Leica IIIa (Model G)

Ernst Leitz · LTM mount · 24×36mm on perforated 35mm cine film, 36 exposures · 1935

Also known as: Leica IIIa · Leica Model G · Leica G · Leica IIIa Monte en Sarre · ライカIIIa

Variants & identification

Variant	Mount	Years	Serial ranges	Production
Chrome	LTM	1935–1948	—	91,887 cameras (Leica Wiki) — the most numerous pre-war Leica
Black lacquer	LTM	1935–1939	—	800 cameras (Leica Wiki)
Monté en Sarre	LTM	1950–1952	—	No separate figure published

Ken Rockwell weighs a 1938 body at 410.3 g bare and 432.4 g loaded with a 36-exposure cassette — an independent measurement against the 165 g printed on the Leica Wiki page, and close to that wiki's own 406 g for the Leica II.
US catalog prices for the body alone: $126 (May 1936), $141 (August 1936), $120 (April 1937 and March 1938). As an outfit: $175.50 to $168 with the Elmar f/3.5, $235.50 to $213 with the Summar f/2, $300 with the Xenon f/1.5. Prices to about 1965 included Federal Excise Tax (Rockwell).
The rangefinder has a 38 mm base and 1.5× magnification, an effective base length of 57 mm — longer than any M finder except the M3's 63 mm (Rockwell).
Rockwell states the IIIa came only in chrome, and that a black one is more likely an earlier Model III updated by Leitz — against the Leica Wiki's 800 black lacquer bodies.

How to tell them apart (expand)

1/1000 on the shutter dial — the only functional difference from the Leica III
Slow-speed dial on the front, dioptre lever and strap lugs carried over from the III

Chrome:

Chrome-plated brass fittings

Black lacquer:

Black lacquer with nickel-plated knobs

Monté en Sarre:

Monté en Sarre engraved on the top plate beneath the Germany marking

Black lacquer: Fewer than one camera in a hundred. Black paint was on its way out by 1935, and a black IIIa offered today is more often a repainted chrome body than an original.
Monté en Sarre: Assembled in the Saar Protectorate, which sat between France and Germany politically and in customs terms, from parts made in Wetzlar. The engraving is a statement about tariffs rather than about the camera.

