Customer Reviews

Zeiss Ikon M-Mount 35mm Rangefinder Camera Body, Silver

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The Zeiss Ikon M-mount Rangefinder Camera is a stylish, classic update of Zeiss's great rangefinder cameras from the early to mid 20th Century, most notably its venerable Contax line. Designed by Zeiss, but built in Japan by Cosina (Voigtlander) under strict Zeiss supervision, the Zeiss Ikon rangefinder camera remains a viable, attractive alternative to those wishing to use a M-mount rangefinder camera, but can't afford purchasing either a used or new Leica MP or Leica M7. It can be regarded as a cheaper alternative to the aperture priority automatic and manual exposure Leica M7, but unlike the M7, it has a few intriguing features of its own which should appeal to M-mount rangefinder camera photographers.

The Zeiss Ikon rangefinder camera has an extremely bright, high eyepoint viewfinder that has the best viewing (especially for someone like myself who wears glasses) I have seen yet from a Leica M-mount rangefinder camera that isn't the venerable Leica M3. The viewfinder has a 0.74 X magnification that accounts for its excellent viewing (It also has a built-in diopter correction.). The viewfinder also has frame lines for 28mm, 35mm, 50mm and 85mm lenses, which display the focal length of the lens in use and are completely compatible with Leica M rangefinder lenses, except for 75mm lenses (Only the frame line for a 50mm lens will appear if a 75mm lens is mounted; for 90mm lenses, the 85mm frame line appears automatically.).

The camera may seem a bit too light for those accustomed to Leica M rangefinder cameras, but it has a very well built magnesium-alloy body. Opening and closing the camera is through a latch key-like knob at the base of the camera (It also functions as a film rewind crank, so unfortunately, there is no option for attaching something like the Leica M motor, a Leicavit manual winder, or Tom Abrahamsson's Rapid Winder.), but unlike Leica Ms, the camera back swings open to allow for film loading. The camera's shutter isn't nearly as quiet as those of past and current Leica M film rangefinder cameras, especially the M7's, but it is certainly less noisy than the M8's. It is based on a proven Japanese design that allows for shutter speeds in Aperture Priority or Manual Exposure modes from 1 to 1/2000 seconds, plus a flash synchronization speed of 1/125 second (Both the camera's meter and shutter are powered by two MS76 silver oxide batteries, as is the case for every Leica M rangefinder camera from the M6 to the M7 and MP; however, if the batteries die out, the camera will cease to function.).

As a long-time user of Leica M rangefinder cameras and lenses, I regard the Zeiss Ikon as a cheaper, more reasonably priced, alternative to the Leica M7. Others, however, may find it the perfect M-mount rangefinder camera for their collection of M-mount lenses, including the new Zeiss ZM line - virtually all of which are built in Japan by Cosina under strict Zeiss quality control - which are optically as superb as their more expensive Leica M equivalents, and in a couple of instances, optically superior.

I bought the chrome-finished Zeiss Ikon a few years back, as I found it had more to offer me than the Leica M7. I'll get to the facts:
Its design layout is aesthetically-pleasing, but never hinders the photographic process.
It has full manual-override and aperture-priority metering.
Film loading is done quickly via a hinged back. I dread the thought of my M6 Leica's baseplate plunging into an abyss, while I'm perched on a rickety rope bridge in the Himalayas. If the baseplate is lost, no photographs!
It is lighter than the Leica M7, which is its feature-for-feature rival.
The Zeiss Ikon uses Leica M-mount lenses and Leica M39 (thread mount) lenses with the proper focal-length adapter.
The frameline is automatically shown through the viewfinder, along with the focal length number of the lens being used; compared to the Leica, which only shows the frameline/s (of the lens being used).
There is an autoexposure-lock button at the rear of the camera that only needs to be pressed once and let go; and another press of the button to deactivate, which is how it should be.
The viewfinder is the brightest I've ever peered through, and I know for a fact that it's brighter than the M6 Leica's viewfinder!
The price of a new Zeiss Ikon is only 33% of the price of a new Leica M7.
Though the Zeiss Ikon isn't as robust in build as the M7, it is a tough and dependable camera that utilizes high-quality materials for its construction.
The shutter sound of the Zeiss Ikon is metallic, short, and high-pitched, which may carry to the ears of subjects in a fairly quiet environment. The extremely-quiet Leica M wins in this respect.
The Zeiss Ikon is by no means a cheap alternative to any Leica M camera. It stands on its own merits as a fine professional-grade camera. It bears only the name of Zeiss Ikon; no model number or disembodied letters; just Zeiss Ikon, the one and only. Get one, because it is.

I recently bought the Black Body Zeiss Ikon (ZI) 35mm Rangefinder. I find it to be a superbly crafted, intuitive modern day masterpiece. I don't compare the ZI to an M7 anymore than I would compare an Aston martin to a Bentley. They are both superb but different from each other. One thing that I immediately felt the first time I used the ZI was a new appreciation for the art of photography and a new appreciation for film. I of course have a digital camera, but after I processed and scanned the first roll of Fuji Velvia 100 from this camera, I immediately became a film shooter once again. How silly is it that a lot of us upgrade our digital cameras every year and we take pictures at 10 fps of our kids?!? this camera calls to your sense of composition and light, and with the bright and open rangefinder helping, you start to see pictyures differently. For those of you who've only used SLRs or DSLRs, a rangefinder camera allows you to see outside of the field of view of your lens to help you compose your shot. SLRs/DSLRs have you peering through a tunnel that is the lens really hindering your ability to compose your shot. I take better pictures with this camera! Unless your a sports photographer, or another type that uses (needs) a 200mm plus telephoto lens then is overkill and really gets in the way of picture-taking. The majority of us take pictures of our lives, our familys & friends and the places we visit. The Zeiss Ikon lets you do so unobtrusively, keeping your subject relxed and sometimes unaware. The natural images that you capture are so much nicer than when they have a 12 inch mega OIS shotgun barrel pointed at their face. I highly recemmend this camera and especially like the fact that I bought it new instead of having to buy an 8-10 year old Leica for the same price or more. Another plus is that a good film camera and the superb optics that Zeiss, Voigtlander and Leica offer for this camera never depreciate! We unfortunately are in the age of 1500.00 disposable cameras.