现在玩相机/镜头的模式真是太丰富了，如果从拍照角度看，完全超出了拍摄者的需求范围。
从感光载体来说，可大体分为胶片和数码，从他们的发展态势来看，数码是进行时，胶片基本是完成时态。
从玩的角度看，数码产品受现代生产模式的影响，同一性极强，可玩性有限。
从用的角度看，数码产品符合现代人的使用方式，交流模式，甚至思维模式，可以说非常快捷有效。
从效果来看，每种产品都能拍摄出杰出的照片，取决于后面那个头，所以，这个不再讨论范围内。

如前所述，数码产品还处在进行时态，这个不仅是指数码产品的核心部件，感光元件，而且还有感光元件的载体，机身（除却感光部分）。
回顾胶片拍摄的发展※※，随着拍摄画幅不断的不断演变，机身也经历相当的发展，截止到数码产品成为主流，35mm胶片和120胶片及散页片是最为主流的胶片片幅，与之对应的有35mm单反旁轴相机，120单反双反折叠机，和大画幅相机。

春节快乐！！[

比较图

Why the Contarex?

It may seem a little silly to ask, "Why the Contarex", but it is an important question that goes a long way to explain why it is what it is. The shortest, best and simplest answer is "Gold". There are two ways to get gold, you can mine it (lots of dirty work even if you own a gold mine) or you can buy it (clean and easy). Back in the days prior to 1974, when the Contarex was being made, the United States Currency was on the gold standard, but U.S. citizens were forbidden by federal law to own much gold so gold didn't matter to us personally then as it does now. All we were permitted to own then was a small amount of jewelry or to use in manufacturing. There was no such thing as bullion coins or buying gold as an investment like today. U.S. citizens could not buy gold in the USA. But, if you were a sovereign government like Western Germany, you could take all the dollars you got from trade, take them to the U.S. Treasury, and convert them directly into gold bullion. Back then the official gold price was $32.00 per ounce. Gold was a hugely big deal in matters of international trade and most particularly to small countries like Germany who had only one way to get gold and this was to buy it with dollars.

If you were a European government, and you had no gold mines in your country, and you needed gold for international transactions, what would you do? You would probably try very hard to find some product or service that you could market to americans so they would give their dollars (gold) to you. This explains the Contarex and it also provides one of the very good reasons why the Contarex was discontinued the same year the United States went off the gold standard and it was no longer possible to go directly to the U.S. Treasury and turn dollars directly into gold bars.

The Contarex was a wonderful, efficient, and lovely gold mine to the West German government. Zeiss took paint, brass, steel and glass which are very cheap, combined them with local expertise and highly skilled manpower and some electricity, and turned these directly into gold that could be used to finance the reconstruction and prosperity of postwar West Germany. When it was being made a Contarex sold for about 12 ounces of gold at $32.00 an ounce. This is why the Contarex. The Zeiss company is still a big money maker for the German government. This is why even today they print postal stamps with Carl Zeiss and Ernst Abbe portraits on them. This is why even today large silver coins are minted with Carl Zeiss and Ernst Abbe on them denominated in the Deutschmark. If you think about it, Carl Zeiss and Ernst Abbe taught the Germans how to turn steel, brass and glass (products of dirt) into gold and everyone's hands are clean and nobody had to go to work in a dirty gold mine like those poor miners today in South Africa.

The simple fact of the matter is that the Contarex is a camera that (would) and could only be made when it could only be paid for in gold; lots and lots of gold. This explains why it is so very very very special and why having one restored is relatively expensive in today's dollars. But if you think of it in historical terms the financing all makes sense.

Suppose you buy a Contarex Bullseye with a 50mm f2.0 Planar for about $700.00 and then invest another $1,000.00 in restoring it to its maximum potential. What are you out? About one and a quarter ounces of gold. Compare this to the 12 ounces it cost to buy originally and this is a bargain. The difference between then and today is that gold costs a lot more dollars to buy than it did back then. There is no doubt in my mind that if Zeiss was to restart production of the Bullseye and build it to the same standards it would easily cost about $15,000.00 in today's dollars. Buying one and having it restored to its maximum potential today for $1700.00 is cheap, cheap, cheap.

-------

Contarex SLR camera bodies  by Zeiss Ikon:

The Contarex I (Bullseye)

There were 5 variations (A/B/D/E/G) of this first model:

The first series with 10'000 units from serial number T 85001 - T 95000 built between 1959 and 1960 is the Contarex A.

Within the serial numbers range mentioned above were some additional series namely 5000 units from Y 6001 to 11000, 5000 units from Z 16001 to 21000 and another 5000 units ranging from Z 46001 to 50404 were added. These were the Contarex B.

Starting from Y 10661 a fix film rewind knob and starting from Z 19101 a noise surpression and a light limiting bolting device were implemented.

Between November 1963 and September 1964 the Contarex D was built. The range of serial numbers was D 20501-21096 and D 21101-23604. In this release the possibility to interchange screens and an inscription mechanism were introduced.

The following Contarex E had internal changes only. Serial numbers were from E 12001 to 15000 and E 92001 to 94500. The second curtain axle was made adjustable.

The Contarex G was delivered between October 1965 and October 1966. The serial numbers range was G 30501 - 35000 but the last delivered was serial number G 33500! This last variation included a switch for the "Blitz" lenses as well as very few black painted bodies made on customer request.

So between September 1959 and October 1966 five different Contarex models (A/B/D/E/G) with a total number of 36004 units were built.
The Contarex special

The Contarex special had an interchangeable viewfinder system instead of the lightmeter. Of course the screens could also be changed. The Contarex special became world famous through US-astronaut Edward H. White. When he left his spaceship 175km away from earth in June 1965 only connected with a cable, he used a Contarex special to take pictures of the skin of the Gemini 4. This happened without the knowledge of the people at Zeiss Ikon. Later they said they didn't know that this camera is able to work under space conditions.

