Halina MW 35E

Halina MW 35E by Arty Smokes. (Image rights)

The Halina MW 35E was a compact 35mm film camera made in Hong Kong by Haking. Its design seems to owe a debt to the Olympus Trip 35, but it has a few tricks up its sleeve, albeit with a slower lens.

Specifications

• Lens: Halinar 38mm, maximum aperture f/4.
• Automatic exposure using a CdS cell above the lens. Shutter speed appears to be fixed around 1/125s, but aperture ranges from f/4 to f/16 or f/22. Exposure lock (for close-up spot metering, for example) is possible by half-pressing the shutter release button before re-framing.
• Focussing: Zone focus with four zones marked with symbols and distances: 1m, 2.5m, 3m, infinity.
• Filter thread: 46mm
• Viewfinder: Framelines, parallax correction marks, so-called "Judas window" for seeing zone symbols on lens barrel, low-light warning LED (to remind user to remove lens cap and/or use flash).
• Integrated pop-up flash. Will only fire when manually switched on. Ready-light next to viewfinder.
• Film speeds: ASA 50-400 set manually by turning a toothed dial around the front element.
• Film advance: Motorwind and automatic rewind. A kind of "stealth mode" is possible. The motor only engages when the shutter button is fully released. This allows the candid photographer to take a virtually silent photo, then walk to a safe distance before allowing the motorwind to occur. The front aperture blades also remain open until the motor winds, allowing the user to note the size of aperture chosen by the auto-exposure system.
• Shutter release button threaded for cable, has a lock to prevent accidental firing.
• Tripod socket.
• Power: 2 AA alkaline batteries required.

Links

• Halina MW 35E review and Sample images on Mark's 35 Mil Plus.