This section contains over 65 still cameras from A to Z (Agfa to Zeiss Ikon) using 35mm film but not having single lens reflex viewing and focusing. There are four primary ways these cameras focus. First, some are fixed focus. There is no focus adjustment. The lenses are usually small aperture and will provide a clear depth of field from perhaps five feet to infinity. Second, some have zone focusing. The lens focuses, but the user has to estimate the distance. Often there are two, three or four distance zones often represented by icons to help the user. The third way is rangefinder focusing which provides precise focusing. Rangefinder cameras have at least two windows which produce two images. There is usually a yellow square or diamond seen in the viewfinder with two overlapping images. You rotate the focusing ring until the two images merge together. For further information see The Living Image and Olympus 35mm Rangefinder Cameras. Rangefinder focusing became common in the 1950s and remained popular until being largely replaced by the fourth focusing method, autofocus which begin with the Konica C35 AF in November 1977. With autofocus, you just point at the subject and the camera focuses automatically. See Wikipedia - Autofocus for more information. With all of these cameras the photographer views the image through a viewfinder which is not connected to the lens. The view through this viewfinder or window can hence be slightly different from the image that hits the film.

The cameras are arranged alphabetically by manufacturer and then generally by date for each manufacturer.

Ansco - Agfa

A follow up entilted Agfa Optima: Pop Photography 1959 Articles to the original photo.net discussion above has links to two November 1959 Popular Photography articles. The first What's New article describes the lens as a 39mm Apotar f3.9. The shutter is a Compur with continuously variable speeds from 1/30 to 1/250 second. The article describes the exposure system. "[A]s the photoelectric cell constantly monitors scene brightness, it feeds current to a mechanical system which alters the position of a cam. When the lever on the left side of the camera body . . . is depressed before each shot, it releases tension on a feller arm, thus allowing spring-loaded aperture and shutter-speed controls to move until halted by the cam, thus setting correct exposure and placing a green dot in view-finder to signify sufficient light." The shutter speed stays at 1/250 until the aperture goes to its maximum at f3.9. The shutter speeds then begin to go slower until they get to 1/30 second. It is therefore really the first programmed exposure mode camera! The other article, Electric Eye indicates the lever stops the lens down to the correct aperture.

Curiously, the Optima I and other models below do not have a separate lever you hold down while pushing the shutter. Rather, they have an identical looking button on the opposite side of the lens that serves as the shutter release. This shutter release does go down quite some distance compared to most shutter releases. I'm guessing that the lever action and shutter release were combined into one button on the Optima I and later models. The What's New article lists the price of the original Optima as $79.95 which is nearly equal to $600 in 2009 dollars. The original Optima has zone focusing consisting of only three zones shown by icons with two people, three people and a mountain. According to Agfa Optima - Wikipedia Commons the focusing icons use Wilhelm Busch's famous Max und Moritz cartoon heroes. As noted in the photo.net discussions above, 1959 was a landmark year for cameras with such notable cameras as the Nikon F, Canon Canoflex and the Minolta SR-2 single lens reflex cameras also coming out in that year.

My Agfa Optima was purchased on 10-25-09 for $15 plus $9.05 shipping on eBay from Pacific Rim Camera. They describe it as being in EX+ condition with the shutter working on bulb, but the meter not working. That's the disadvantage to a totally automatic system. When the Selenium meter is out, you are really out of luck. Selenium meters also tend to stop working over time. I bought it while doing the description for Agfa Optima I which I got about a month earlier. I thought I should have the very first model of the very first truly automatic exposure camera!

