Dear Leica Readers and Friends,

This is our last blog post of 2010 since the Leica Internet Team will be on holiday next week. Regular blog posts will return on Monday, January 3, 2011.

Thank you for all of your support this year as we took on new endeavors to connect with you online, including the launch of this blog in May. Many talented photographers, emails and phone calls via Skype have made this blog possible. We’ve also seen the Leica online communities spread across Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Vimeo and Flickr grow to nearly 100,000 Leica enthusiasts and customers!

With your help Leica Camera was able to raise awareness and funds on behalf of “The Leica User Forum Charity Book 2010” to benefit the Association for International Cancer Research (AICR) this year as well. This initiative was started and propelled by members of the Leica User Forum who have seen nearly 250 books sold and more than £10,000 raised for the AICR. To bid on a special copy of the book signed by Herr Spiller, formerly of Leica Camera AG, and by Norman Barrett, Chief Executive of AICR, click here for more details.

History was also made this year with the Berlinspiration virtual treasure hunt hosted on the global Leica Facebook page with the launch of the D-Lux 5. Watura Maruyama, the grand prize winner, got the opportunity to have a photo displayed on billboards in Berlin. His photo can be seen in Berlin now through Monday, December 27. This is an enormous step at Leica because for the first time ever user-generated content is being used for official brand communication.

All of these efforts would not be possible without you. Keep posting comments, tweets, photos and wall posts – your feedback is important.

Stay tuned to see what we have in store for 2011! Thanks for continuously inspiring us!

-Leica Internet Team