, 2013. Photograph: John Naughton

Russian soldiers flying the Red Flag, made from table cloths, over the ruins of the Reichstag in Berlin, 1945. Photograph: Yevgeny Khaldei/Getty Images

Girl with Leica, Alexander Rodchenko, 1934

London, Inge Morath, 1953

Guardia Civil, W. Eugene Smith, 1950

Self-portrait, UMBO (aka Otto Umbehr), 1952

New York, Louis Stettner, 1954

James Dean on Times Square, Dennis Stock, 1955

Regular guest at the Café Hawelka, Vienna, Franz Hubmann, 1956–57

The dwarf , Bruce Davidson, 1958

The stolen sword, Robert Lebeck, 1960

Che Guevara, Alberto Korda, 1960

Wild horses in Kenya, Professor Ulrich Mack, 1964

1966. Chicago, IL. Muhammad Ali, boxing world heavy weight champion showing off his right fist. Thomas Hoepker-Magnum

Man with bandage, Fred Herzog, 1968

New York City, Elliott Erwitt, 1974

San Cristobál, René Burri, 1976

Swimming pool designed by Alain Capeilières, Martine Franck, 1976

Waterloo (from the “Roots” cycle), Harry Gruyaert, 1981

England , Gianni Berengo Gardin, 1977

From the “Feine Leute” cycle , Herlinde Koelbl, 1985

Under a grudging sun , Alex Webb, 1986–1988

Perfect peace , Kai Wiedenhöfer, 1994

Sidewalk , Jeff Mermelstein, 1995

1998. JAPAN. Asakasa. George Abe, right, an ex-Yakuza member and celebrity writer. Yakuza model themselves on American gangster fashion from 1950s. Bruce Gilden/ Magnum Photos

Hollywood Beach (from the “American Colors” cycle) , Constantine Manos, 2006

Vertigo (from the “Silenzio!” cycle), François Fontaine, 2012 (Courtesy A. Galerie, Paris)

1932. Paris, France. Place de l'Europe. Gare Saint Lazare. Henri Cartier-Bresson

Ulan Bator, Mongolia, 2012 Jacob Aue Sobol, Magnum

1960. Sao Paulo, Brazil. Rene Burri

American soldiers dash for a helicopter at Khe Sanh in 1968 in a picture taken by David Douglas Duncan on the record-breaking Leica

Parade Hoboken, New Jersey 1955, Robert Frank

Untitled, 1963, Larry Clark

Spain, Andalucia. Seville. 1933. Henri Cartier-Bresson

Greater Burhan Oil Field, Kuwait, 1991, Sebastiao Salgado/Amazonas Images/nbpictures

Santa Monica, California. 1955. Elliott Erwitt Magnum Photos

1976. Marlon Brando fascinated by a dragonfly, Apocalypse Now, Pagsanjan, Philippines. Mary Ellen Mark 

Main street of Corleone, Sicily, 1959. Sergio Larraín

end

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1914....The Big Bang, Oskar Barnack invents the Ur-Leica