Agfamatic
In 1970 Agfa designated Agfamatic a special camera for the Instamatic cassette of the type 126 and from 1972 all cameras for this type of film, with Agfamatic Pocket also the models for the pocket film of the type 110 since their appearance in 1973. The name Agfamatic had already been used before found once use: in 1960 the Agfa Optima carried this name on the Canadian market.
Agfamatic (film type 126)
prehistory
The Agfa Rapid system followed the presentation by Kodak of the Instamatic cassette, which is particularly easy to insert and therefore also for technically inexperienced users . It also simplified the handling, but not as far-reaching. As a result, it was only a limited success, whereupon Agfa finally decided on an Instamatic license.
Iso-Pak (precursor)
As the first camera for the Instamatic cassette, Agfa presented the Iso Pak in 1968 , but did not speak of an Agfamatic . She had a meniscus lens with the light intensity 1: 11 and a lightning throws intake for the N type . The Iso Pak corresponded to the design line of the simple Rapid cameras.
Agfamatic
Action Teen '70
At the end of the 1960s it became fashionable to address young people with special marketing concepts. Agfa also carried out an investigation, which revealed the following: The young people wanted a fashionable bag that should by no means look like “Grandpa's photo bag”. The camera, on the other hand, was supposed to resemble a professional device, which at the time meant a black housing.
The Teen '70 sales campaign then took place from May 25th to June 30th, 1970. Its offer consisted of a set for 50 DM, consisting of a bag, the Agfamatic , 2 Agfacolor films, 1 black and white film, 3 flash cubes and 2 batteries . The St. Tropez bag was made of denim fabric, served as sales packaging and had two attached compartments and a compartment for wet swimwear.
Agfa went to great lengths to promote the campaign; They placed advertisements in youth magazines, commercials in the cinema and spots on Radio Luxemburg and Ö 3 and supported the trade massively, which ranged from decoration material for the shop window to competitions and tips on where to find young people.
Agfamatic
The Agfamatic is a simple plastic camera with a single lens (f / 12, 42 mm) and a flash cube connection for the N flash cube, for which a battery had to be inserted to ignite. It had a selenium cell-looking but functionless disk over the lens to give it a professional look. The black case had a chrome frame around its front.
Autostar X 126
The Autostar X 126 presented and offered individually in the following year corresponded to the Agfamatic except for the connection for the new X-Blitzcube , which no longer require a battery for their ignition.
Agfamatic 50 to 300 sensor
In 1972 Agfa then presented a bestseller with the new series for the Instamatic film, which was only surpassed by the pocket models. It owed this success primarily to its shape, which came from Schlagheck Schultes design .
The entry-level model Agfamatic 50 not only came with a single-lens lens (f / 11, 40 mm), it also had to do without the sensor trigger. As with the Autostar X 126 , the exposure time was always 1 ⁄ 40 s with the lens fully open and there was a connection for X flash cube. The Agfamatic 50 also had a quick-release lever. The only difference between the Agfamatic 50 S and its counterpart was the completely black design with no surrounding metal strips.
In addition to its sensor trigger, the Agfamatic 100 Sensor also offered two exposure times. The latter can be set with the weather symbols sun for 1 ⁄ 80 s and clouds for 1 ⁄ 40 s with a ring on the lens and thus directly on the shutter.
The Agfamatic 200 Sensor also had a three-lens Agfa Agnar lens with f / 8.2 and 40 mm focal length, which could be stopped down. Together with the two exposure times, there were four combinations and thus weather symbols. The three-lenser naturally brought a considerably better image quality.
Agfa even built a fully electronic exposure control into the top model Agfamatic 300 Sensor , recognizable by the two unmistakable measuring eyes next to the viewfinder for the CdS cells. This control responded to a Paratronic lock and required two button cells for its operation. It was an aperture automatic, the exposure time was adjusted to the brightness with always full opening from 1 ⁄ 30 s to 1 ⁄ 300 s. Underexposure indicated a red LED in the viewfinder. The lens was the Color-Agnar with f / 8, but it could be focused, for which - as the Agfa Optima has long known - there were three symbols for portrait, group shot and landscape. On the underside there was also a distance scale for flash photos: If you put a flash cube on the camera, it always exposed for 1 ⁄ 30 s and a controlled glare took place according to the distance setting.
