[Leica] Re: 1930 Leica ads

[lrzeitlin at optonline.net (Lawrence Zeitlin)]

On Aug 31, 2006, at 5:48 PM, Chris wrote:

> I picked up a "Photography with The Leica Camera" book on Ebay.  
> 6inch x 3inch little sucker made in the '30s. I love the Leica  
> advertising back then, always showing a woman shooting with the  
> Leica. Made the Leica, as $$$ as it was, appeal to anyone.
>
> Let's bring back those cool ads Leica! Kyle, get your models ready.



Leica's success in the '30s was partly due to the small and, for the  
time, very expensive camera being viewed as a fashion statement as  
well as a photographic instrument. Many illustrations appeared in  
fashion and travel magazines with beautiful people carrying Leicas.  
It is clear that during the depression these were the rich and  
famous. With few exceptions, "real" photographers used larger equipment.

But then Leica never shied away from using sex in its ads for what it  
deemed to be amateur optics. Brochures for the Leica CL and C1 were  
also illustrated with exotic models pretending to take pictures. I  
have an ad brochure (121.410-012) for a Leitz Trinovid binocular  
showing a double page cover spread of a beautiful blond bikini clad  
model with an 8x20C binocular stuffed in the bottom of her bikini.  
How phallic is that?

Larry Z