Most compact 50mm camera.

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paniolo

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Hi Guys,

I am on the look for the most compact 50mm lens + camera combo.
The Rollei 35 and Olympus 35RC are just great, but with ~40mm too wide for my general photography.

I look for something similar in the compact camera world but just have found the Vito B and Leica CL as alternatives.

A meter is not needed, but RF would be nice.

The Rollei 35 with 50mm would be the winner, is there something similar?

Best Regards
Tobi
 
Diax IIb with 50mm Xenon.
A Barnack with a collapsible 50mm Elmar f/3.5
After that, a Barnack with 50mm Elmar f/2.8.
A Voigtlander Vitessa.
After that, maybe a CL/CLE with a new Summarit f/2.5 or the CV 50mm f/2.5.
Everything bigger than those that isn't a folding camera is almost the size of an M body and realistically, bigger than an OM-1 or Pentax MX with a pancake lens.

Phil Forrest
 
Here's a dark horse: Certo Super Dollina II. 50/2.8 Tessar with rangefinder. 120x80x40mm vs. 95x65x40mm for the Rollei (both folded/lens compressed). That said, the Certo is a somewhat fussy camera to use (even by folder standards), but it is very capable if you're willing to put up with its idiosyncrasies.

IMG_1316_1024_zpsb5929908.jpg
 
The problem is that there just weren't very many (any?) compact, fixed lens cameras made w/ 50mm lenses during the golden age of such cameras (the late 60s through the early 80s). They tended to have ~40mm lenses or wider.

When I want/need a compact 50mm camera, I use a Barnack Leica w/ either a CV Skopar 50/2.5 or an Elmar 50/3.5. That kit will fit in a coat pocket.
 
There were plenty of normal focal length medium format cameras made though, some of which are about the same size as a Retina. Perhaps something like a Perkeo?
 
Had same question/quest a couple years ago, my answer was Barnack Leica + Elmar 50 (very slim but heavy and a bit less intuitive to use compared to modern camera) or CL + Color-Skopar (Modern UI and very light but thicker to carry).
 
Well, if an Olympus RC is compact enough, then a CL + CV50/2.5 should be fine; it's not much bigger. But you're not going to find a camera as compact as a Rollei 35 with a 50 lens.
 
Collapsible elmar on Leica body. 3.5 elmar is almost flat. 2.8 is around 1/2 "

Rollie 35 is a gem and would be my pick if only size matters.
 
I don't believe they get any smaller or more sleek that
the Voightlander Vito II. At least I have been impressed
with mine.
 
Last edited:
besk said:
I don't believe they get any smaller or more sleek that the Voightlander Vito II. At least I have been impressed
with mine.
Click to expand...

If a rangefinder requirement is not critical, then I would agree with this. The Vito is really well-designed and pleasant to use.
 
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