Serial-range notes

156201–156850: The first block, listed as "Leica IIIa 1/1000" — the table naming the model by its one new feature before the name IIIa settles in later rows.
1935 blocks: The 1935 rows are unusually fragmented, dozens of batches of 50 to 900 cameras rather than the multi-thousand blocks of the III. Leitz was filling gaps between other models.
157401–158300; 158401–158650; 159001–159200; 159551–159625; 159676–160325; 161601–161800; 161951–162100; 162176–162350; 162401–162500; 162626–162675; 162751–162800; 162826–162925; 162976–163050; 163101–163225; 163251–163400; 163451–163550; 163776–163950; 164151–164275; 164676–164900; 165976–166075; 166601–166750; 166901–167050; 167176–167200; 167226–167700; 168251–168325; 168401–168500; 168601–168725; 168751–168850; 169651–170150; 170501–171300; 171901–172250; 172301–172350; 173001–173125; 173177–173425; 173476–173500; 173651–173675; 173726–173825; 173901–174025; 174076–174100; 174126–174150; 174651–174675; 174751–174950; 175126–175200; 175351–175450; 175751–175850; 175901–176100; 176151–176250; 176301–176600; 177001–177400; 177551–177600; 177801–177900; 178001–178100; 178251–178550; 178601–179200; 179251–179500; 179901–180100; 180401–180475; 181001–181450; 181551–181600; 181701–182000; 182051–182300; 182351–182500; 182851–183500: 1935: 63 batches, 12,599 numbers (chrom). Leica Wiki batch table, archived.
183751–184400; 184451–184700; 184751–184800; 184951–185200; 185801–186100; 186201–186500; 186551–186800; 186901–186950; 187001–187100; 187201–187400; 187776–187785; 187851–188100; 188751–189300; 189476–189800; 189901–190200; 190501–190700; 190901–191100; 191301–191350; 191851–192100; 192401–192500; 192951–193200; 193451–193500; 193601–194300; 194951–196200; 196301–196400; 196751–197400; 197501–197550; 197801–198200; 198401–198800; 198901–199200; 199301–199500; 199801–200100; 200201–200500; 201201–201300; 201401–201600; 201701–202300; 202451–202600; 202701–202800; 202901–203100; 203401–204100; 204201–204300; 204601–204800; 205001–205100; 205301–205400; 205701–207300; 207801–208000; 208301–208600; 208801–209000; 209901–210100; 210201–210400; 211001–211600; 211701–211801; 211901–212400; 212701–212800; 213201–213300; 213701–214400; 214801–215300; 216001–216300; 216501–216800; 217001–217200; 218801–219600; 219801–219900; 220001–220300; 220501–220600; 220701–220900; 221001–221300; 221401–222150; 222201–222300; 223301–223600: 1936: 69 batches, 21,186 numbers (chrom). Leica Wiki batch table, archived.
217901–218300; 224801–224900; 225001–225200; 225301–225400; 225601–226300; 226401–227000; 227051–227600; 227651–231500; 231601–231800; 231901–232200; 232501–232800; 232901–233400; 233801–234000; 234201–234500: 1936-37: 14 batches, 8,300 numbers (chrom). Leica Wiki batch table, archived.
234601–235100; 235201–235800; 235876–236200; 236301–236500; 236701–236800; 236901–237000; 237201–237500; 237601–238000; 238101–238500; 238601–238800; 238826–238900; 239001–239100; 239301–239400; 239601–239700; 249001–249200; 249701–249800; 250401–251200; 251501–251600; 252201–252900; 253001–253200; 253401–253500; 253801–254000; 254201–254600; 254901–256400; 256601–256800; 256901–257400; 257526–257600; 258201–259500; 259901–260000; 260101–260200; 260601–260800; 260901–261200; 261301–261500; 261601–261800; 262001–262800; 263001–263600; 264001–264800; 266001–266100; 266201–266400; 266801–266900; 267001–267700; 268201–268400: 1937: 42 batches, 14,475 numbers (chrom). Leica Wiki batch table, archived.
241001–241100; 241301–241500; 243001–243400; 243801–244100; 244601–244800; 245001–245100; 245301–246200; 246301–246400; 246701–247500; 247601–248300; 248601–248900; 267801–267900; 268001–268100: 1937-38: 13 batches, 4,300 numbers. Leica Wiki batch table, archived.
268501–268700; 268801–269300; 269401–269600; 269701–270100; 270201–270300; 270401–271000; 271801–272300; 272401–274800; 275201–275350; 275651–275675; 275701–275800; 276401–277000; 277101–277500; 278201–278500; 278526–278550; 278801–279000; 279401–280000; 287001–287200; 287301–287400; 287601–288000; 290201–290500; 290801–291000; 291201–291500; 291601–291800; 292401–292600; 292701–293000; 293101–293200; 293501–293900; 294901–295100; 295201–295300; 295501–296000; 296201–296500; 297101–297200; 297401–297900; 298001–299000; 299201–299500; 299601–299800; 300401–300700; 300801–301000; 301101–301400; 301801–301900; 302001–302500; 302901–303200; 303301–303700; 303901–304400; 304501–304700; 304801–304900; 305001–305600; 305801–306200; 306601–306800; 307001–307500; 308001–308100; 308601–308700; 308801–309000; 309201–309300; 309401–309500: 1938: 56 batches, 18,400 numbers (chrom). Leica Wiki batch table, archived.
309701–310000; 310201–310400: 1938-39: 2 batches, 500 numbers. Leica Wiki batch table, archived.
310501–310600; 311201–311400; 311701–311800; 311901–312000; 312201–312400; 312801–313000; 313101–313200; 313301–313400; 314701–314800; 314901–315000; 315101–315400; 315501–315700; 315801–316100; 316401–316700; 318001–318200; 318801–318900; 320401–320600; 322701–322800; 324101–324700; 325001–325200; 325276–325300; 325401–325600; 325801–325900; 327401–327500; 327601–327800; 329601–329800; 329901–330000; 330701–330800; 332001–332500; 332601–333000; 333101–333300; 334201–334400; 334601–335000; 337201–337400; 337501–337900; 338101–338200; 338601–338900; 340001–340200; 340401–340600; 340701–341000; 341701–341900; 342301–342900; 343101–344000: 1939: 43 batches, 9,925 numbers (chrom). Leica Wiki batch table, archived.
354001–354075: 1941-47: 1 batch, 75 numbers. Leica Wiki batch table, archived.
354101–354200: 1947: 1 batch, 100 numbers. Leica Wiki batch table, archived.
356501–356650: 1947-48: 1 batch, 150 numbers. Leica Wiki batch table, archived.
356701–357200: 1948-50: 1 batch, 500 numbers. Leica Wiki batch table, archived.

