Leitz Cine 40mm HUGO Lens Announced

Lens News

by Dave KratzAugust 27^th, 2025

Subscribe to News - Lenses

Leitz Cine has announced the new Leitz Cine 40mm HUGO Lens, the latest addition to their popular HUGO prime series. Based in Wetzlar, Germany, Leitz Cine is the sister company to Leica and has built a reputation for some of the most premium cinema optics available today.

These lenses matter because they bring Leica’s photographic heritage into dedicated cine housings, offering filmmakers character and reliability in one package.

The Leitz Cine 40mm joins the HUGO family

The Leitz Cine 40mm HUGO Lens comes in at T1.5 and fills a gap many cinematographers have been asking for. With it, the HUGO set now counts 14 lenses covering everything from 18mm up to 135mm.

You won’t find a 40mm in Leica’s still photography lineup, so this one was created specifically for the HUGO family. Leitz engineers teamed with Leica Camera designers to make sure it matches the look cinematographers already love.

As Rainer Hercher, Managing Director of Leitz Cine, explained: “The 40mm is a classic focal length in cinematography. As soon as we released the HUGOs, it was the most requested addition.”

Characteristic HUGO look

Like the rest of the series, the Leitz Cine 40mm HUGO Lens uses Leica M-series glass. The optics sit inside a proper cine housing. It delivers a sharp center with smooth falloff toward the edges. This creates a gentle curvature that guides the viewer’s eye into the frame.

That softer, more organic quality is why HUGO lenses have gained such a following. Faces and skin tones render naturally, with pleasing transitions that avoid the sterile feel of some modern glass.

Compact design cine glass

The Leitz Cine 40mm HUGO Lens covers full-frame sensors with a 43.3mm image circle and ships in LPL mount. Like every HUGO lens, it has a 95mm front, 92mm filter thread, 0.8 MOD gears, and a long 270-degree focus rotation.

It focuses as close as 50cm (19.7 in), which makes it useful for intimate shots. Thanks to its compact and lightweight build, it is also well-suited for drones, gimbals, or handheld setups where every gram counts.

A little HUGO history

The HUGO series was first launched in 2022, based on Leica M 0.8 optics but redesigned with better housing for cinema work. The name honors Hugo Wehrenfennig, the engineer behind the Leica M bayonet mount.

In 2024, Leitz expanded the lineup with the HUGO II series, which added unusual focal lengths like the 66mm T2.1, based on Leica’s Cold War-era Spy Lens. The Leitz Cine 40mm HUGO Lens continues that blend of Leica history and fresh design choices.

For filmmakers curious about how different Leitz lenses compare, the company offers the Cine Lens Test Tool. It lets you line up the HUGO primes against other Leitz families like SUMMILUX-C, SUMMICRON-C, THALIA, and LEITZ PRIME.

For more background, you can revisit our coverage of the original HUGO primes and the HUGO II series additions.

How the 40mm stacks up

The 40mm HUGO Lens delivers a long-requested focal length with the same compact build and analog character that define the series. It is a natural addition for cinematographers already using HUGOs and a tempting option for anyone who wants Leica’s distinctive look in a cinema-ready package.

Availability

The Leitz Cine 40mm HUGO Lens is expected to ship in Q4 of 2025, with preorders already open. At B&H, it is listed as a special order, though no pricing information is shown publicly.

As with the rest of the HUGO lineup, buyers should expect this lens to sit firmly in the premium category.

For more information about the HUGO series and to learn more about Leitz, visit the official Leitz Cine website.

What do you think of the new Leitz HUGO Lens series? Would you add the 40mm to your kit? Drop your thoughts in the comments below.