Argus

Canter

Canon

Kodak

German Made Retina

I purchased mine on October 24, 2009 at an estate sale in the Fletcher Hills area of El Cajon, CA. The camera belonged to a physician who lived in a modest Fletcher Hills area house. The camera was under a pile of other things and sold for $5. I also purchased wooden slide cases that appear to be hand made and showing excellent workmanship. There were hundreds of mainly Kodachrome slides in the cases from the late 1940s to the early 1960s. The majority were from the early 1950s and I suspect were taken with this camera. The Kodachrome slides are in excellent condition with the colors remaining true and vibrant. In contrast, the few Ektachrome slides have turned larely monochrome. The slides are mainly of scenic, natural places in the Western United States including Death Valley, Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Petrified Forest, Crater Lake, Painted Desert, Anza Borrego and Colorado. The photographic quality is quite good, although it appears the photographer was limited to his single 50mm lens. Most of the photos could have been taken today. The few with cars or people, appear quite dated. My camera is in very good cosmetic condition. There is a slight amount of green oxidation on the metal trim in front. Optically it looks excellent with perhaps a slight amount of dust inside the lens. The lens is clear with no evidence of mold. The viewfinder is bright. The rangefinder works well. It seems to focus accurately, although the focus is very stiff. Unfortunately, the shutter will not fire. I'm aware the Retina IIa will not fire when the film counter gets to zero. I believe I have set things correctly and that it should fire. I may take it somewhere to see how much it would cost to get it fixed. It is a gorgeous camera, and once repaired, will capable of taking gorgeous photos of the beauty of nature today just as it did well over 50 years ago. Several sites discuss the Kodak Retina IIa including: Shutterbug.net, www.photoethnography.com, camerapedia.org, Classic Cameras, The Camera Collector (pictured with a rotary phone and an Olympia typewriter), Chris' Camera Pages (repair), butkus.org (owner's manual), photo.net, Dante Stella Retina II, IIa, IIc page.

I purchased another Retina IIa for $65 (advertised for $80) in El Cajon, CA on October 27, 2009 from an ad on Craigslist. Like the one above it is in excellent cosmetic condition. Further, the focus is smooth and the shutter works! Pretty rare to come across two Retina IIa cameras in great cosmetic condition three days apart in the same city! I bought it since I think a Retina IIa is a nice vintage user camera and paying $65 for a working one is probably cheaper than getting the one above fixed. This one belonged to the seller's uncle who had passed away.

Kodak Cameras Made in the United States

Konica

Leica

Japanese manufacturers like Nikon and Canon had similar 35mm rangefinder models patterned after the Leica. These Japanese cameras are also highly respected and collectable. Russian manufacturers also made similar models which were functional, although generally less highly regarded. As indicated below, besides other manufacturers producing similar cameras, there are also counterfeit cameras. These are cameras with the Leica name, but which are not made by Leica or true Leica cameras. For example, some counterfeit cameras are Russian models modified to include the Leica name.

Leica cameras were very pricey when new. They remain very collectible and pricey today. Common models typically go for hundreds, rarer models can approach and exceed a thousand, and the rarest can go for thousands. They are usually not in my league, but I saw the one below on Craigslist and decided to get it. I figured the Camera Museum had reached the point that it should have one Leica. Don't expect many more, however. Donations are, of course, accepted!

Genuine. There are many fake Leica cameras so I have compared it extensively with photos of other Leica IIIc cameras on the Internet. (See How to Identify a Fake Leica, Fake Russian Leicas - Cameraquest.) It appears to be genuine. Mine looks identical to several other IIIc samples on the Internet from around the same time including Leica IIIc manual at www.cameramanuals.org, flickr.com - Leica IIIc (from the same year according to the serial no. in the photo), Camerapedia - Leica IIIc, 35mm-compact.com - Leica IIIc (in French), and La collection d'appareils photo anciens par Sylvain Halgand (in French), eBay Listing ( ten very detailed photos all of which are like my camera). The "Optishes Naheinstellgerat Nooky/Nookyhesum" accessory viewfinder, including box, also looks identical to those at Leica Assessories and Photo Bucket. Similarly, the Leitz Shade for Summicron, Barn Door Type, looks identical to that at Pacific Rim Camera. It sells used for $45 at Pacific Rim Camera. The "Leica 35-135 Imarect/VIOOH accessory viewfinder" at Photoethnography also looks like mine. Finally, the seller is the son of the original owner who indicates he bought it new in Germany in the early 1950s. It has therefore only had one owner.

