Fujica ST801

with 55mm/1.8 standard lens image by clicks_1000 (Image rights)

The Fujica ST801 is a manual SLR 35mm film camera made by Fuji between 1972 and 1978. It was the first 35mm SLR to use viewfinder LEDs, replacing the traditional centre-the-needle meter display with a centre-the-indicator-light system. This electronic light metering system was developed to eliminate mechanical failure, and needle deviation caused by shocks.

Feature summary

• M42 mount. Fuji created a modification to the standard 42mm screw mount, adding a very small tab on the back of the aperture ring to communicate with the body's light meter to permit open-aperture metering. Unfortunately, M42 Fujinon lenses are sometimes found to have had their aperture coupling tab filed off. While unmodified lenses do fit many M42-mount camera bodies, some lens flanges (or lens adapters) are wide enough in diameter so that the aperture tab interferes with mounting the lens.
• TTL average light meter, with LEDs
• Open-aperture metering using silicon photocells, more sensitive and faster-responding than CdS cells
• Shutter speeds up to 1/2000 s

Pros and Cons

Pros

• Very bright viewfinder (probably brightest finder on an M42 body, save the Bessaflex)
• Light meter uses 7 LEDs which are visible in adverse light conditions, and indicate approximately 3 stops of over- and under-exposure. Fractional stops are indicated by adjacent pairs of LEDs being illuminated.
• Open-aperture metering when used with matching Fujinon M42 lenses
• Very compact for its time.

Cons

• Stop-down metering has to be used with non-Fujinon lenses. (Open-aperture metering is also available with TX-system lenses from Vivitar or Tamron Adaptall-2 lenses, if a Fujica-ST-specific M42 mount adapter is obtained.)
• Only 1/60th sec flash synchronisation

Gallery

Body only image by Joel Emberson (Image rights)

black body photo image by Paulo Moreira (Image rights)

image by Yumi Abe (Image rights)

Links

• Fujica ST801 Manual at Mike Bukus Orphan Cameras
• Fujica ST801 at My 35mm Film Camera Collection
• Fujica ST801 at Sylvain Halgand's www.collection-appareils.fr (in French)