France 1955 – Spy Camera – 16 mm – Infrequent. The Stylophot is a pocketable mini camera which makes 10x10mm images on 16mm film. It was produced in France in 1955 and presented as a “pen” camera, due to its resemblance to a fountain pen with the pen clip attached to the side. “Stylo” being the … Read more93 Secam
Stylophot
Private eye camera
Germany 1952 – Compact – 35 mm – Rare. The Edixa Reflex was produced by Wirgin in 1952 and was West Germany’s most popular series of SLR’s with focal plane shutter. The Edixa Reflex was the early brainchild of a then unknown technical mechanic named Heinz Waaske that later created one of the most successful … Read more91 Wirgin
Edixa Reflex
Japan 1953 – Compact – 35 mm – Rare. The Asahiflex was an innovative 35 mm SLR camera built by the Asahi Optical Corporation in 1952. It is widely regarded as the first SLR camera built in Japan and brought up quite a few innovations Unlike the majority of Japanese camera manufacturers of the time, … Read more90 Asahi
Asahiflex Ia
First Japanese SLR
Japan 1955 – Spy Camera – 8 mm – Rare. Produced around 1955 by Suzuki the Camera Lite is a Spy camera hidden in a zippo-like lighter. It was produced as a simplified version of another Spy Camera, the Echo 8. In 1953 the Echo 8 made an appearance in movie “Roman Holiday.” A reporter, Gregory … Read more86 Suzuki Optical
Camera Lite (model 1)
USSR 1953 – Compact – 35 mm – Rare. The Kiev rangefinders were produced for over 50 years in Ukraine (USSR) and carry an extraordinary history. It all began with one model : tthe Kiev II At the end of World War II, the victorious Red Army captured and “relocated” the still-standing Dresden Zeiss factories … Read more83 Kiev
Kiev II
France 1955 – Compact – 35 mm – Very Rare. Created in the mid-50s by Paul Lachaize near Lyon, France, the Mecilux is a remarkable device. Lachaize, a skilled artisan, ventured into industrial production using emerging precision plastic injection techniques. What sets the Mecilux apart is its focus on accessibility and user-friendliness. Lachaize devised an … Read more81 Lachaize
Mecilux
1500 produced
Italy 1954 – Compact – 35 mm – Rare. The Rectaflex is a 35mm SLR camera developed in Italy by the eponymous company. It was presented for the first time at the Milan fair in april 1948. It was the world’s first SLR equipped with a solid Pentaprism that allowed a vertically corrected view. The … Read more79 Rectaflex
Rectaflex
Japan 1958 – Compact – 35 mm – Very rare. The Honor S1 (or Honor 35) is a Japanese Leica III copy, made from 1956 to 1959 by Zuiho Kōgaku. It seems that it was first developed by Daiichi Kōgaku as the Ichicon-35 though no original document has yet been found to confirm this. The … Read more77 Zuiho
Honor S1
United States 1950 – Reflex TLR – 35 mm – Rare. The Model C, produced by Bolsey starting 1950, is one of the quirkiest and most eccentric cameras ever made. It’s a very compact, “Atomic Age” styled Twin Lens Reflex (TLR) camera was designed by Yakob Bogopolsky, also famous for having later founded Bolex (the cinema … Read more75 Bolsey
Model C
Italy 1954 – Compact – 35 mm – Very rare. Starting in 1949, Domenico Chinaglia of Belluno in north-west Italy started producing the Kristall Cameras, Italian copies of the Leica II. Chinaglia was an incredible character and produced cameras in various locations. He collaborated with several other entrepreneurs of the times ultimately giving birth to … Read more74 Domenico Chinaglia
Kristall R
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