Mirax

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The Mirax is a reflex housing made by Orion Seiki and later by Miranda Camera.

Main mirror box

The Mirax consists of a mirror box with interchangeable finders. The main mirror box has a black hammered finish. There is a tripod thread underneath, and a release button on the right side, which can be coupled to the camera body via an adapter. Variations are known in the fairing of the rod connecting the release button to the mirror mechanism. The viewing screen has a convex face, and is placed at the top of the main part.

The front part normally has a dual mount, with an internal 44mm screw mount and an external four-lug bayonet mount, as on the Miranda SLR cameras. Early versions might have the internal mount only, but this is unconfirmed. This is the earliest occurrence of the 44mm screw mount, before it appeared on the Phoenix SLR prototype and later Miranda cameras.

Two versions of the Mirax were sold, differing by the rear mount. The Mirax-A fits Leica screw mount cameras. The mount is adjustable so that the reflex housing always stands upright, whatever the camera mount adjustment.

The Mirax-B has a Contax or Nikon mount. The Contax and Nikon mount only differ by the rangefinder adjustment, causing no physical difference on the reflex housing. An original price list nonetheless distinguish the Mirax-BC for Contax and the Mirax-Bn for Nikon, but this is either a mistake or a distinction based on the release adapters, because of the different location of the shutter button on the camera bodies.

The company name is inscribed on the rear mount: Orion Camera Co. or Miranda Camera Co., along with Made in Japan and the serial number. Reported numbers have six digits, whose two first digits might indicate the year of production.

Viewfinders

Early waist-level and prism finders. From Shashin Kōgyō June 1952. (Image rights).

The Mirax was available from the start with a waist-level finder and an eye-level prism finder.

The waist-level finder is shaped as a chimney, with a magnifying lens at the top. It always has an all chrome finish. The front face is apparently inscribed Orion Mirax I on the very early example pictured in the June 1952 issue of Shashin Kōgyō (see below). Regular examples have Mirax and either Orion Camera Co. or Miranda Camera Co. in small characters.

The prism finder might be the first pentaprism used on Japanese cameras. It paved the way to the later Phoenix SLR prototype, predecessor of the Miranda cameras.

The early prism finder pictured in the same June 1952 article has an all chrome finish, and is inscribed Orion Mirax–II at the front (see below). It is quite high and practically does not protrude on the rear of the Mirax housing, perhaps making it inconvenient to stick an eye on the eyepiece. No surviving example of that early prism finder has been observed yet.

The regular prism finder has the same black hammered finish as the mirror box, with many facets and sharp edges. It is comparatively lower, and protrudes to the rear, certainly making it more convenient to use. The front facet is inscribed Mirax and Orion Camera Co. or Miranda Camera Co. in small characters, as on the regular waist-level finder. The prism finder has a serial number, engraved under the eyepiece. The known numbers again have six digits, with the first two plausibly indicating the year of production.

At least one example of the Mirax has been observed with an intermediate part between the main mirror box and the waist-level finder, in black hammered finish, making the device higher. The use of this part is unknown.

Origin and usage as described by Ogihara Akira

The Mirax was described by Ogihara Akira (荻原彰), founder of Orion Seiki, in the June 1952 issue of Shashin Kōgyō. The article says that the device was developed with the following specifications in mind:

1. short length;
2. small volume;
3. light weight;
4. release button usable while holding the camera with both hands;
5. viewing screen at least as bright as that of the Exakta;
6. interchangeable eye-level and waist-level finders.

Point no.6 eliminates the need for a rotating mirror box for vertical pictures, helping to concentrate on the first four features.

The article emphasizes the device's short length and light weight. The Mirax-A and Mirax-B are respectively 40mm and 43mm thick; this was much less than the contemporary Leitz Visoflex I reflex housing, and potentially allowed to use 75mm or 80mm lenses. The weight is respectively 200g and 250g. Ogihara suggests that the Mirax can be used without a tripod, and describes four release methods, depending on the photographer's needs:

1.  trip the mirror box first, then the camera, to avoid blur for scientific applications;
2. use a dual cable release, convenient when the camera is on a tripod;
3. use a cable coupling the bottom part of the release rod to the camera's shutter button, allowing to hold the camera in both hands;
4. use the "Snap release" provided with the Mirax, a sort of metal plate connecting the release of the camera and reflex housing.

The third method is possible on the Mirax pictured in the article, which has a connecting thread protruding underneath the mirror axis, and a few other examples. This part is not visible on all the Mirax, and the corresponding release method was perhaps dropped at some time.

With a Supreme 10.5cm f/2.8 lens and a waist-level or eye-level finder.		With an Olympus microscope.
Mirax on a Leica camera. From Shashin Kōgyō June 1952. (Image rights).

When the article was published in June 1952, the accessories available for the Mirax were the Supreme 10.5cm f/2.8 direct mount lens, adapters for the screw mount Visoflex lenses and for the Reflex Korelle lenses usable at infinity, adapters for the Leica screw lenses and Contax lenses usable at short distance only, and a microscope adapter. Ogihara mentions that a bellows system was under development; it would appear as the Focabell.

Bibliography

• Asahi Camera. Advertisements by Summit Shōkai in September 1953 (p.190), October 1953 (p.217) and November 1953 (p.194).
• Asahi Camera. Advertisement by the photo department of Matsushima in November 1953 (p.59).
• Ogihara Akira (荻原彰). "Mirakkusu ni tsuite" (ミラックスについて, About the Mirax). In Shashin Kōgyō no.1, June 1952. Pp.26–7.
• Photo Art rinji zōkan: Kamera akusesarī zensho (フォトアート臨時増刊・カメラアクセサリー全書, Photo Art special issue: All the camera accessories). June 1955, no.80 of the magazine.
  • Advertisement by the photo department of Matsushima Megane-ten on p.22.
  • "Zukai: Akusesarī no mekanikku. 12: Bōen, sessha, fukusha sōchi. Mirakkusu to Fōkaberu." (図解・アクセサリーのメカニック・12・望遠・接写・複写装置・ミラックスとフォーカベル. Drawings: accessory mechanisms. 12: Telephoto, close-up and reproduction devices. Mirax and Focabell.) P.51.
  • "Shashin no kaimi wa sessha to bōen satsuei kara: Purokusā, Ōtoappu, Refubokkusu, sonota." (写真の快味は接写と望遠撮影から・プロクサー・オートアップ・レフボックス・その他, Because the appeal of photography comes with close-up and telephoto pictures: Proxar, Auto-Up, reflex housing, etc.) Pp.118–20.

Links

In English:

• Pages of the Miranda Camera website:
  • Mirax housings
  • Focabell bellows system
  • Mirax and Focabell among rare items
• Past sales by Westlicht:
  • Orion Camera Mirax with Supreme 10.5cm f/2.8 lens head: lot no.365 of auction no.9 (May 20, 2006)
  • Miranda Camera Mirax-A and accessories (two examples with consecutive numbers): lot no.366 of auction no.9 (May 20, 2006)
  • Orion Camera Mirax-A with Supreme 10.5cm f/2.8: lot no.398 of auction no.14 (November 30, 2008)
• Mirax-A on a Nikkor 25cm f/4 at Cameraquest

In Japanese:

• Pages of the Miranda Society Japan:
  • Text-only details on the Mirax among telephoto lenses
  • Advertisement for the Mirax, Focabell and Supreme in the main page