|
|
Before the Second World War there were really only two world class rival optical titans vying for supremacy in the serious 35mm amateur/professional arena. Leica, of course, was one and Zeiss was the other. Zeiss was a mammoth German optical vendor and the Contax Rangefinder System provided a venue for its "miniature" lens production.
Introduced first in black enamel painted brass in 1932 in response to the growing success of the Leica offerings, these cameras were produced nearly continuously (understandable interruption in the 1946-1952) until 1961. Bodies are heavy and extremely rugged. The articulated accordion/venetian blind shutter mechanism is an awkward performance limiting artifact of its design. The bayonet lens mount in far more convenient than Leica's LTM/SM and allows for very rapid one handed/three finger operation but the focus gearing mechanism is severely loaded by anything other than very simple standard 50mm offerings which proves in use to be a significant limitation. |
|
