LEICA SL typ601

The origins of the full-frame L mount

Review and Photo example of the LEICA SL typ601

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1．Overview

The LEICA SL typ601 is the original camera that Leica introduced to the full-frame mirrorless market. Of course, Panasonic probably cooperated technically, but compared to the SL2/SL2-S, it feels much more original as a camera.

The EVF is called Eye-res, and at the time of its release, it boasted the highest resolution compared to other companies’ EVFs.

The battery is the original shape BPL-SL4, and only genuine batteries are distributed, so purchasing spare batteries tends to be expensive.

Perhaps because of this, the used price is stable at around 300,000 yen. Considering the lifespan of digital devices, I am a little hesitant to get one now.

2．Usage

The first Eye-res EVF on the SL Typ601 was very good and was useful when using R lenses. The LEICA SL series is also a salvation for R mount lenses, and it makes my long-held dream of using R lenses with a genuine LEICA 35mm full-frame sensor camera come true.

The back buttons without function prints, which are common to the LEICA S series, are not a problem once you get used to them, and if you look at this simple display, you will know the functions of the buttons if you use it for everyday use, so the various prints seem like a waste. The 24 megapixels are sufficient, the camera is responsive, and it has shooting performance and functions that are still usable.

Perhaps because of this, the used price is stable at around 300,000 yen. Considering the lifespan of digital devices, I am a little hesitant to buy one now.

I had an Eveready case made by Torii Kobo for the camera, and since I lost the leather cover for the LCD screen protector that I had been using while traveling, I asked Torii Kobo to make a new leather cover for me for a fee. With this case, the large SL becomes even larger, but the leather feels good in the hand, so even I, who have small hands and fingers, was able to use the camera without any problems. The case was 54,800 yen at the time, which was much more expensive than the clothes I usually wear.

The Leica SL3 was released on March 16, 2024. When I checked the differences with the expected specs, the sensor was mostly right, the memory card was also right, the EVF was not much improved and was a miss, and I feel that the overall specs are a reasonable improvement. The release date was about six months earlier than expected. I corrected the table with my predictions. I don’t need 60 million pixels on a 35mm full-frame sensor, so I don’t plan on buying it.

3．Add info. Mount Adapter

When using Leica R lenses, the Leica SL has a short flange back, so even on cameras where the rear end of the lens is close to the sensor surface, there were no problems with mounting and using any of the lenses I had on hand, as far as I tried them out.

I’ve been waiting for this since the release of the DMR, but when I mount an R lens with a ROM terminal on a Leica SL via the genuine LEICA R-Adapter-L (16076) instead of a third-party L-R mount adapter, which is a bit expensive, the lens information at the time of shooting is recorded in the exif of the captured image. Some zoom lenses can record the focal length at the time of shooting. I have confirmed that the following lenses can record it.

Vario-Elmar 21-35 F3.5-4.5
Vario-Elmar 35-70 F4
Vario-Elmar 80-200 F4

However, the following zoom lenses are ROM-terminal lenses that do not support recording of focal length, so the shortest focal length was recorded no matter where I took the picture.

Vario Apo. Elmarit 70-180
Vario Elmar 105-280

This seems to record fixed focal length information without transmitting information about focal length changes to the camera.

Also, even if you use a macro adapter or teleconverter with a ROM terminal, the information about its use is not recorded in exif. I sent a request to LEICA support to have it recorded in exif, but it seems that this has not been realized.

Mount adapters are introduced in detail in Leica T, so please take a look at that as well.

With the Leica SL series, you can also use S-mount lenses for medium-format digital cameras. The mount adapter is quite expensive, costing about 250,000 yen, and only works with the Leica SL series.
It does not work with cameras other than Leica in the L-mount alliance, and it is said that it cannot be used with the T series because the power supply cannot keep up.
If you are thinking of purchasing an S lens adapter for L, you should be careful.

Specification

Items	LEICA SL(Typ601)	LEICA SL2	LEICA SL2-S	LEICA SL3
Effective Pixels	24.2 megapixels	47.3 megapixels	24 megapixels	60.3 megapixels
Image sensor	35mm Fullsize	←	←	←
Include Flash	none	←	←	←
Back LCD	2.95-inch　 1.02 million dots Fixed	3.2-inch 2.1 million dots Fixed	←	3.2-inch ~~3.3 million dots~~ 2.3 million dots Tilt
View finder	4.4 million dots	5.76 million dots	←	5.76 million dots / 120fps ~~8 million dots~~
Image stabilizer	none	5 axis/5.5 steps	←	5 axis/5 steps ~~5 axis/6.5 steps~~
Max. ISO Sensitivity	50,000	50,000	100,000	← ~~50,000~~
Multi shot	none	exist	←	←
Recorded memory	SD/SDHC/SDXC x2	←	←	CFexpress +SD/SDHC/SDXC
Battery	BP-SCL4	←	←	BP-SCL6
Size(mm)WxHxD	147×104×39	146 × 107 × 42	←	141 x 108 x 85
Weight(g/Body only)	771	835	850	769
Body color	Black	Black Silver	Black Limited color	Black
Release date	November 28, 2015	November 23, 2019	December 17, 2020	March 16,2024 ~~November 2024~~