Amateur Photographer - UK (2020-04-11)

subscribe 0330 333 1113 I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk I 11 April 2020 49

1969 Ricoh126C-Flex

Thelastof the 126 cartridgefilmSLRsfeaturesshutter

prioritywithspeedsof 1/30-1/500secsetona body-

mountedringbehindthelens.Aperturesareindicated

ona dialonthefrontof thebody,andtheautomation

happenswhenthedialis turnedtoauto.Aperturescan

alsobesetmanually,whilea CdSmeterpowersa needlein

a topplatewindowtosuggestsettingsaccordingto

selectedshutterspeeds.Thestandardlensis a screw-in

Rikenon55mmf/2.8,whichworksin conjunctionwitha

secondlensinsidethebody.Wideangle35mmand

medium-tele100mmversionsarealsoavailable.

S REFLEXES

A Contaflex35mmSLR

wasa prestigiousbrandin

the1950s.The 126

versionthatlauncheda

decadelateris notof the

samebuildqualityasits

predecessors,butit’sstill

a qualitycamera.It’sa

shutterprioritymodelwith

CdSthrough-the-lens

(TTL)metering;speedsof

1/30-1/500secareseton

a topplatedialaschosen

aperturesaredisplayedin

theviewfinder.Standard

lensesarea Color-Pangor

orTessar45mmf/2.8,

interchangeablewitha

rangeof otherZeiss

lensesfrom25mm

wideangleto200mm

telephoto.Accessories

includinga copyingstand,

right-angledfinder,filters,

close-uplensesanda lens

hoodcanstillbefound.

TheonlySLRentitledto

usetheword‘Instamatic’

in itsnameis anaperture

prioritycamera.Setthe

requiredapertureandthe

electronicshutter,fuelled

bya CdSmeter,is

automaticallysettothe

appropriatespeed

indicatedfrom1/30to

1/500secin the

viewfinder.Thestandard

lensis a Xenar45mm

f/2.8,a 90mmmedium

telephotolenswas

introducedwiththe

camera,butthemountis

compatiblewithS-series

lensesmadeforthe

Retina.A flashcube

insertedintoa socketon

thetopplateautomatically

setstheshutterto

1/30sec.Electronicflash

canalsobeusedviaa

standardsyncsocket.

1968 Rolleifl ex SL26

Of all the 126 SLRs, this is the most compact. It’s all-manual, but with a split image

rangefi nder to aid focusing. Shutter speeds of 1/2-1/500sec and apertures that vary

with the lens in use, are set on body-mounted rings behind the lens. The standard

lens is a Zeiss Tessar 40mm f/2.8, which works in conjunction with another lens fi xed

inside the body. This also links with two accessory adapters: a Pro-Tessar 28mm f/3.2

for wideangle photography and a Pro-Tessar 80mm f/4 medium telephoto.

automation, thanks to a

selenium meter cell

above the lens, chooses

the correct aperture

displayed in the

viewfi nder. A socket on

top of the pentaprism

accepts a fl ashcube. The

Super Keytar 48mm

f/2.8 lens is not

interchangeable.

1967 Zeiss Ikon

Contafl ex 126

1968 Kodak

K1020 Instamatic Refl ex

The Contaflex 126, a cartridge film version of Zeiss

Ikon’s better-known 35mm Contaflex cameras

The Kodak Instamatic Reflex

with flashcube fitted

The Ricoh 126C-Flex, last

of the cartridge film SLRs

Rolleiflex SL26 with

its tele lens adapter