Agfamatic 55 C to 308 sensor
In 1978 Agfa switched the Instamatic cameras from flash cubes to top flash. As usual with pocket cameras, this was indicated by the “8” in the model numbers, i.e. 108 sensor , 208 sensor and 308 sensor . On this occasion, the housing was made a little more rounded, which made it look more fashionable, and it was given a larger viewfinder like the Optima 535 . Apart from that, the cameras remained technically unchanged.
The smallest model remained unaffected by the measures, it only lost the surrounding metal strip. When the name was changed from 50 to 55 C , the "C" (for Cube) indicated the - still existing - lightning cube connection.
Agfamatic Pocket (film type 110)
prehistory
In the 1960s, camera manufacturers believed that the increasingly fine-grained film material meant that the future of viewfinder cameras would be smaller than the 24 mm × 36 mm standard at the time. This resulted in cameras for the half format , such as the Agfa Parat, and even 16 mm models, such as the Rollei 16. However, the large manufacturers did not make films for the latter, which is why they were unable to establish themselves. Agfa did not even offer such cameras in view of the low parat sales. The situation changed in 1972 when Kodak introduced its pocket film . Agfa also recognized its importance early on, and so it was the first third-party manufacturer to offer its own development in 1974 with the Agfamatic 2000 Pocket (see Agfamatic 2000 Pocket ).
An essential feature of the Agfamatic 2000 Pocket was its so-called "Repitomatic fast transport". The principle was as simple as it was ingenious: the camera was pushed together and locked for transport. Before use, the photographer pushed a slider on the bottom of the camera to the left. The camera sprang up through a spring; The lens and viewfinder became visible. After pressing the shutter release, the photographer pushed the device together as far as it would go, the spring returned it to its starting position, that's it. Film transport and tensioning of the shutter were done - the Agfa was ready to take pictures. This principle was already known from the Minox 8x11 models (the "agent cameras") and was called "telescopic high-speed elevator" there. However, Agfa offered this - again improved - technology to the mass market for the first time, and it was a big hit with advertising (AGFA "Ritsch-Ratsch-Klick").
It was noteworthy that Minox did not equip its own 110 model manufactured by Balda , the Minox 110 S , which appeared in 1977, with the "telescopic high-speed elevator" or a comparable mechanism. The Minox 110 S instead had a small quick-release lever that was -außergewöhnlich enough- left on the camera front.
Another noticeable feature of the Agfamatic 2000 Pocket was the “sensor” trigger already known from the Optima sensor series (from 1968). This “sensor” was simply a release button, over which an orange-red colored, round plastic disc with a remarkable 16 mm diameter was mounted. Nevertheless, Agfa also succeeded in establishing the "sensor" as a special feature of the pocket models.
The Agfamatic 2000 Pocket proved that Agfa also packaged the technology nicely by winning the "iF Product Design Award 1974".
Agfamatic 1000 Pocket / Agfamatic 1000 S Pocket
The Agfamatic 1000 Pocket appeared like the Agfamatic 2000 Pocket in 1974 - but technically it was still strongly based on the 110 models from Kodak. With the Agfamatic 1000 Pocket , tensioning and film transport were carried out by means of a slide on the underside of the camera - the design, however, was already adapted to the upcoming Repitomatic models. To take pictures, the photographer pulled the actual camera sideways out of the blackened metal housing until it clicked, so that the slide, “sensor trigger” and flash cube connector were accessible. By pulling it out, the viewfinder in the housing was also released. To change the film, the camera part then had to be pulled out to another notch. There were no setting options on the "1000". The shutter only worked with a single exposure time at full aperture. The lens was the Color - Agnar 1: 9.5 / 26 mm.
The Agfamatic 1000 Pocket came in two versions. In the earlier version, the "sensor" was covered by the housing when pushed together. With the later one, the “sensor” remained visible through a round sight glass in the housing even when pushed together. The mechanically ignited X flash cubes were used for flashing.
The Agfamatic 1000 S Pocket presented in 1978 was identical to the later version of the “1000” - the “S” stood for the now silver housing color.
Agfamatic 2000 to 4000
Agfamatic 2000 Pocket
The Agfamatic 2000 Pocket , introduced in 1974, was the standard model of the Agfamatic Pocket series. The set cost 105 DM and for this price had to do without a light meter. According to the Agfamatic 100 , there were two weather symbols with sun and cloud - the shutter exposed one with 1 ⁄ 100 s, the other with 1 ⁄ 50 s. An X flash cube (Magicube) could be attached for flash operation. With the X flash cubes, the flash lamps are not ignited electrically, but mechanically by a firing pin in the camera. The lens was an Agnar f / 9.5, 26 mm focal length, its three lenses resulted in a visibly better image quality than the single lens of the identically equipped Agfamatic 100 , regardless of the smaller format . As a flash accessory, there was a flash cube extension (so-called "extender") to counteract the "red-eye effect".
