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The $2 Million Dollar Camera – Plus the Images That Made it Famous

PHOTO: BNPS.CO.UK

If you take photos for a living – or simply love the craft – you are probably like me in that you’ve spent more of your hard earned dough on cameras and photographic gadgetry than the average Joe. But would you be willing to pay 2 million dollars for a camera? That’s a whole new level of love for the magic light-box.

I’m referring to David Douglas Duncan‘s Leica M3, a camera that captured some of the most well known war images along with incredible portraits of his good friend Pablo Picasso. It was just sold for $2.19 million – making it the most expensive commercially manufactured camera ever to be sold.

Although this camera is special because of who wielded it and the incredible images that passed through its innards, it is also unique in that it is one of four Leica M3Ds ever created – the D stands for Duncan. Leica created this battle hardened camera specifically for him, so that he could get in the midst of the action without compromising the integrity of this remarkable tool.

Scroll down for some of Duncan’s famous images and ask yourself the question: if you had all the money in the world, would YOU pay 2 million for a camera with such a deep and rich history?

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65 replies on:
The $2 Million Dollar Camera – Plus the Images That Made it Famous

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  1. Nicolae Cioloca says:
    December 11, 2012 at 6:05 am

    No.

    Selling the cam + the Prints = great marketing.

    I think the “main” product are the photographys which have been sold with the cam.

    It`s just a camera, its worth what any other Leica M3(D) is worth nowadays. These might not be cheap anyway.

    Who sold the package?

    Nic

  2. faisal says:
    December 11, 2012 at 5:25 am

    Amazing camera, if I had that much money, I would make another camera of that quality ;p

  3. Franz Scheurer says:
    December 11, 2012 at 12:22 am

    If I had an spare couple of Millions, I would spend it with Leica to make me an M9D 🙂

  4. Anonymous says:
    December 10, 2012 at 10:19 pm

    Absolutely !

    as long as it comes with full ownership rights of the photos it made…

  5. Adil says:
    December 10, 2012 at 9:36 pm

    I’d rather have the films instead.

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