Specifications

Format: 24×36mm on perforated 35mm cine film, 36 exposures
Finder (main): Optical viewfinder · no rangefinder image
Finder (rangefinder): Coupled split-image rangefinder with a separate eyepiece and dioptre lever
Shutter: focal plane, cloth · 1s – 1/1000 and Z, split at 1/20 between the top dial and the slow-speed dial
Designed by: Oskar Barnack — camera
Dimensions: 133 × 39 × 65 mm
Country: Germany
Original price: $126 body only (US catalog, May 1936), falling to $120 by 1937

Figures we worked out rather than found: 91,887 + 800 = 92,687 — a total the page does not print, and the largest of any pre-war Leica · Black bodies are 0.86% of the run

Where sources disagree

Weight

Approximately 165 g (Leica Wiki)
Not stated elsewhere

Better supported: Neither — 165 g is not credible

The Leica Wiki's own figure for the Leica II, a body of the same size and construction, is 406 g. A brass-and-aluminium camera of these dimensions cannot weigh 165 g, and the number is reproduced here only to say that it should not be relied on. No weight is recorded in this entry's fields as a result.

What reviewers say

Ken Rockwell (blog) — Exceptionally small, light and precise, it still gives extraordinary images and is one of the least expensive ways into the Leica system, but it takes about twice as many knobs and settings as a modern manual camera to do the same job.
Hamish Gill (blog) — A farewell rather than a verdict: he still calls the Barnack an absolute pleasure to shoot and sold his only because he prefers the simpler zone-focused Leica ic.

History

The IIIa is a Leica III that goes to 1/1000, and that is the whole of it. No other mechanism changed, and the Leica Wiki’s serial table gives away how the camera was thought about at the time: the first block, 650 cameras in 1935, is entered not as “Leica IIIa” but as “Leica IIIa 1/1000”, as though the shutter speed were the product and the body merely what it came attached to.

It became the most numerous Leica of the pre-war era — 91,887 chrome bodies against 800 in black lacquer, which is fewer than one camera in a hundred. That ratio matters when buying: black paint was already being phased out in 1935, so an unpapered black IIIa is far more likely to be a repainted chrome body than one of the eight hundred. A third variant appears fifteen years later, when Leitz assembled cameras from Wetzlar parts in the Saar Protectorate and engraved “Monté en Sarre” beneath the Germany marking — a camera whose distinguishing feature is a customs arrangement.

The 1935 production is oddly shaped. Where the III was built in blocks of thousands, the IIIa’s first year is dozens of small batches — 50 here, 175 there, 900 at most — squeezed between serial ranges assigned to other models. Leitz was running four cameras down the same line and numbering them as capacity allowed.

One figure on the source page is simply wrong, and it is worth saying so plainly rather than repeating it. The Leica Wiki gives the IIIa’s weight as approximately 165 g. Its own page for the Leica II — the same body, the same brass and aluminium, the same size — says 406 g. A camera of these dimensions cannot weigh 165 g, so no weight is recorded in this entry’s fields at all. Oskar Barnack did not see much of the model’s success: he died in January 1936, a few months after it went on sale, and every screw Leica that followed is a modification of what he left.

Expand Collapse

This history is AI-written, from the sources listed at the foot of the page. Where the record is silent it says so rather than filling the gap — but no human wrote these sentences.

Photographs

Leica IIIa (Model G) — Leica IIIa, serial 206617, 1936, from the back — Kameraprojekt Graz 2015, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Live listings

Asking price, USD: a median of $520 across 26 fixed-price listings on 2026-10-19 (middle half $410–$700). Tracked since 2026-09-06, 9 days: up 12% from $470.

By day

Date	Median	Middle half	Listings
2026-10-19	$520	$410–$700	26
2026-10-18	$520	$410–$700	26
2026-10-17	$520	$410–$700	26
2026-10-16	$600	$410–$880	25
2026-10-15	$600	$450–$880	27
2026-09-21	$500	$350–$700	32
2026-09-18	$500	$360–$1,000	35
2026-09-11	$470	$360–$700	37
2026-09-06	$470	$360–$700	36

Asking prices from the listings scanned, not sales; junk-flagged rows and auction lots excluded; other currencies are not converted.

