Tri-Elmar-M 28-35-50mm f/4 ASPH
NotableKnown as "MATE", "Tri-Elmar MATE"
The MATE is one of the most original lens designs in the M system — three prime-quality focal lengths in one compact mount, the ultimate minimalist travel kit.
The Tri-Elmar-M ASPH (1998) is one of Leica's most unconventional ideas: a lens that steps mechanically between exactly three focal lengths — 28mm, 35mm, and 50mm — with a detented selector ring that clicks into each position. At f/4 across all three focal lengths, it is not fast, but it is remarkably compact for what it delivers.
The lens won a dedicated following among travel photographers and minimalists who wanted the M system's quality in a single compact package. The nickname "MATE" (Multi-Focal Aspherical Tri-Elmar) became the common shorthand. When you set it to 28, 35, or 50, the frame-line selector in the M viewfinder changes automatically through a cam on the lens mount — the viewfinder always shows you the right field of view.
For newcomers: most zoom lenses cover a continuous range (like 24–70mm). The MATE is deliberately not a zoom — it clicks to discrete focal lengths with fixed optical formulas, so each setting is as sharp as a dedicated prime. It is, in effect, three lenses in one mount.
Key specs
- focal lengths
- 28mm, 35mm, 50mm (stepped, not continuous)
- max aperture
- f/4 at all settings
- design
- ASPH
- coupling
- M viewfinder framelines via cam
- mount
- Leica M
Variants & finishes
First version of the Tri-Elmar-M 28-35-50mm — a three-focal-length manual-select lens using a 55mm filter thread. Unique concept: three discrete click-stop focal lengths in one compact barrel; no zoom, just three primes sharing a mount.
Revised Tri-Elmar with a smaller 49mm filter thread — lighter and more compact than the original. Same three click-stop focal lengths (28/35/50mm); the version most often seen on the used market.
Market value
Used-market price history is coming soon.
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