The Bessa family of cameras was manufactured in Japan by Cosina as a revival of the Voigtländer brand name between 1999 and 2015.
30-456: Every Cosina Voigtländer Bessa camera has a double focal-plane shutter with two sets of curtains to prevent damage by the sun. Shutter speeds range from 1 to 1 ⁄ 2000 s and bulb (B), with flash sync at 1 ⁄ 125 s on hot-shoe or PC terminal. They all have TTL exposure metering, and manual exposure controls; models with an "A" suffix (e.g., R2A, R3A, R4A) also have an aperture priority automatic mode. The first model
60-439: A Contax. These were the 85mm, 105mm, and 135mm lenses. Each was marked with a "C" on the side of the lens barrel. This is not to be confused with a "C" mark used as a suffix to the serial number. Some early Nikkors used this mark to denote that the lenses were coated . The mount itself has two bayonets, one inside the camera and another outside. Lenses that use the bayonet inside the camera need have no focusing helicoid built into
90-548: A design is AI-P, although these lenses are not designated as such. The CPU of SL II lenses enables full compatibility (except for autofocus) with the full range of AF Nikon SLR cameras. The Nikon AI-P versions enable full compatibility (except for autofocus) with all Nikon AF SLRs, similar to the AI-P manual-focus lenses Nikon has produced in the past. All metering patterns in 2-D mode, all program modes, and viewfinder focus indicators are available. On August 26, 2010, Cosina joined
120-667: A green light in between to indicate over, under, or correct exposure. For some markets, the Voigtländer Bessa-L was sold as the Cosina 107-SW . The Bessa-L was supplemented in 2001 by the Bessa-T , which used the Leica M-mount , could receive a trigger advance design, and had an integrated rangefinder with high magnification, but no viewfinder. It was sold in silver or black; from 2002, also in gray or olive (at
150-541: A higher price and perhaps only in Japan). It is now discontinued. In 2001, the Bessa-T was sold in a special kit, called Heliar 101st Anniversary (in short "T101"), with a 50 mm f:3.5 collapsible Heliar lens, for the anniversary of the Voigtländer Heliar lens design. It existed in black, grey, olive and blue: five hundred numbered examples were produced for each color. The Bessa-R , introduced in 2000,
180-576: A hyperfocal setting. Both cameras were discontinued after December 2012. The Bessa R2M and Bessa R3M , both announced in Germany around March 2006 and in May elsewhere, are the updated manual-exposure, mechanical-shutter equivalents of the R2A and R3A . A special 250th Anniversary Set, sold with a 50 mm f /2 M-mount collapsible Heliar lens, was also announced. They were sold in black (1000 examples of
210-642: A short time, and discontinued when Cosina introduced its Carl Zeiss "Z" series lenses . This article was originally based on " Cosina Voigtländer " in Camerapedia, retrieved at an unknown date under the GNU Free Documentation License . Nikon S-mount The Nikon S-mount is a type of interchangeable lens mount used by a series of Nikon 35mm rangefinder cameras ( Nikon I , Nikon M , Nikon S , Nikon S2 , Nikon SP , Nikon S3 , Nikon S4 ). The lenses were sold under
240-542: Is used to mount longer and heavier lenses where the built-in helicoid would not be strong enough to rotate the lens barrel. Such lenses are focused using a focusing ring and distance scale on the lens just like typical SLR lenses (the distance scale on the camera body will be covered by the lens flange and thus not visible). Nikon produced a large range of Nikkor lenses for these cameras with focal lengths from 21mm to 1000mm . Several other manufacturers including Fuji (now Fujifilm ), Komura and Zunow made S-mount lenses at
270-489: The Bessa ;R2 , with the Leica M-mount and an aperture-priority automatic exposure, switchable to manual. The R2A has a finder with a 0.7x magnification, and 35/50/75/90 frame lines. The R3A has a finder with a 1x magnification, and 40/50/75/90 frame lines. Both can take the trigger advance accessory. They were sold in textured black or flat grey paint finishes. These cameras feature an electronic shutter, making
300-592: The M39 lens mount , Nikon S-mount and M42 lens mount have been discontinued. Most of the traditional Voigtländer lens brand names remain in use with Cosina, though the lens designs used by Cosina are generally different from the historical namesakes. However, Heliar lenses will still generally have slow apertures, Noktons are for fast apertures, APO-Lanthars will have above-average correction of chromatic aberrations and use many low-dispersion glass elements, while Skopars are compact and light lenses. Cosina offers
