Leica's L-mount alliance announces two new members, including one major player

The L-mount lens mount alliance now has two new members, which will join Leica, Sigma, Panasonic, Ernst Leitz Wetzlar GmbH and most recently in 2021, DJI. The sixth member will be is ASTRODESIGN, Inc - a Japanese manufacturer of high-end audio-visual equipment, including 8K broadcast cine cameras. And the seventh alliance member will be Samyang (Rokinon in the US) - world-renowned manufacturer of some of the best camera lenses available right now.

It doesn't come as much surprise that Samyang has joined the L-mount alliance, as the company already manufacturers lenses in pretty much every other commercially available lens mount. It now seems likely that we could start to see some of Samyang's existing full-frame lenses being produced in L-mount variants for Panasonic S-series cameras like the S1 and S5 II.

The L-mount standard was originally announced at Photokina in 2018, with the founding members being Leica, Panasonic and Sigma, Leica having been the principle developer of the mount itself. The aim of the L-mount was to provide "customers with a future-proof, flexible, robust and precise bayonet mount that would fulfil even the most demanding photographic needs".

A mount diameter of 51.6 millimetres was chosen to make the L-Mount suitable for both full-frame and APS-C cameras, while a short register of 20 millimetres enables a reduced distance between the lens and the sensor, potentially improving image quality as well as reducing an L-mount camera's physical size. The mount's bayonet is standardised to a stainless steel construction for improved wear-resistance, with four flange segments to prevent canting and ensure a more precise lens attachment. Special attention was also paid to the smoothness and longevity of the electrical contacts, as well as incorporating the ability to transfer firmware updates from camera to lens.

At the time of writing there are 12 L-mount cameras, and over 60 compatible L-mount lenses available, spread across the alliance manufacturers, with all L-mount lenses being fully interchangeable and without functional limitations, regardless of manufacturer.

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