In 1975 Agfa offered the Agfamatic Pocket Lux, an electronic flash unit especially for connection to Agfa Pocket cameras. The flash unit was attached to the right side of the camera by means of a knurled screw in the tripod thread. The electrical contact was made by an adapter cable for the flash cube connection of the camera. The flash had an on / off switch and a test trigger. The flash rate was around six seconds. Power was supplied by four LR03 / AAA batteries in the flash unit.
Agfamatic 3000
The 3000 pointed according to the Agfamatic 200 on four weather icons, which came here from the combination of two panels and two exposure times. If you put on a flash cube, you could select three apertures with the slide for the exposure setting, for a distance of 1.2 m, 2 m and 4 m; get closer to the subject when taking flash photos than with the 2000 . The lens was initially an apotary, later a (more complex, but also three-lens) agnar with f / 6.5 and 27 mm focal length.
The Agfamatic 3000 cost around 130 DM and was less popular as an intermediate model than the significantly cheaper 2000 and the significantly more superior 4000 with its exposure control
Agfamatic 4000
The top model of the series combined the Agnar f / 6.5, 27 mm with an electronically controlled shutter and a three-stage distance setting. This was done with the symbols for portrait, group and landscape photography that have long been known by Agfa Optima , which were on the same slide as the weather symbols on the 3000 . With the flash cube attached, the flash exposure could also be set to 1.2 m, 2 m and 4 m; these values were in blue letters on the right side of the slide.
The Paratronic lock worked the same as on the Agfamatic 300 , but worked in the range from 15 s to 1 ⁄ 500 s. The 4000 could also be used for night shots, for which there was a cable release connection next to the sensor release - a red LED in the viewfinder warned of shake in less than 1 ⁄ 30 s. The technical progress made it possible for the electronic control to get by with one sensor cell instead of two cells in the 300 . It was next to the viewfinder and was visible even when the camera was closed. The two batteries were in a carrier that could be pulled out from the bottom of the camera.
The 4000 cost around 190 DM and, with its exposure control, was also recommended for slide films, although these were not very popular among pocket films, although Agfa even brought out a special projector for it.
Natarix attachment
For the models 2000 , 3000 and 4000 there was an attachment that could be attached to the moving part of the housing for close-ups from 50 cm to 100 cm away. There was a close-up lens in front of the lens and a plexiglass wedge in front of the viewfinder, which enabled parallax compensation. For flash photos, a built-in neutral density filter had to be pushed in front of the taking lens, which was then reminded by a red arrow in the viewfinder.
Optima 5000 and 6000
In 1974 the top models with automatic programs followed, which were also called Optima in accordance with the Agfa tradition , although the name Agfamatic was dispensed with. The two cameras were slightly longer than the 2000 to 4000 series , but made up of the same components. The dimensions were thus already at the limit of what was acceptable, which was particularly noticeable in comparison to the more expensive Rollei A 110 .
The two models always had black aluminum parts, which made them look more professional at the time. They were usually bought in a set with the special Optima Pocket Lux flash unit , but a flash cube could still be attached to the top. To attach the flash unit you had to pull off the tripod thread plate on the side of the housing, then a special flash shoe came to light. A thread in the flash unit made it possible to use a tripod afterwards. The flash unit with guide number 14 turned out to be considerably weaker than a flash cube, but could be kept very compact - it got by with two micro cells. Due to the fast lens, it was still 5 m far.
The lens f / 2.7, 26 mm consisted of four glass lenses and could be focused with a large wheel on top of the camera. As with all Optima cameras, there were the well-known three locking symbols portrait, group and landscape, but also a distance scale. The exposure control worked from 15 s up to 1 ⁄ 1000 s, it signaled the risk of blurring with a red LED in the viewfinder and with a green LED sufficient brightness for handheld pictures. Three button cells, which were located to the left of the film cassette, provided the power supply. Compared to the 4000 , you could take photos with significantly less light, mainly due to the significantly higher light intensity.
The 6000 differed from the 5000 by its more complex, but also four-lens Solinar S lens instead of Solinar and the self-timer. This worked mechanically, it was wound up with the film transport and activated as soon as a slide at the bottom of the camera was operated.
