Zeiss Ikon Contessa 35

I thought it would be interesting to spend some time with my Contessa 35 after putting a few rolls of film through my Kodak Signet 35.  The two mid-'50s cameras came from very different design traditions and were aimed at different segments of the consumer photography market.  However, there were also many similarities in the construction and capabilities of the two cameras.  Both were fixed-lens rangefinders of nearly equal size.  Both had four-element coated lenses and shutters requiring manual cocking, and both had knob film advances linked to double-exposure prevention.  The Signet 35 was considerably lighter in weight thanks to the cast aluminum body.  The Contessa 35 was a little more compact as the the shrouded bellows allowed the lens and shutter assembly to be retracted into the camera body.  I think it would be hard to distinguish pictures made by the two cameras with the apertures set at the mid-range and smaller, but the Contessa 35 clearly has a marginal advantage due to an extra stop of lens  and shutter speed.

Corner Color

Alternate Albuquerque

Shooting Pansies in a Barrel

Vacancy

Rustic Comfort

Parade

The Contessa 35 sold for about $140 in 1954, which was the equivalent in today's inflated currency of almost $1,300.  Kodak at that time relied on its Stuttgart subsidiary to provide a competitive offering in the form of the Retina IIIc which also had a built-in light meter and carried a price of about $100.  By 1957 the more modestly furnished Signet 35 was being offered by Peerless for $40.