In 1961, Canon ushered in a new era with the introduction of the Canonet. This camera was not only Canon's first step into the field of mid-range rangefinder cameras, but also a revolutionary product that turned the photographic industry of the time on its head.
The Canonet was characterised by its innovative features and affordable price. With its fast f/1.9 lens and ground-breaking automatic exposure with shutter priority, it was a dream come true for many amateurs. The camera caused a sensation because it offered professional features at a fraction of the price of comparable models from other manufacturers.
The centrepiece of the Canonet was the newly developed "Electric Eye" (EE) automatic exposure system. This fully automatic shutter priority system allowed the photographer to simply press the shutter release and the camera did the rest. The exposure was metered by a selenium photocell, which automatically controlled the shutter according to the lighting conditions.
In addition to the ground-breaking automatic mode, the Canonet offered other impressive features:
High-quality lens: the SE45mm f/1.9 lens delivered sharp and detailed images.
Rangefinder: The integrated rangefinder enabled precise focussing.
Versatile shutter: The Copal SLV shutter offered exposure times from 1 second to 1/500 second and had a self-timer.
Compact design: With its dimensions of 140 x 78 x 64 mm and a weight of 700 g, the Canonet was a compact and easy-to-carry camera.
The success of the Canonet was overwhelming. Within two hours, the entire weekly stock of cameras was sold out and sales reached the one million mark within two and a half years. Further models of the Canonet series followed until 1972.
Films for the Canonet
If you can still find a working Canonet today, you can still use it. Batteries are not needed. However, 35mm film is required for the Canonet. Many materials for colour and black and white images are still available for this film format.
Possible films for the Canonet are the Kodak Ultramax 400* for colour images and the Ilford FP4 Plus* for black and white images.
Both films deliver reliable results and are also convincing in professional test reports. Foma, Adox and Rollei are other suppliers of 35mm films.
