C41
Kodak Portra 400
Kodak Portra 400 is a professional C-41 color negative film known for flexible exposure latitude, natural skin tones, and fine grain.
View profile →rangefinder-35mm
The Mamiya Auto Lux 35 (introduced ~1964) is a fixed-lens 35mm rangefinder camera featuring selenium-cell automatic exposure - a design that requires no battery whatsoever. The selenium cell drives the meter and AE mechanism directly from ambient light, making the camera fully self-contained in a way that modern electronic cameras cannot match. A coupled rangefinder provides focus confirmation, and a leaf shutter delivers sync at all speeds including the 1/500s maximum. Like many mid-1960s Japanese rangefinders, the Auto Lux 35 was aimed at the serious amateur who wanted set-and-shoot convenience without sacrificing focus accuracy. It occupies a similar market position to the Yashica Electro 35's predecessors and the Minolta Hi-Matic line, though it never achieved equivalent commercial success or collector recognition.
Reference
Recommended film stocks for the 35mm format your camera takes.
C41
Kodak Portra 400 is a professional C-41 color negative film known for flexible exposure latitude, natural skin tones, and fine grain.
View profile →BW
Ilford HP5 Plus is a flexible ISO 400 black-and-white film with classic grain and strong push-processing tolerance.
View profile →BW
Kodak Tri-X 400 is a classic black-and-white film known for strong tonality, visible grain, and documentary character.
Develop 35mm film
Labs in our directory that process 35mm film.
Before you buy used
About this camera
Selenium-cell AE rangefinder from 1964: no battery required, coupled RF, leaf shutter to 1/500s.
| Field | Value |
|---|
| Format | 35mm |
| Lens | Fixed (Mamiya-Sekor, ~45mm) |
| Shutter | 1s - 1/500s, leaf |
| Flash sync | 1/500s (all speeds) |
| Meter | Selenium, battery-free AE |
| Modes | Auto, manual override |
| Focus | Coupled rangefinder |
| Weight | ~650 g |
| Battery | None required |
Mamiya introduced the Auto Lux 35 during a period when the company was still active across both 35mm and medium-format markets. By 1964, the selenium AE approach was already beginning to give way to CdS cell designs (which required a battery but were more sensitive in low light), so the Auto Lux 35 represents a late expression of the battery-free AE philosophy. Production likely ran only a few years before Mamiya shifted consumer rangefinder development toward CdS-metered designs. The camera shares a lineage with the Mamiya Magazine 35 series, which used interchangeable film magazines, though the Auto Lux 35 is a conventional fixed-back design.
Mamiya's rangefinder output in the 1960s was substantial but varied in quality; the Auto Lux 35 sits in the mid-tier of that output alongside other fixed-lens AE bodies from the era.
The primary practical appeal of the Auto Lux 35 in current use is its battery independence. Selenium cells do degrade over six decades, and a tired selenium meter will read light inaccurately - but many surviving examples still meter within a stop or two. For collectors, the camera is a minor entry point into the Mamiya rangefinder lineage at low cost. It does not command the premiums of the Leica M or Canonet QL17 because it lacks the brand recognition, lens reputation, or mechanical refinement of those cameras.
C41
Kodak Portra 160 is a professional C-41 color negative film with fine grain, soft contrast, and natural color.
View profile →C41
Kodak Gold 200 is a daylight-balanced C-41 color negative film with warm color, moderate grain, and a classic consumer-film look.
View profile →Mamiya Auto Lux 35
Image coming soon