The object: the Leica Q3
One lens, no bag of kit and very little to decide. At £5,650 the Leica Q3 is a lot of money for a camera that does one job, which is exactly why it's worth having.
Your phone takes very good photographs, and it would be silly to pretend otherwise. It also sits in the same hand as your email, and the moment you lift it you’re one notification from being somewhere else. A proper camera does one job, and when you raise it, everyone in the room can see what you’re doing. That difference is most of the case for the Leica Q3.
Why this one
Many serious cameras invite you to start collecting lenses. The Q3 has one, built in: a Summilux 28mm f/1.7 with optical image stabilisation, and a macro mode that focuses down to 17cm. Twenty-eight millimetres is wide enough for a street, a dinner table or a room full of people. If you want to come closer, the camera offers digital zoom equivalents of 35, 50, 75 and 90mm.
Behind the lens is a sensor of about 60 megapixels, which leaves plenty to work with. The body is die-cast magnesium with a leather covering, rated IP52, and Leica describes the camera as made in Germany. It weighs about 743g with its battery and measures 130 x 80.3 x 92.6mm, so it won’t go in a jacket pocket without complaint, but one camera and no bag is a pleasant way to travel. You compose through a 5.76 megapixel OLED viewfinder or on a tilting screen.
It’s also properly modern where that helps. Pictures move to your phone through Leica’s FOTOS app, it records video at up to 8K if you ever want it, and an optional handgrip and charging pad add wireless charging.
What it costs
Leica’s UK site lists the Q3 at £5,650 in black paint and £5,750 in metal grey. We’d take the black. If you know you prefer a tighter view for portraits and details, the Q3 43 has a 43mm lens instead and lists at £5,900.
That is a great deal of money for a man just starting to earn it, and nobody needs one. The argument for it is the same as for a first serious watch: fewer things, better made and kept for longer. Leica invites you to try its cameras in its stores, and at this price you should. If you’re adding up the rest of the kit, start with our guide to the technology worth owning.
Once you have it, remember your manners. A good camera makes people wonder where the pictures are going. Ask before you post a photograph of anyone.
How we chose: prices and specifications are from Leica’s own UK product and technical pages, read on 2 November 2026. The camera was not handled for this piece, and the photograph shows a black Leica camera for illustration, which may not be this model. The opinions are ours, and nobody paid to appear here.