The Contarex special did not have a lightmeter and that was not acceptable for some people. So the Contarex I Model D was an appropriate successor with interchangeable screens and inscription mechanism.
The Contarex professional (P)

The Contarex professional was only built over a short time period and in small quantities. As the Contarex special, this model was delivered without a built-in lightmeter. There were some changes like a new gear unit for a smoother film transport, a knob to flop the mirror between the viewfinder and film advance lever, an improved shutter release mechnism, an improved mirror release mechanism, a bigger viewfinder etc.
The Contarex super (S)

Introduced in 1967. The only difference between the Contarex professional and Contarex super was the built-in TTL meter. The meter cell was a CDS element and the measurement angle approx. 7 degrees of the visible field in the viewfinder. To provide the light meter with the necessary voltage, a Mallory PX 625 type battery was needed. The battery compartment is located under the mirror and to change the battery the mirror must be lifted.

There where 2 versions of the Contarex super that can be distinguished by the location of the battery switch. The "front switch" version had the power switch located on front of the camera, on the right side of the Contarex logo. The "top switch" version (starting 1968) had the power switch under the film advance lever. There were problems with the electrical contacts of the front switch version, which could be eliminated in the top switch version.
The Contarex S electronic (SE)

The Contarex SE was introduced in 1968 and was the last but most advanced camera of the Contarex system. The main difference to its predecessor, the Contarex super, was the electronically controlled shutter. The battery for the lightmeter is located under the mirror, equal to the Contarex super. Additionaly to batteries of Mallory MN9100 type are needed for the electronic shutter. If the shutter batteries failed, it was still possible to use the camera, but only at 1/1000 sec. shutter speed. On the front side there is a plug connector to use the special accessories like Telesensor, Time indicator, electr. control unit etc.

http://www_photomoritz_com/contarex/crex_bodies.html

Zeiss Lens Serial Numbers Between 1912 and 1942

Year of Manufacture Serial Number Range
1912 173418-200520
1913 208473-249350
1914 249886-252739
1915 282820-
1916 Unknown
1917 289087-298157
1918 298115-322748
1919 322799-351611
1920 375194-419823
1921 433273-438361
1922 422899-498006
1923 561270-578297
1924 631869-
1925 652230-681743
1926 666790-703198
1927 722196-798251
1928 903096-
1929 919794-1016885
1930 922488-1239697
1931 1239699-1365582
1932 1364483-1389279
1933 1436671-1456003
1934 1500474-1590000
1935 1615764-1752303
1936 1674882-1942806
1937 1930150-2219775
1938 2267991-2527984
1939 2527999-2651211
1940 Unknown
1941 2678326-2790346
1942 2799599-

tutu

机身的发展经历了...

大大的可换取景器，朴实可爱，但是谈不上很明亮
倾斜式的裂像屏，很好用
后期受到市场影响，推出了m42TM系列，现今被热捧

不足之处也很明显，
没有测光，居然推出了一个带测光的可换取景器，狂汗
后期有测光的机身，电池舱盖居然是塑料，靠，这个真是脑袋被驴蹄的决定，就是这个特点，居然被后期的机型 vsl1继承下来了 ...
外观上，提供了这么简单的功能，居然把机身造这么大这么重，失败了也难免

总评，有限但优秀的镜头系统+一流的镜头制造工艺+遗憾的机身系统

经典啊经典

http://elekm_net/pages/cameras/retinaiiis.htm

这个链接里，用家把这部相机放在※※的长河里和其他相机的特点比较，既有和外部日产相机的比较，也有和zeissikonvoigtlander内部其它产品的比较，从性能和公司发展策略上评比了icarex的是非成败
http://www_taunusreiter_de/Cameras/Icarex.html

[smalldarkroom 编辑于 2011-01-25 00:27]

写点儿心得体会，为发新贴作准备。

承上启下的zeiss ikon voigtlander icarex相机及其配套镜头
说她承上，
在机身上，秉承bessamatic/ultramatic的高品质基础设计，但是摒弃了饱受诟病的deckel快门系统，改用帘幕快门。功能上最大程度地简化，只有光圈和快门的基本控制，回归相机的最本质要素。操作上，把快门控制设于上卷弦的下端，采用大盘旋钮的方式，手感非常好。机身的发展经历了...
镜头上，继承了bessamatic/ultramatic系列的全部镜头，改进了septon的设计，增加了25超广角，在制造工艺上，采用了当时蔡斯contaflex/contarex系列相似的制造工艺，光圈部分采用无极光圈，可以最大程度地实现精确控制曝光，堪称巅峰之作。

说她启下
她向下直接影响了 rolleiflex sl35/voigtlander vsl 的设计制造。但镜头上，一系列的经典设计没有得到进一步传承。大部分的镜头虽然以福伦达品牌下的设计命名，加上真彩镀膜color的标志，但是实际上却是采用了蔡斯的基本设计，而在当时，福伦达可能在禄莱旗下是一个低档次的地位，至此，福伦达彻底走上了没落之路,从一流厂家的一线品牌沦为其他厂家的一线招牌。

[smalldarkroom 编辑于 2011-01-24 18:30]

voigtlander VSL1 TM 原来是 SL706 的继承者 ，哈哈，约等于 icarex 35

用起来不错，那个测光系统设计得真是贴心，可惜和其它m42头不太配合，遗憾啊！！ 还是不能丢掉 xd

不是口味重，纯粹是因为PS水平很次。⊙﹏⊙b汗

你口味真重！色彩这么浓啊！