Got in the mail: Contax IIIa

[Rich Silfver]

Got my Contax IIIa w/ Sonnar 50/1.5 delivered today...

I bought it off eBay and it was everything the seller said it was - fully functional (including a working meter) and in near mint condition!

I must say that as much as I love my Leica cameras this is one sweet looking machine.....

 

[hugivza]

Enjoy!! I got one off e-bay last year in similar condition. It is a delight, and hard to realise that it is 50+ years old.

 

[captainslack]

Wow! That's nice! Don't want to ask how much you paid for that.

 

[thanatos]

captainslack might not, but I do 😉

 

[JoeFriday]

the 50/1.5 Sonnar is among the best glass on the planet IMHO.. let's see some photos FROM it now 🙂

 

[Pherdinand]

Hey, great camera!
I hope you'll have better luck wit it, than I did.

By the way, regarding the 50/1.5 ... I have VERY mixed experiences with it. Some images are really great technically, but an equal number of them suck. Mostly blur/unsharpness and strong light falloff . I could not figure out any reason for the difference. Seems just a bad day - good day stuff.

 

[Pherdinand]

By the way, it's not one with a SN of C2530 by accident, is it?

 

[RObert Budding]

My Contax IIIa and 50/1.5 Sonnar were extraordinary. But I sold it to help fund my Bronica RF645 . . .

 

[Rich Silfver]

Wow! That's nice! Don't want to ask how much you paid for that.

The cost was just under 400 dollars. Maybe on the high side but I wanted a camera that was - or came with - ;
- recently serviced,
- working meter,
- Sonnar 50/1.5 lens,
- leather case, and
- in great cosmetic condition.

This one met all those criteria..now I just got to figure out how to use it and take some photos with it 🙂

 

[Rich Silfver]

By the way, it's not one with a SN of C2530 by accident, is it?

Nope, D78...

 

[Pherdinand]

Rich, really enjoy shooting the contax (right now the contax iia i have...but i also enjoyed my short adventure with the iiia), i think it rivals the rolleiflex in this point - and it fits in my coat pocket! - So i'm pretty sure you will like using it, knowing your preference for well buiilt mechanical cameras...

 

[captainslack]

The cost was just under 400 dollars.

THAT'S ALL?!?!? 😱

Damn! That gives me hope to own one some day!

 

[Uncle Bill]

Congratulations on your contax IIIa, mine is in pretty good shape though the meter does not work. You will have a lot of fun with this camera.

Bill

 

[Benjamin Marks]

Sweet - I just got back pics from my 50/1.5 Sonnar on a Leica (w/funky adapter). Yow. What a lens. Will post pics later on a new thread when I have time to scan 'em.