Leitz Leica IIIa Rangefinder Body - 1938 — £185.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa Rangefinder camera by Ernst Leitz Wetzlar READ — £200.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa ✅ CLEAN, Prod. 1936, Chrome 35mm Film Rangefinder Body, Case — €249.00 · eBay · likely chrome
LEICA IIIa Gehäuse 1935 - SNr: 171153 — €249.00 · eBay
Leica IIIA 35mm FIlm Rangefinder Camera Body, Chrome (Body Only) — $279.99 · eBay · likely chrome
Ernst LEITZ Wetzlar DRP LEICA IIIa Gehäuse, body - ca. 1936- — €259.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa Model G Rangefinder 35mm Film Camera Body Exc+++++ from Japan — $313.49 · eBay
Leica IIIa/f 206064 — $316.00 · eBay
Leica IIIA 35mm FIlm Rangefinder Camera Body, Chrome (Body) Film Tested -READ- — $320.00 · eBay · likely chrome
Leica Ernst Leitz Wetzlar Leica IIIa Gehäuse, Baujahr 1939 getestet funktioniert — €295.00 · eBay
Leica Ernst Leitz Wetzlar Leica IIIa - Body - Gehäuse - Baujahr 1938 #293737-4 — €299.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa Kamera #245340. Gehäuse allein. um 1937. — €306.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa 35mm Rangefinder Body – 1937 – Vintage – SN 255418 - VGC — £270.60 · eBay
1939 Leica IIIa 35mm Rangefinder Camera Body Only speeds+ shutter working well — £284.99 · eBay
Leica IIIa (Gehäuse) Top! FOTO JESCHNER An & Verkauf KASSEL — €349.00 · eBay
Leica IIIA Camera Body Screw Mount — €349.00 · eBay
Leitz Leica IIIa Kamera - III a Schraubleica - Gehäuse - Camera Body — €349.65 · eBay
[Near MINT] Leica IIIA Rangefinder Film Camera Body Silver From JAPAN #00160 — $384.99 · eBay
Leica IIIa (Gehäuse) Top! FOTO JESCHNER An & Verkauf KASSEL — €359.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa Rangefinder Factory Converted From a II Model D — $399.95 · eBay

