In early 2003 I needed to choose a 645 system for a move to digital MF. So for the past few years photographers contemplating a move to 645 format for use with digital digital backs (which is now the name of the game), really had only three choices – the Mamiya 645 AFD, the Hasselblad H1and the Contax 645. Bronica, the only other 645 camera maker, never went autofocus, and in any event, went out of business in 2003. Its competitors were the Mamiya 645, Pentax 645, and eventually the Hasselblad H1. This has been a favourite of many fashion, portrait, wedding, nature and event photographers who required medium format quality, and who wanted Zeiss lenses on an autofocus 645 format body. The one crown jewel in the Contax line for the past half decade has been the Contax 645 medium format system. In typical Kyocera fashion the company flubbed the way it handled the camera’s problems, and it wasn’t long before it was withdrawn. It was a highly flawed product, and though heavily marketed initially, was only shipped in small quantities in most markets. When it came to DSLRs though Contax was the first company out of the starting blocks several years ago with its Contax N Digital, a full-frame 6MP camera. Kyocera / Contax’s digital point and shoots were never much of a market factor, and simply have been a stylish but technically me-tooline up. You can though use your Contax / Zeiss lenses on Canon DSLRs through the use of lens adaptors, though you will of course lose autofocus and auto diaphragm capability. If you lust to put your Zeiss lenses on a DSLR though, you’re out of luck, at least on a Contax body. For those with Contax RTS35mm cameras and lenses, if you’re happy working with film then you have a fantastic system that is unlikely to ever be bested.
![zeiss contax 645 zeiss contax 645](https://live.staticflickr.com/2208/2323151706_890e235179_b.jpg)
I owned a Contax RTS IIIfor a while in the ’80s and found it to be an exquisitely built camera with excellent ergonomics.īut all of that is history, because there are likely not to be any further film-based SLRs from anyof the major camera makers, with the Nikon F6being in all likelihood a last hurrah for the genre. Their film cameras were once highly regarded, for their use of Zeiss lenses as much as for their remarkable build quality and excellent handling. Other than this model, and its associated Zeiss lens line, the Contax brand has been at a dead-end for several years.
![zeiss contax 645 zeiss contax 645](https://kenrockwell.com/contax/645/images/35mm/D3S_7873-768.jpg)
The main concern that photographers have is with the 645 system.
![zeiss contax 645 zeiss contax 645](https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/7K4AAOSwCV5co0~0/s-l300.jpg)
There are other historical resources, but these two will get you up to speed.
![zeiss contax 645 zeiss contax 645](https://img.kentfaith.de/cache/catalog/lense/1857-carl-zeiss-tele-apotessar-350mm-f-4-c645-800x800.jpg)
Rather than write a rehash of the history of the Contax brand, I’ll simply point to two on-line references – The History of Contax, and Zeiss Ikon Contaxīodies, Lenses and Photography. August, 2004Ĭontax 645 with Kodak DCS Proback 645C and 120mm Zeiss f/4 Apo-Makro Planar Their definitive announcement is of particular interest to two groups – students of the history of photography, but more particularly those that currently own Contax 645 camera systems. This followed a couple of months during which Kyocera badly bungled its press and distributor relations, allowing rumours and speculation to run rampant. A translation of that press announcement can be found here. On April 12, 2005, Kyocera Corporationannounced that it would be ceasing production of all CONTAX brand cameras, including the Contax 645 system, by the end of the year.