Agfamatic 1008 to 4008
With the transition to Topflash , Agfa was able to do without the flash cube extension to avoid the "red eye effect". The models 2000 , 3000 and 4000 were the first to receive this connection in autumn 1975 , whereby the “8” in the name should indicate the eight lightning bulbs in the top flash. The 1000 turned into the 1008 in 1978 .
Of course, the Pocket Lux flash unit has also been adapted to the new flash connection; to distinguish it, it was called Pocket Lux 234 .
As a simple model, Agfa also offered the 1008 , which, in contrast to the 1000, had the housing of the larger models in a simplified form, the movable housing part was only painted plastic. The 508 , which was added later , was distinguished by a very simple Optar f / 11 lens. 32 mm.
Agfamatic 5008 and 6008
Since the Optima 5000 and 6000 were preferably operated with the flash unit, Agfa left these models with the flash cube connection for a long time. The Topflash variants did not follow until 1977. For the first time, the term Optima was omitted from an Agfa program automatic camera - however, such an automatic system was no longer so unusual as to require a note in the model name. The two devices were now called Agfamatic 5008 Macro Pocket and 6008 Macro Pocket . In contrast to the small models, they have undergone considerably more extensive modifications than simply converting to the Topflash connection.
Outwardly, the new distance setting wheel was noticeable, which now consisted of Plexiglas, under which a fixed scale lay. This now reached up to 0.5 m instead of the previous 1 m. Because such short shooting distances resulted in considerable parallaxes, i.e. the viewfinder would no longer have shown the correct image by far, a mechanism swiveled the viewfinder with the distance setting. For its parts, the plastic cap on the top of the camera had to be lifted, which made the camera a bit thicker. This mechanism also made it possible to display a distance in the viewfinder with simple means: a pointer moved on its upper side over the symbols for landscape, group, portrait and macro, the latter represented a flower.
In addition, there was a plastic close-up lens under the small metal cap next to the lens, which could be activated with a small slider and returned to its resting position after the camera was squeezed. With this close-up lens you could take photos in the range from 0.5 m to 0.25 m, but there was no additional scale on the dial, only a comparison table glued to the bottom of the housing. The distance 0.25 m could be determined with the carrying loop, which could be divided for this purpose, otherwise a measuring tape was needed. The flash unit could also be used in combination with the macro lens, then you had to put an opaque attachment on your reflector, which only had a small opening. In addition, it had to be taken into account that the viewfinder image shifted to the right, for which there was a small mark on the bright-line frame. With the macro shots, however, the flatness of the pocket cassette, which was due to the lack of a pressure plate, caused problems. It prevented a precise adjustment of the distance.
The differences between 5008 and 6008 remained unchanged in the lens and the self-timer, which is still mechanical.
Agfamatic Tele-Pocket
In order to revive the gradually declining sales, Agfa introduced models of the 1008 , 2008 and 4008 models with a switchable attachment lens to achieve a telephoto effect. This was done with a slider on top of the camera. The 1008 Tele-Pocket only had the simple Optar f / 11 with 32 mm focal length of the 508 , whose focal length could be increased to 43 mm. With the 2008 Tele-Pocket you could choose between 26 mm and 43 mm. The Agnar f / 5.8, 26 mm of the 4008 Tele-Pocket could be switched to 47 mm focal length.
Agfamatic motor
At the Photokina 1978 Agfa presented the last generation of newly developed pocket cameras and thus gained a lot of attention. The Repitomatic had been replaced by an electric motor. Motorized film transport was still unusual for compact cameras at the time. Two microcells were sufficient for the power supply because, on the one hand, the film did not have to be moved too much with the small recording format and, on the other hand, the speed was only 0.8 frames / s. However, one could already see from the cameras that production in Germany had become expensive and that the Munich camera factory was gradually having problems producing profitably. The housing was now made entirely of plastic and there were only simply equipped models, although the combination of motor drive and high-speed lens would have been obvious.
The simplest model Agfamatic 901 engine cost about 120 DM and owned as of 2008 lived, two weather icons, the exposure time of here 1 / 50 sec to 1 / 100 s toggle the reverse. The motor pocket could also flash with top flash, but the connection for it was now on the side in front of the tripod thread. There you could also connect the special flash units, the Agfamatic Lux 901 with its own power supply from two micro cells or the 901 Minilux, which got its energy from the camera batteries. The latter turned out to be very small, but only had guide number 10 and was primarily intended for use with the likewise new ISO 400/27 ° films. The 901 Agfa produced not only in black but also the special series Bavaria with a blue and white pattern and various advertising models, eg for BMW (BMW logo or the vehicle silhouette of the 745i), Coca-Cola or John Player . There was also 901 painted silver, white, red, light blue and olive .
