Artra Lab, a Hong Kong-based lens producer, has released a greatly inspired 35mm f/1.4 M mount lens that resembles the classic Leica Summilux Steel Rim. The Artra Lab Similar 35mm f/1.4 has been in development for two years and features a CNC-machined unibody aluminum frame. According to Artra Lab, the lens features improved durability, precise alignment, and a clean, minimalist design with a premium look and feel.

“The Artra Lab Similar Steel Rim 1960s 35mm f/1.4 Lens is precision-crafted, with high-quality glass elements that reduce distortions and aberrations. This results in crystal-clear visuals with high contrast and color integrity,” Artra Lab states. The lens’s name, “Similar,” honors the fact that its design is based on legends. Although the company never mentions it by name, the Leica Steel Rim serves as a reference point for the new lens.

The lens weighs barely 200 grams and measures 33 millimeters long. Its filter thread is 43mm, and its maximum diameter is 55.5mm. The Artra Lab Similar lens is the same weight and approximately the same length as the Leica 35mm f/1.4 Summilux-M Steel Rim lens, on which Artra Lab is clearly based.

In terms of optical design, the Artra Lab Similar 35mm f/1.4 has seven elements in five groups, precisely like the Leica lens. Also, the “Similar” lives up to its name in terms of aperture blades, with both prime lenses having ten of them.

The Artra Lab lens differs somewhat from the Leica lens regarding minimum focusing distance, allowing it to shoot slightly closer than the Leica prime (0.8 versus 1.0 meters).