Tag Archives: Contax

a man from Texas

Posted on September 18, 2024 by Robert

Toronto. John Alldredge was charter member number 8, joining the PHSC in early 1975. He served in a number of positions on the Toronto Branch Executive including President, Vice-President, and Treasurer. John assisted in the annual auction as a ‘gate-keeper’ … Continue reading →

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a Johnny come lately

Posted on December 3, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. Introduced in 1924, the Leica by Leitz was a flat out success. Two years later, in 1926, its competitor, Zeiss formed the Zeiss-Ikon group to rationalize the German photographic Industry. By 1932, the first Zeiss Contax reached market – … Continue reading →

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a lens for all reasons

Posted on January 10, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. When Leitz first marketed the Leica in the mid 1920s, it was an innovative success. By 1933 other makers had competing cameras out. The mighty Carl Zeiss organization not only marketed cameras, but their Tessar lens was a excellent … Continue reading →

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boys will be boys

Posted on January 4, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. Most of us have heard of the rivalry between Leica (Leitz, Wetzlar) and Contax (Zeiss, Jena) last century. On page 455 of the October 1935 issue of American Cinematographer,  Leitz, New York placed this ad to extol the virtues … Continue reading →

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the good, the bad, and the ugly – again

Posted on January 3, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. The last time I used this title. it was for a Leica accessory . This time it is camera design at and after the mid 1930s and the minicam revolution. Good camera design encompasses many considerations. Ergonomically designed, utilitarian, light, … Continue reading →

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introducing a photographer to minicams in 1938

Posted on October 2, 2021 by Robert

Toronto. When Leitz announced the Leica mid 1920s, most photographers used larger cameras and rarely needed to enlarge their negatives. In 1926, the German government arranged for Zeiss to form the mighty Zeiss-Ikon conglomerate in Dresden to rationalize the German … Continue reading →

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vive la France!

Posted on September 25, 2021 by Robert

Toronto. The title of this post is a French patriotic expression. When Charlie De Gaulle visited Quebec in 1967, He used a similar expression on the Montreal City Hall balcony (the slogan of the Quebec independence movement) irritating the hell … Continue reading →

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doing it better (sometimes)

Posted on September 19, 2021 by Robert

Toronto. On page 31 of the March 1950 edition of Popular Photography, an advertisement touts the Zeiss-Ikon Contax-S camera at whopping price of $475USD with the coated Zeiss Biotar lens. The model S was briefly sold while later models were … Continue reading →

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eye of the storm

Posted on August 31, 2021 by Robert

Toronto. It was ‘the best of times and the worst of times‘ between the world wars. After the first war, pent-up demand blossomed into unprecedented wealth in the first decade, followed by the worst depression ever in the next (world … Continue reading →

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a Leotax ad from 1957

Posted on February 27, 2018 by Robert

Toronto. To gain traction on the world markets after the war ended, camera industries  began to imitate the more famous German brands. One of the Japanese brands that was almost identical to the Leica screw mount camera it imitated, was … Continue reading →

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