The always black Agfamatic 901 S engine cost around 150 DM and had four weather symbols corresponding to the 3008 . There was also an elongated pushbutton in front of the shutter release that could be used to switch the camera to continuous shooting, although this was of no practical use with the slow motor.
The top model Agfamatic 901 E motor had a three- lens Apotar f / 6.3 with a focal length of 27 mm and an electronic shutter corresponding to the 4008 . It cost around DM 200 and was available in black, beige, blue and silver. The 901 SE from 1980 was then limited to a weaker lens with f / 8.
Renaming
In the summer of 1982 some cameras were renamed, the Sport (in red or blue) and Tramp models were the 901 Motor , the Star the 901 SE , the Traveler (recommended retail price 125 DM) the 3000 Flash , the easy (95 DM) around 2000 Flash and the mini (46 DM) around 508 . However, none of these models had any significant significance, as the time of the pocket camera was over.
(Agfa) Revue Pocket and Agfa Color King models
In 1977 Agfa tried to build on the earlier successes with a new, cheaper model range. Therefore, these devices were not a new development, but were based on the technology of various X008 models - but with stripped-down technology and a different design. The previous camera part made of solid metal gave way to one made of black, partially lacquered plastic, the characteristic red "Agfa sensor" was replaced by a square plastic plate and the buyer also had to do without the spring support during the tensioning process (whereby Agfa also saved the lock ). At the same time, Agfa relied on new, exclusive sales channels for the Revue Pocket 150 to Revue Pocket 450 models and the Agfa Color King series. From 1977 onwards , the Revue Pockets were offered exclusively by FOTO-QUELLE ; From 1979 onwards, the Agfa Color Kings were only sold by the British electronics and photo trading company DIXONS .
Revue Pocket 50 to Revue Pocket 450
From 1977 Agfa produced for FOTO-QUELLE under its trademark REVUE the models Revue Pocket 50 (manufactured inter alia in India from 1982), Revue Tele Pocket 150 (from 1979), Revue Pocket 250 , Revue Flash Pocket 300 (manufactured inter alia in Portugal from 1981 ), Revue Pocket 350 and Revue Pocket 450 - mainly for the German market. It is also noteworthy that Agfa and FOTO-QUELLE, despite the cost and price pressure, afforded themselves the luxury of offering two different electronic flash units exclusively for this Revue Pocket model series ( Revuetronic 200 and Revuetronic 220 ). FOTO-QUELLE also sold other 110 models under the name Revue Pocket , but these were not manufactured by Agfa. An example is the Revue Pocket Flash 200 , which was not only similar in name but also in design to the Agfa models and even had a "telescopic elevator" comparable to the Agfa Repitomatic. In fact, however, the Pocket flash 200 revue came from the manufacturer HAKING in Hong Kong, which became known under its trademark HALINA and, according to its own information, has already produced over 100 million cameras.
Agfa Color King 100 tele to Agfa Color King 400
DIXONS was founded in 1937 as a photo studio in Southend / England and was best known under its PRINZ trademark , under which cameras from various manufacturers, including German ones, were sold from 1960 to the early 1970s. DIXONS is still active in the electronics and photo trade in several countries, albeit in a different form.
Although the (Agfa) Revue Pocket and the Agfa Color King models except for the lettering were both technically and optically absolutely identical (so corresponded to Agfa Color King 100 tele the Revue Tele Pocket 150 , the Agfa Color King 200 of Revue pocket 250 and the Agfa Color King 400 of the Revue Pocket 450 ), DIXONS did not sell the models until 1979, so only two years later as FOTO-QUELLE . The reason for this is not yet known. No Color King equivalents have yet been identified for the Revue Pocket 50 , the Revue Flash Pocket 300 and the Revue Pocket 350 . The Color King series also never seems to have its own flash units .
gallery
Agfamatic 50
Agfamatic 100 sensor
Agfamatic 108 sensor
Agfamatic 208 sensor
Agfamatic 300
Agfamatic pocket 1000
Agfamatic tele pocket 2008
Agfamatic tele pocket 2008
pocket LUX 234 for Agfamatic 2008 to 4008
Agfa Optima 5000