Value. While my camera and accessories appear to be geniune, the IIIc also appears to be one of the more common Leicas. In my year of production alone, 25,000 were produced according to the table at cameraquest.com. This makes them relatively inexpensive on eBay. For example, when I purchased it there was a buy it now for $348 for a body in very good condition, $299 for a body in good condition, and $188 for a body in fair condition. One very similar to mine with the Summitar 5cm 1:2 lens and a case was sold the same day I bought mine for $250 plus $8 shipping. Another one in good condition with Leitz Elmar 5cm 3,5 Lens went for $349.99. A body only in okay condition went for only $124.72. Another with a normal lens like mine went for $224.72 plus $18 shipping. Mine was originally advertised as IIIg which is much more rare and goes for hundreds more. Mine appears to be for a decent price, however, given the extra lens and accessories.

Lenses. The normal lens the camera generally came with was the 50mm f3.5 Leitz Elmar (1931-1959) made for almost thirty years (1931-1959) which cameraquest calls "the lens that initially made Leica famous." Mine instead comes with the upgraded Ernst Leitz Wetzlar "Summitar" 5cm (50mm) f2 (1:2) No. 738934 lens with Leica lens cap. Cameraquest states: "50/2 Leitz Summitar (1939-1955) Much improved sharpness over the Summar, chrome collapsible lenses only, post war lenses coated. Watch out for fogging and cleaning scratches." The extra lens is a 13.5cm (135mm) Ernst Leitz Wetzlar Hektor f4.5 (1:4.5) No. 715358. It comes with a metal hood. One sold recently on eBay with the finder for $89.65 plus $10.35 shipping. There was no comment on its condition, however. Cameraquest.com states: "135/4.5 Leitz Hektor (1933-1960): Leica's best LTM 135. Uncoated Black pre-war or Coated post-war chrome. Lens head removable for Visoflex reflex housing. Watch out for fogging and cleaning scratches." Mine is mostly black with distance ring being chrome. It appears to have a coated lens, however. When I look at the glass, for example, there is a definite blue/purple tint to the reflection of my ceiling light on the lens glass. Was mine pre-war? In discussing another lens, the 50/2 Leitz Summar (1933-1940), cameraquest indicates while all left the factory uncoated, some were sent back to the factory after the war for coating.

Price When New. I don't have information on the price of a IIIc when new. The 1956 Montgomery Ward Photographic Catalog, p. 5 gives the price of a IIIf (and IIf) with Summicron 50mm f2.0 lens as $336. $336 in 1956 is equal to $2,664.44 in 2009 dollars! The "Imarect" 35-135mm finder was $39 or $309.27 in 2009 dollars. A 90mm Elmar f4 lens was $90. The Leica IIIf body only was $177. The body with the 50mm f3.5 Elmar lens was $237. By 1956 Leica had was also selling the bayonet lens mount Leica M# which as $447 with a Summicron f2 lens. The IIIf was followed by the IIIg in 1957 which was the last model of the Leica screw mount cameras.

Condition. Cosmetically the camera has some areas of brassing and small pitting. Covering is very good. Glass in lenses looks good with some dust in the 135mm lens. Shutter fires and shutter speeds vary appropriately. Aperture works. Viewfinder and rangefinder reasonably clean. Rangefinder works but is very faint. Accessories in good condition. As I look at it in the enlarged photo above, I can tell I also need to take a Q-tip to it to clean many of the nooks and crannies.

