The Leica family tree. Courtesy Christie’s Images Ltd., 2016. UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR £362,500
THE Leica Camera Family Tree comes up at Christie’s Out of the Ordinary sale in London on September 14. This is a history of the Leica camera comprising 107 of the principal models.
These show the evolution of the marque from pre-production models, the screw-fit Leica series, M-series, R-series, to digital models, from c1923 to 2006. The display, formerly part of the Leica Sölms factory museum, is mounted as a family tree by model and date of production.
The introduction of the Leica heralded a new type of photographer: the photojournalist, who made use of the camera’s small size and ability to work unobtrusively in low-light or fast-moving conditions with previously difficult subjects.
Users like Robert Capa, Alfred Eisenstaedt, Aleksandr Rodchenko, Leni Riefenstahl, Robert Doisneau and Henri Cartier-Bresson created some of the world’s best known images using a Leica.