330-624: The Micro Four Thirds Standard Group and have since introduced the following lenses: Several lenses, which were manufactured in the past, have now been discontinued. Voigtländer SL lenses are manual-focus designs. They were sold in a variety of mounts: Nikon AI-S , Canon FD , Pentax K , M42 , Minolta SR , Contax / Yashica MM, and Olympus OM . Some lenses were also available in Canon EF- and Minolta A-mount , although without autofocus. They were produced for
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#1732791058150360-660: The R3M , 500 of the R2M ) or silver (700 of the R3M , 300 of the R2M ). The Bessa R3m has a 1x viewfinder and 40/50/75/90 framelines. The internal meter requires batteries to operate but since the camera is mechanical it can still take pictures with no batteries. Announced in October, 2006 at photokina , the Bessa R4M and Bessa R4A were the first Leica M-mount cameras to include framelines wider than 28 mm. The R4 -series keeps
390-573: The Voigtländer name since 1999. Cosina leases rights to the Voigtländer name from RINGFOTO GmbH & Co. ALFO Marketing KG in Germany . Cosina Voigtländer products have included 35mm film SLR and rangefinder camera bodies, and lenses for the M39 lens mount (Leica screw mount), M42 lens mount , Leica M mount , and other lens mounts. Cosina started producing cameras and lenses under
420-572: The Zeiss Ikon branding, with features similar to the Bessa-R3A, including an autoexposure mode and Leica M mount compatibility, and a longer rangefinder base length. The ZM finder has 0.74× magnification and frame lines for 28, 35, 50, and 85 mm lenses. The SW omits the rangefinder and viewfinder assembly altogether and is intended for use with ultra wide angle lenses , which take advantage of extended depth of field to enable scale focusing at
450-472: The Voigtländer brand in 1999, when it introduced a new M39 mount body and lenses. It has since produced a prodigious variety of these lenses in M39x26, Leica M mount, Nikon S rangefinder mount (some fully usable with Contax RF bodies), and SLR mounts including M42 and Nikon F . Cosina produces hoods and accessory viewfinders for many of the lenses. Note that while the lenses feature familiar Voigtländer names,
480-528: The ability to take the same trigger advance accessory as the Bessa-T . Its quality of fabrication and overall finish was much better than the R, with magnesium alloy replacing the former model's plastic plates and a more substantial cast (as opposed to pressed) metal film rewind lever. The changes resulted in a more solid and marginally larger camera, available in either olive (with chrome detailing) or splatter-textured black paint finishes. The Bessa-R's self-timer
510-610: The camera inoperable without batteries. The Epson R-D1 was first shown in March 2004 as a prototype interchangeable-lens rangefinder digital camera developed in partnership between Epson and Cosina. It uses an APS-C sensor with 6 megapixel (3008×2000) resolution. Although the appearance is similar to the earlier Bessa-R / R2 , internal features are closer to the Bessa-R2A , including an aperture-priority autoexposure mode. The Zeiss Ikon ZM (2004) and SW (2006) were introduced under
540-699: The following lenses with Nikon Z-mount as of 2023. These lenses offer electronic coupling to the camera for recording EXIF data, focus confirmation and IBIS activation. Since October 2015, numerous Voigtländer lenses have been released for full frame Sony E-mount . At present (March 2018), there are 16 lenses for the Leica M-mount , which can all be combined with rangefinder except the 10 mm lens. Pressure fit cap, rangefinder coupling not possible Voigtländer SL II lenses are CPU-enabled manual-focus designs available in Nikon AI-P (AI-S with Program), Pentax K-A and Canon EF mounts. The Nikon term for such
570-577: The framelines are for 40, 50, and 80 mm. Arguably it remains the best Bessa camera for people who wear glasses and primarily use a 40 mm lens. The Bessa-R2S and Bessa-R2C are special versions of the Bessa R2 , introduced in 2002, the Bessa-R2S having a Nikon rangefinder mount and the Bessa-R2C a Contax rangefinder mount . In 2005, shortly before discontinuation of these two models
600-408: The lens barrel. As a consequence, the 5 cm f/1.4 lens that was normally sold with the body is extremely small (about the size of a golf ball) since the lens contains only the optics and aperture. Focusing of such lenses could be done by rotating the toothed wheel on the top front of the camera body or by rotating the lens barrel itself (the distance scale is on the camera body). The external bayonet