Operation.
This is a brief summary of how to operate the camera. Before actually using a Leica, review carefully the owner's manual which is available at www.cameramanuals.org.
Film Loading. Set reversing lever to A (advance). There is not door as on most 35mm cameras. Rather, there is a baseplate on bottom of camera. Remove basepate by unlocking on bottom. Remove take-up spool. Insert film into take-up spool. Pull out film from cassette until two sprocket holes show on trimmed edge. Insert take-up spool and cassette into camera with pointed ends towards baseplate. Put baseplate back on. Advance film and trip shutter release twice. Make sure film counter set to zero.
Taking a photo. Lens is collapsable. Pull out and turn to left until it stops. Turn film advance knob in direction of arrow until it stops. Set shutter speed. Speeds from 1/30 to 1/1000 second on top dial. To set, left up slightly and turn to allign desired setting with arrow on accessory shoe. To set speeds from 1 second to 1/30 second, turn top dial to 1/30. Set front dial to desired speed. For 1/30 second, both dials should be at 1/30. Adjust aperture ring on front part of lens to desired setting. Twin eyepiece on back, top, left of camera. Compose picture using right viewfinder window. Focus using left rangefinder window. Focus ring and lever are towards back of lens. Turn until the images in the rangefinder window merge together. Press shutter release.
Unloading film. Turn reversing lever to R. Pull up rewind knob and turn in the direction of arrow until fully rewound.

Mamiya

Minolta

The only discrepancy is the frame size. Model A had a frame size of 24mm x 32mm instead of what later became the standard frame size of 24mm x 36mm. The only Leica mount Minolta with a 24mm x 36mm frame size was the last one - the Model II B. That model was clearly labeled II B on the front, however. Curiously, however, when I measure the film gate on my camera, it is 24mm x 36mm. I'm wondering if mine might have been modified or have a replacement film gate.

My camera has been obviously worked on. It appears to be largely complete with several exceptions. It is missing a piece that screws on at the base of the shutter release. The hinge pin on the camera back is missing. The screws on the bottom plate are missing. The screws that hold in the film gate (for lack of a better phrase) are missing and the entire film gate area can be lifted out. There is piece of tape over the pressure plate. A small piece of the covering is removed on the bottom front near the self timer, revealing a threaded hole. The depth of field guide ring on the lens is loose. Finally, The base of the lens has three sections carved out. That obviously took someone some time, although I have no idea what the purpose is. The lens aperture works. The focus is frozen. It is serial no. 8087. The camera will wind and the shutter release clicks. The shutter controls will not move, however, and the shutter is not working at all. I can't fully test the rangefinder since the focus is frozen, but it does show the typical rangefinder double image. All of this sounds pretty bad, but actually it looks pretty good and many of the things like missing screws might be remedied fairly easily.

The camera with a leather every-ready case in decent condition was purchased at an estate/garage sale in the San Carlos area of San Diego (Spruce Lake Street) on 1-17-09 for $5. (I also purchased an Argus C3 in great condition for $15, an old movie projector for $15, an old picture viewer for $15, a box of old camera "stuff" for $15 and a slide rule for $2.) I consider the Minolta 35A a very cool camera being the first Minolta 35mm camera model and a Leica clone - my first. I also have the first Minolta 35mm single lens reflex camera, the Minolta SR2, released in 1958 the same year the last Minolta Leica copy rangefinder, the Model II B, was released. The SR2 marked the change in direction from rangefinders to single lens reflex cameras. I purchased the SR-2 also at a neighborhood (San Carlos - Budlong Lake) garage sale about a year prior to the Minolta 35 rangefinder.

I would welcome any comments about my Minolta 35. In particular, I'm interested confirmation that it is the original Model A, why the film gate seems to be 24mm x 36mm, what the modifications to the base of the lens might have been for, ideas as to its rarity and value, and any thoughts as to whether it would be worth getting repaired, and if so recommendations for a repair person.

Nikon

Olympus

I purchased a second working XA2 for $5 at an estate sale in the Mt. Helix area of San Diego on 6-28-08. The cosmetic condition is good except for a large spot on the camera back below the rewind knob with no paint. The spot looks to be caused by resting one's thumb there while taking a photo and an indication of a well used, although well cared for, camera. It comes with an A11 flash in good cosmetic and working condition. The flash, which takes a 1.5 volt AA battery, turns on using a switch on the camera just below the ASA setting under the lens.

Pentax

Petri

Ricoh

Voigtlander

Yashica

Zeiss Ikon

Other