Voigtlander Vito CL1961

History

The Vito series began in 1939 with a folding camera, evolved through the compact Vito B (1954) and Vito IIa (1955), and spawned the metered Vitomatic branch in 1957. By 1960-1961 Voigtlander rationalized the line to offer both a pure viewfinder camera (Vito C) and a metered viewfinder camera (Vito CL) at lower cost than the Vitomatic series.

The Vito BL (1956) had introduced a larger, brighter viewfinder to the Vito B body; the CL continued this improved-finder approach with the addition of metering. The result is a camera that neatly occupies the space between the purely mechanical Vito B descendants and the more expensive Vitomatic.

Production continued through approximately 1966, at which point the Vitoret series had largely taken over the entry and mid-market segments, and the Vito name was retired. Voigtlander itself was absorbed into the Zeiss Ikon group in 1965-1966, and the Vito line was not continued under combined management.

The Vito CL was produced in relatively smaller numbers than the Vito B or Vitomatic I, making clean examples somewhat harder to find.

Why It Matters

The Vito CL offers a straightforward proposition: a Color-Skopar lens, a battery-free selenium meter, and a known-reliable Prontor shutter in a compact West German body, at used prices that reflect its modest original market position. It is a practical choice for photographers who want the Voigtlander Color-Skopar rendering without paying Vitomatic or Vitessa prices.

The scale-focus limitation is real but manageable: at f/5.6 and beyond, the depth of field at typical subject distances is generous enough that precise rangefinder accuracy is unnecessary for most outdoor and travel subjects. Zone focus by symbol (head, group, landscape) covers the majority of use cases.

The battery-free selenium system is the same advantage present across the Vitomatic family: no battery adaptation, no mercury cell substitution issues, and no concern about the camera becoming unusable due to obsolete power requirements.

Sample Photographers / Notable Use

• Sold as an affordable West German metered compact for the general consumer market in the early 1960s, competing with the Agfa Optima series and Kodak Retina I.
• Used primarily for holiday, family, and travel photography; the scale-focus and zone-focus system was appropriate for the snapshot use case that dominated consumer camera sales.
• Collected today as an affordable entry point to the Voigtlander Vito series, particularly by photographers interested in the Color-Skopar rendering at modest cost.

References

• Camera-Wiki: Voigtlander Vito C - variant list and specifications for the Vito C / CL family