Vitomatic IIb
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| Voigtländer Vitomatic IIb image by Danipuntocom (Image rights) |
The Voigtländer Vitomatic IIb, introduced in 1964, was an evolution of the 1960 Vitomatic IIa. The main change was that the shutter release was now a shifter beside the lens instead of a button on the camera's top. The whole top was changed: The meter window and the film type reminder disappeared from there, the accessory shoe was replaced by a hot one and the rewind knob became a modern rewind crank. Other changes include 40.5mm threaded filter mount, which was an improvement over the 32mm push-on filter mount of the Vitomatic II and IIa. Also, one could view the shutter speed and aperture setting through the finder. One could no longer read the light meter from the top of the camera and the lens was only front-cell focusing, unlike past models in which the entire lens group focused. This was a cost-cutting measure. While front-cell focusing is certainly not an improvement, the debate rages as to whether on a standard lens of this design there is a measurable difference between front-cell focusing and lens group focusing. It was again a quite reliable camera.
Specifications
- Type: rangefinder camera
- Manufacturer: Voigtländer
- Year of launch: 1964
- Film: 35mm with speeds 12 to 800 ASA
- Lens: Voigtländer Color-Skopar 1:2.8/50mm or 1:3.5/50mm
- Shutter: Prontor SLK, with speeds 1 sec. to 1/500 sec. plus B
- Meter: selenium photo cell, match-needle instrument visible through the finder
- Finder: Optical viewfinder with superimposed rangefinder
- Film advance: rapid lever, hidden in the camera back, and a rewind crank on top
Links
In English:
- Vitomatic IIb user manual (pdf) at Butkus.org
- Voigtländer Vitomatic IIb, at From the focal plane to infinity (archived)
- Vitomatic IIb at F.S. Marriott (archived)
In French:
- Vitomatic IIb on www.collection-appareils.fr by Sylvain Halgand
