The large Geovid BD binoculars were followed by the monoculars of the LRF series. The goal: Binoculars that would calculate the distance to a target at the push of a button.Įrnst Leitz’s dream of accurate rangefinding did become a reality, generations later – with the Geovid binoculars. But nothing comparable existed anywhere in the world, and so the Leica engineers had to courageously break new ground. With the start of development work on the Geovid series, this dream came within reach. A glass that offers more than “only” perfect images would have been a dream for the hunter Ernst Leitz II. The real revolution in Leica binoculars, however, was the combination of optics and electronics. Color defects were minimized, making the image even more lifelike and brilliant. The glass used for the High Definition (HD) lenses was particularly time-consuming to process. Following three generations of Trinovid binoculars, the Ultravid series was developed in 2003. This was both an honor and a confirmation for Leitz. After the development of many hunting binoculars, a monocular based on a weight-reduced Trinovid was used for the Apollo 11 moon landing in 1969. The binocular division repeatedly set milestones. These binoculars had a slim design and internal focusing, and were waterproof. Two years later, the first Trinovid went into production. In 1956, the Amplivid wide-angle binoculars appeared with a field of view of 212 meters at 1000 meters – it remains a popular collector’s item. Thus, after the first Binocle 6×18, more innovations quickly followed. Ernst Leitz II was not only a photographer, but above all a passionate hunter. When Optische Werke Ernst Leitz in Wetzlar launched its first binoculars in 1907, no one in the company, which had previously specialized in microscopes, thought that there might one day be special binoculars with electronic inner workings. Leica rangefinding celebrates 30 years – from pioneer to market leader

Leitz wetzlar binoculars serial numbers