Show 58 more listings

Leica IIIa DRP Ernst Leitz Wetzlar Rangefinder 35mm Film Camera Japan 【 EXC+5. 】 — $409.99 · eBay
RARE Leica IIIa 1936 Optician J.C. Mc.Kechnie Edinburgh — €390.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa 1934 Ernst Leitz Wetzlar Body Gehäuse Kamera Camera — €399.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa camera w. Leitz Summar 2/5cm lens NOTTESTED — €399.00 · eBay
ORIGINAL LEICA IIIA VINTAGE CLASSIC 35mm FILM CAMERA BODY USED CONDITION WORKING — $449.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa Film Rangefinder Camera With Leitz Summar F/2 50mm Lens LTM — $450.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa DRP Rangefinder Leitz Elmar f=5cm 1.3,5 Lens No.129554 — £349.42 · eBay
Leica iiia Lutz, Ferrando — $465.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa Rangefinder camera + Leitz Summar f3.5 collapsible lens +case pre-war — £363.70 · eBay
Fotocamera Leica IIIA 1936 con Summaron 3.5 cm — €449.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa B#241333 — $500.00 · Retro Photo Reading
Leica IIIa camera w. Leitz Summar 2/5cm lens NOTTESTED — $510.88 · eBay
leica iiia camera And 5cm F2 Lens — $520.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa (1937) Zubehörpaket Ernst Leitz Hektor 13,5cm f4.5 + OriginalTaschen — €475.00 · eBay
Appareil Photo Leica IIIA 1936 Avec Summaron 3,5 cm — €494.94 · eBay
Leica IIIa mit Summar 1:2 5cm 1938 in Topzustand — €499.00 · eBay
Leica IIIA camera w. Summar 2/5cm lens NOTTESTED — €499.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa (1935) mit Summitar 5cm f/2 – Ernst Leitz Wetzlar – Klassiker — €525.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa [L39] — ¥88,000 · Tokyo CAMERA (東京CAMERA)
1937 Brown Leica IIIa Model G Chrome Elmar 5cm f/3.5 #249970 Camera + Case — $599.99 · eBay · likely chrome
Leitz Leica IIIa 287058 / Summar 5cm 1:2 / ca. 1938 — €549.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa Chrom Mod. a syn. 1935 — €550.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa 35mm Film Camera Vintage Rangefinder Body Ernst Leitz Wetzlar M1006 — £469.53 · eBay
Leica IIIa D.R.P Ernst Leitz Wetzlar 35mm Rangefinder Film Camera, Germany III a — A$997.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa Elmar 5cm F3.5 Rangefinder Film Camera [Very Nice] Sn 198290 Read* — $649.99 · eBay
LEICA IIIa von 1938 mit altem Elmar 50 mm Nickel Objektiv und Fototasche Leder — €599.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa mit Leitz Summar 2,0 5cm / 50mm An-Verkauf ff-shop24 — €599.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa, Chrom mit Summar 5cm f:2 — €599.00 · eBay
1935 Leica IIIa 35mm Rangefinder Camera With 5cm F/2 Sunmitar Chrome — £516.70 · eBay · likely chrome
Leica IIIa Film Camera Leitz Elmar 5cm F3.5 — $678.90 · eBay
Leitz WEISU 3.5cm Simple Optical Viewfinder. Metal. 1933. Chrome. Leica IIIA — $695.00 · eBay · likely chrome
Leica IIIa #221574, c.1936, chrome, new shutter curtains, Elmar 5cm/3.5 #343673, cap, CLA'd, Mint- — $695.00 · Igor Camera Exchange · likely chrome
Leica IIIa first serial number 303301 RF camera Summitar 1:2 f=5cm — $699.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa Rangefinder Film Camera LTM M39 Screw Mount 1/1000s from Japan E0428 — £565.88 · eBay
Leitz Wetzlar Leica IIIa Baujahr 1945-1947 — €690.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa Gehäuse Body mit Leitz Summar 2/50 Lens M39 50mm f/2 (LTM) — €690.00 · eBay
Vintage Leica IIIa Ernst Leitz Wetzlar with Summaron F=3.5cm 1:3.5 Lens — $800.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa Gehäuse Body mit Leitz Summar 2/50 Lens M39 f/ 2/50 M39 Objektiv (LTM) — €750.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa DRP N-L camera body and Summar 5cm f2 lens and cap. Exc. Rare! — £660.00 · eBay
Antike Leica IIIa 1/1000 Kamera Messsucherkamera Box Objektiv Elmar Leitz Alt — €850.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa 35mm Sucherkamera mit Summitar 2/50mm, gebraucht, vom Fachhandel — €850.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa III a Kamera Camera Lucky number 252627 Leitz 95589 — €850.00 · eBay
Leitz Wetzlar Leica IIIA Year 1937 Elmar 5Cm 3.5 FSE 257303 & Case — $964.27 · eBay NEW
LEICA IIIA RANGEFINDER CAMERA with Leitz Summar 50mm f2 lens, CLA’d — $999.00 · eBay
Télémètre Leica IIIa 1937 + objectif Summar 5cm f/2 Nr 259357 / 385773 - fonc... — €947.13 · eBay
Leitz Wetzlar Leica IIIA Year 1937 Elmar 5Cm 3.5 FSE 257303 & Case — €958.17 · eBay NEW
Leica Iiia Rangefinder Camera #233040 w/ 50mm f/3.5 Leitz Elmar Nickel Lens-Nice — $1,099.00 · eBay
LEICA IIIa CAMERA AND LENSES CASE ETC — £975.70 · eBay
Leica IIIA Leicavit SCNOO w/ 50mm f2 Summar Collapsible GOOD — $1,400.00 · eBay
VINTAGE HIGHLY COLLECTIBLE LEICA IIIa Model G CAMERA w/LEITZ SUMMITAR LENS — $1,567.50 · eBay
Ernst Leitz Wetzlar Leica IIIa Nr.359508 "Monte en Sarre" 1949 — €1,498.00 · eBay · likely monte-en-sarre
:[V. RARE] Leica IIIa Asterisk (1936) 35mm Film Rangefinder Camera Body w/ Case — $1,965.00 · eBay
Leitz Leica IIIA BLACK w. Leitz Elmar 3,5/50mm lens M39 Screw Mount (LTM) — €1,899.00 · eBay
Leica IIIa Monte en Sarre original condition 1949 Y. RARE — €1,999.00 · eBay · likely monte-en-sarre
【美品セット】Leica/ライカ IIIa シルバーフィルムカメラボディ + Summar 50mm/f2 レンズ + ライカ写真集3冊 #jp28234 — from ¥115,000 · Yahoo! Auctions Japan · auction 2026-10-23
LEICA◆フィルムカメラ/ビンテージカメラ/IIIa/CANONレンズセット/動作未確認 — from ¥77,660 · Yahoo! Auctions Japan · auction 2026-10-23
LEICA LEICA IIIa型レンジファインダーカメラ中古良好T11735596 — from ¥37,180 · Yahoo! Auctions Japan · auction 2026-10-25
LEICA LEICA IIIa型 Summar 5cm F2 ライカレンジファインダーカメラ中古 T11735551 — from ¥66,000 · Yahoo! Auctions Japan · auction 2026-10-26

Buying from Yahoo! Auctions outside Japan. It is a domestic marketplace: sellers ship within Japan, and most will not register an overseas buyer. A proxy service bids on your behalf, receives the item and forwards it, for a fee and a wait. Buyee, Jauce and ZenMarket each accept a Yahoo auction number directly. Listed alphabetically for information — none is recommended over another, and none of these is an affiliate link.

Listings updated 2026-10-19. Links go to the shop or marketplace that carries the item.