These days, i normally use a digital slr for action and family photography but bring film cameras for travel and other deliberative photography. Save up to 40% off retail price and get a 180day warranty. The contax s is a 35mm slr camera introduced by the east german veb zeiss ikon in 1949. Discussion in modern film cameras started by finnegan, jan 22, 2014. Id be most grateful for any insights in this camera, or any other small in the contax slr line. The early cameras were among the finest in the world, typically featuring high quality zeiss interchangeable lenses. Get the best deals on contax manual focus slr film cameras when you shop the largest online selection at. In 1957, asahi introduced the pentax series, a 35 mm singlelens reflex camera slr camera which was so well received that it influenced the design of 35 mm slrs worldwide for years to come. With their first iteration pentax completely failed, and. Although carl zeiss and kyocera have entered into a long term cooperation regarding the development, production and sale of contaxbranded cameras, kyocera has decided to terminate such business. Free delivery and returns on ebay plus items for plus members. Introduced in 2000 and brought to market in 2002, the contax n digital is the worlds first 35mm fullframe dslr. Renowned for the quality of its zeiss lenses, the contax film camera range of 35mm system and compact cameras was popular with high end enthusiasts until production ceased in the early 21st century. In 1957, asahi introduced the pentax series, a 35 mm singlelens reflex.
Yashica would make the cameras, zeiss the lensesbest of both. All later contax cameras would be developed by yashica, which was later bought by kyocera, which stopped camera production in 2005 and subsequently sold the yashica brand to a hong kongbased marketing group whose portfolio of businesses includes commercial distributors of fancy cars and beer. Zeisss finest rangefinder 35mm film camera, the contax ii, was manufactured in germany between 1936 and 1941. It bugs me contax put the asa dial where the shutter speed. The small viewfinder on top of the camera was of little use when the photographer wanted to use a 5 mm or 500 mm lens. Compact and lightweight compared to classic slr systems. In march of 1987, canons 50th anniversary, the company. Nevertheless it needs to be understood that from a software engineering perspective creating a digital camera is a nontrivial matter. The contax brand, 19742005 the online photographer. Description engineers rejected the idea early that the carl zeiss t lens could be adapted to perform auto focus. Contax ii photographs, photographers and photography.
When it was released in 1980, it was famous for being the smallest motordriven. In my opinion, avoid the ax that is not the way to make an af slr. The planar is used in the contax slr system, the contax rangefinder g1 system and. The unsung heroes of 35mm photography part i slrs by dan k. Contax is originally the name of the famed 35mm rangefinder camera made from 1932 by zeiss ikon see contax rangefinder, which subsequently became the name of a pioneering singlelens reflex camera made from 1947 by the eastern part of zeiss ikon see contax s. By that time, yashica was a production giant with considerable electronic camera experience, and was seeking ways to expand sales and improve brand name recognition in the highly competitive 35mm slr market. I put in the battery and the kipon m42 to contaxyashica adapter and grabbed a couple of lenses to go shoot. The contax n1 is a 35mm camera that offers new technolgical breakthroughs for superior picture taking performance that exceeds the stateoftheart automanual dual focus mechanism using a 5 point. While the lenses are great, the bodies are quite problematic. Contax is an sap gold partner and global sap consulting services provider.
From nine locations in four countries around the world, contax delivers the highest quality. It was a terrific and solid little camera, especially good when fitted with the yashica ml 21mm f3. The final products under the contax name were a line of 35 mm, medium format, and digital cameras engineered and manufactured by kyocera, and featuring modern zeiss optics. This bombing ushered in a difficult time in the history of carl zeiss foundation.
Contax has nine service delivery centers in usa, canada, australia and the netherlands. The early cameras were among the finest in the world, typically featuring high. Second curtain synch is possible with a contax flash having second curtain synch capability. Sap services contax has nine service delivery centers in usa, canada, australia and the netherlands. Despite the zeiss lenses, i dont like the control setup on most contax slrs. As a result our research and development engineers have been. The constructors at zeiss ikons contax main factory in dresden. I have not owned a single slr body without some kind of problem that i had to live. Many people mistakenly believe that the popular canon eos1ds of 2002 was. In 2005, kyocera announced that it would no longer produce contax cameras.
