Made between 19, the original Contax, known as Contax I after later models were introduced, was markedly different from the corresponding Leica. Heinz Küppenbender was its chief designer. The name Contax was chosen after a poll among Zeiss employees. While the firm of Ernst Leitz of Wetzlar established the 24 mm × 36 mm negative format on perforated 35 mm movie film as a viable photographic system, Zeiss Ikon of Dresden decided to produce a competitor designed to be superior in every way. The rights to the brand are currently part of Carl Zeiss AG, but no Contax cameras are currently in production, and the brand is considered dormant. In 2005, Kyocera announced that it would no longer produce Contax cameras. The final products under the Contax name were a line of 35 mm, medium format, and digital cameras engineered and manufactured by Japanese multinational Kyocera, and featuring modern Zeiss optics. The early cameras were among the finest in the world, typically featuring high quality Zeiss interchangeable lenses. Contax TVS Digital with Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 2.8–4.8Ĭontax (stylised as CONTAX in the Kyocera era) began as a camera model in the Zeiss Ikon line in 1932, and later became a brand name.

Contax viewfinder e leitz wetzlar