Leica Leicina Special

The Leicina Special is Leica's Super 8 movie camera. It is a serious, modular rig, and it has a near-mythic reputation among film enthusiasts, though hard documentation on it is thin. The most common configuration found in the wild includes the 6-66mm f/1.8 Optivaron zoom lens, a big piece of glass that points to the camera's prosumer intentions. The body was designed to accept interchangeable lenses and a range of accessories, including an original Leica remote, a hand-grip, and shoulder/cable releases that were typically sold as part of a complete kit.

What little reception information survives is telling. A blog post title from 2017 flatly declares it "the best super 8 camera ever," and a forum user seeking buying advice specifically asked whether the camera is loud in operation. That is a reasonable concern for a Super 8 body of this era, and it suggests noise may be a known characteristic. gmpphoto.blogspot.com (June 2017) carried that "best super 8 ever" claim in its header. No detailed technical review with measurements or operational depth has surfaced in the available record.

Surviving information on this model is thin. No production years, original price, weight, or frame-rate specifications are documented in the sources at hand. What is verifiable: the camera shoots Super 8, it was sold with the Optivaron 1.8/6-66mm zoom, and Leica offered supplementary optics like the Leicina Macro Cinegon 1.8/10mm and a 9mm f/2 Dygon, the latter seen listed at $247. A complete rig with the Optivaron has appeared at €999.

Type: Super 8 movie camera
Lens (typical kit): Optivaron 6-66mm f/1.8 zoom
Accessories (as sold): Original Leica remote, hand-grip, shoulder and cable releases
Supplementary optics: Leicina Macro Cinegon 1.8/10mm; 9mm f/2 Dygon