630-625: The meter) is dead. The R4M is available in the classic black of the R2 and R3 -series, while the R4A is available in matte black. Mechanical | Mechanical TTL | Electronic Controlled Shutter TTL This article was originally based on " Bessa (35mm) " in Camerapedia, retrieved at an unknown date under the GNU Free Documentation License . Cosina Voigtl%C3%A4nder Cosina Voigtländer (often abbreviated CV ) refers to photographic products manufactured by Cosina under
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#1732791058150660-573: The name Nikkor . The mount was a copy of the Zeiss Ikon Contax rangefinder mount, however, small differences between the two mean that although Zeiss wide-angle lenses can be used on the Nikon cameras and vice versa, the longer lenses (50 mm and above), if used, will not be able to focus at both close range and infinity. Nikon made a small number of longer focal length lenses specifically designed to focus properly when mounted on
690-691: The optical formulas are all new. Presently, manual focus Voigtländer lenses are available, or will soon be available in four series: the E-mount series for Sony E-mount , the VM series for Leica M-mount , the SL and SL II series for several 35 mm single-lens reflex camera mounts ( Canon EF-mount , Nikon F-mount , and Pentax K-mount ), and the MFT series for the Micro Four Thirds mount. Legacy lenses for
720-553: The same features as the R3 -series, but utilizes a wide-angle-specific viewfinder with .52x magnification and framelines for 21, 25, 28, 35, and 50 mm lenses. Like the previous limited edition R -series cameras, the R4A features aperture-priority autoexposure, while the R4M features full manual operation, including a mechanical shutter that will continue to work even if the battery (which powers
750-408: Was a rangefinder camera with a projected frame finder and a Leica screw mount . Although considerably cheaper than a Leica M camera, its viewfinder was comparable in function and feeling. It featured manually selectable frames for 35 mm/90 mm, 50 mm, and 75 mm lenses. The body, made of polycarbonate plastics, was not comparable to that of a Leica but was solid enough. All in all it
780-506: Was an inexpensive, all-manual rangefinder with TTL metering at a significantly lower price than a comparably equipped Leica M camera. It was available in black or silver; from 2002, also in navy blue or olive (at a higher price and perhaps only in Japan). The Bessa R2 replaced the Bessa-R in 2002. It was an updated version, with a Leica M-mount replacing the Leica screw mount , and
810-565: Was announced, the Bessa-R2S was also available in a " Nikon Historical Society " (NHS) version with special paintwork and a rigid version of the Heliar f /3.5 50 mm lens sold earlier with the Bessa-T . The set was available to the general public through regular retail channels in the US: Society membership was not required. The Bessa R2A and Bessa R3A were introduced in 2004 and discontinued in 2013. They were updated versions of
840-555: Was deleted from the R2, possibly due to the packaging constraints imposed on the design by the adoption of thicker metal panels. The names Cosina, Voigtländer and Bessa appear nowhere on the Rollei 35 RF (2002), marketed not by Cosina but instead by Rollei Fototechnic . However, the camera is very obviously based on the Bessa R2 . The most obvious differences are the price (much higher) and somewhat gaudy appearance; more importantly
870-476: Was mostly intended to be used with ultra wide angle lenses, with which the absence of a focusing device is not a problem. Most notably Voigtländer introduced a 15 mm and a 12 mm lens, the latter being the widest rectilinear full-frame lens ever marketed up to then. The Bessa-L has TTL metering with LED readout on the back edge of the top plate with an ASA range of 25–1600 and an EV range 1 to 19 at ASA 100. The readout consists of two red arrows pointing to
900-678: Was the Bessa-L , introduced in 1999. This was a finderless body with a Leica screw mount , and operation and specifications similar to SLRs built by Cosina for other brands, such as the Nikon FM10, Olympus OM-2000, and Ricoh KR-5. It was introduced with a range of Voigtländer 39 mm screw lenses that were quite inexpensive and said to be of excellent quality. It could of course mount all the wide variety of 39 mm screw lenses by manufacturers as diverse as Leica , Canon , Nikon and even cheaper but often excellent Soviet lenses. The Bessa-L
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