Contax RX – 1994

Chris and Carol

Before the dawn of the digital age, camera manufacturers produced some of their most technologically advanced 35mm SLR film cameras to date. Sophisticated autofocus systems, auto exposure, eye-control, and zone-assist focusing to name just a few features. The Canon EOS-1N (1994), the Nikon F4 (1988) which was Nikons first professional camera with autofocus, the F5 (1996), and the Contax RX (1994), AX (1996) which had a basic autofocus system and later, the N1 (2000) a true autofocus camera with a new line of Zeiss lenses.

My Contax RX set. The lens was initially sold separately.
The RX’s ‘highlight’ was the Digital Focus Indicator (DFI) function—not quite autofocus, but close.
It’s a handsome SLR with a timeless, classic look that, in my opinion, modern Fujifilm mirrorless cameras emulate.
The list price of JPY 160,000 was about USD 1,600 in 1994.
Contax RX brochure. Shoots at up to 3 frames per second.
Canon EOS-1N RS (a film eater with autofocus). It’s capable of shooting 10 frames per second! Uses Canon EF lenses.
Canon EOS-1N brochure – 1994.
Nikon F5 1996. It’s capable of shooting 8 frames per second.
Nikon F5 brochure.
The Contax RX. The data back only indicates the year up to 2019. Thirty years on, it’s stuck in the 1990s. The data is printed between the frames on the film, not in the image.
Contax craziness!

More soon. Thanks for stopping by, Chris

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Comments are always welcomed, as I’ve learned quite a bit from reader feedback. As always, thanks for stopping by, and while you’re at it, feel free to visit my camera shop at http://www.ccstudio2380.com (CC Design Studios hosted by Etsy). – Chris Whelan

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2 thoughts on “Contax RX – 1994”

  1. Hi Chris, It’s always nice to see an RX – I hope you liked the piccie of the ‘Titan – Year 2000’ version that I sent to you recently; it’s slightly reminiscent of the NASA 137…

    I’m amused to see you refer to the Contax AX as having a ‘basic AF system’ as it’s the first time I’ve ever seen someone refer to it as ‘basic’. I believe it remains the only 35mm SLR which turns any manual focus lens effectively into both an AF and a macro lens. I’m biased in my opinion as I love the complex engineering in the AX. BUT did you know that Contax produced a full AF 35mm SLR camera back in 1982 in the form of a version of the 137MA? It was demonstrated at Photokina along with 3 Zeiss AF lenses and what made it very special was that the camera worked with both the AF and manual focus Zeiss (and C/Y Yashica) lenses as the mount had not changed – no need to junk all your lenses as with the later Contax N-system. It would have been a world-beater but Kyocera, who were in the process of acquiring Yashica, insisted the project was killed. A massive strategic error!

    There is footage on YouTube of the 137AF and a Zeiss 50mm T* AF-Planar being operated by some lucky guy who managed to acquire them both somehow. I suspect that the Zeiss Museum would like them back… The AF is really nice and snappy – I suspect that it uses a development of the same Honeywell focus identification system as found in the Yashica FX-A – another project killed by Kyocera but at least some 800 cameras had been produced before the plug was pulled. I’ve grabbed an image from the video which shows the kit; it looks more like a 159 than a 137 but it is definitely a special version of the 137.

    All the best,

    Graham

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    1. I should have said ‘innovative’. I don’t have the AX, but it’s a model I’ll consider next.

      Kyocera did quite a few things right, but unfortunately, they made massive missteps too.

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