History of camera and film timeline timetoast timelines. Contax began as a camera model in the zeiss ikon line in 1932, and later became a brand name. The contax n1 incorporates 5point wide array diagonal focus system and fine focus abc auto bracketing control. I know zip though about the other contax slrs, so that is a realnewbie opinion. Worlds first true 35mm slr was soviet sport camera. Contax 35mm slr camera get a great deal with this online auction for a camera presented by property room on behalf of a law enforcement or public agency client. We delete comments that violate our policy, which we encourage you to read. The monster zoom 355 is a very good for general purpose if you accept near 1kg weight and ax body is fine if you prefer auto focus assist or s2 s2b body for back up and may be yashica fx3 body. Get the best deals on contax film cameras when you shop the largest online selection at.
Fairly late model yashica slr 35mm cameras will accept and function with your zeiss 50mm f1. The exceptional zeiss lenses for mirrorless system cameras are used in conjunction current highresolution sensors for images without any. Kyocera are hoping to price the digital slr at around 800,000 yen approx. In 1973 the contax name was licensed to the japanese maker yashica by carl zeiss to create a prestigious brand of 35mm cameras and interchangeable contax yashica lenses in cooperation with the german company. Plans for such a camera had certainly existed at zeiss ikon since the late 1930s, and the development of an eyelevel viewfinder using a pentaprism would soon become a key element of the project. Zeiss photography camera lenses for slr and mirrorless. This camera offers the capability to mount any mmbayonet lenses, widening the. However, the wwii prevented pursuing these ideas, and when resumed after the war, the plans had to be adjusted to the deficiencies prevailing in the immediate postwar dresden factory. I have the rx which i think a terrific camera, build. Contax slr film cameras for sale shop with afterpay ebay. The chrometitanium s2 with a 5 mm spot metering system which covers the area within the microprism doughnut.
The contax rx i bought recently is a stunning camera, its a big heavy thing but handles beautifully and has a good specification. Free shipping on many items browse your favorite brands. The rts ii was the contax flagship professional slr in the 1980s until. Japanese camera maker kyocera bought contax and relabelled it contax.
Contax 9q quartz advert poster 35mm film slr camera. Thus, i was looking to find a prolevel contax body that cuts. The original contax rts was introduced in,highly advanced electronic slr system camera developed by mutual cooperation of carl zeiss, west germany, and yashica, japan. The contax 7 md quartz is a nice little automaticexposure slr made by yashica using the contax marquee. Contax manual focus slr film cameras for sale ebay.
In 1973 the contax name was licensed to the japanese maker yashica by carl zeiss to create a prestigious brand of 35mm cameras and. Buy and sell used contax film cameras at keh camera. I used to use an ae1 program, a great camera that many people learned on. Automatic shutter speed depends on cameras originally set conditions and surrounding light. Contax n digital slr overview and full product specs on cnet. The professional choice and considered by many to be the companys flagship camera design, with a vacuum back. Camera with ttl flash @1250, a 14000 top speed and 3 program modes, it arguably. When selecting a contax slr film camera, you can think about the kind of photography youd like to create. While the 35 mm slr camera had already appeared before the war, its major disadvantage was the waistlevel finder which gave a laterally reversed image, taking away the immediacy between the. The achievement coincides with canons 70th anniversary and the 20th anniversary of the launch of its eos line of slr cameras. Contax is a gold sap partner, authorized by sap to sell, implement and support sap software products. With an extensive range of features and functionality, the contax ax 35mm camera is a great tool for film lovers of all ages.
The contax rts was the result of the cooperation between carl. It is said that work on the contax slr continued during lunch breaks and other personal time. Unfortunately, all of the contax slr prototypes were lost during the war. The extra bulk was needed to accommodate the mechanism that would drive the film plane to focus. Net proceeds from the sale of these goods and financial donations from the community make it possible for us to operate our free job training programs. The camera will support contaxs own n mount lenses, so far four carl zeiss lenses exist with this mount. A timeline created with timetoasts interactive timeline maker.