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.
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The Zeiss Ikon Super Ikonta B (Model 532/16) is a folding medium-format camera producing 6×6 cm negatives on 120 roll film. It is a landmark design in German camera engineering: a true coupled rangefinder integrated into a folding body, combining the accuracy of rangefinder focusing with the compactness of a folder, at a negative size that gives substantially more image area than 35mm.
Reference
Recommended film stocks for the — 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.
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Kodak Portra 160 is a professional C-41 color negative film with fine grain, soft contrast, and natural color.
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Kodak Ektar 100 is a fine-grain C-41 color negative film with saturated color and high sharpness.
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Before you buy used
About this camera
The definitive prewar and postwar German folding 6×6 medium-format camera — a coupled rangefinder, Tessar optics, and a precision Compur shutter in a compact body that could fit in a coat pocket.
| Field | Value |
|---|
| Format | 6×6 cm on 120 roll film |
| Lens | Tessar 75/3.5 (standard) or Opton-Tessar 75/3.5 |
| Years | 1937–1960 (with wartime interruption) |
| Shutter | Synchro-Compur, 1s – 1/500s + B |
| Flash sync | X and M (post-war) |
| Meter | Selenium (final variants); none (earlier) |
| Focus | Coupled rangefinder |
| Negatives | 12 per roll (6×6) |
| Weight | ~680 g with lens |
| Battery | None required |
Zeiss Ikon introduced the Super Ikonta series in 1934 as a premium alternative to the earlier unmetered, non-rangefinder Icarette/Ikonta line. The B format (6×6) was positioned as the most versatile for general photography; the coupled rangefinder distinguished it from cheaper folders of the era that required scale focus or guesswork.
Production was interrupted by World War II; postwar manufacture resumed at Zeiss Ikon's Stuttgart plant (West Germany). The postwar Super Ikonta B went through several subvariants with incremental improvements to shutter, finder, and eventually meter integration. The camera was discontinued around 1960 as 35mm SLRs and compacts displaced medium-format folders in the consumer market.
The prewar versions use a Compur Rapid shutter (1s – 1/400s); the postwar Synchro-Compur goes to 1/500s and adds synchronized flash. Lens coatings were added in the immediate postwar years; T-coated (Tessar T) versions date from around 1950.
The Super Ikonta B occupies a unique position in the camera market: a truly pocketable 6×6 medium-format camera with a coupled rangefinder. No SLR of the era could match its compactness; no scale-focus folder matched its focusing accuracy. For travel, documentary, and portrait work where medium-format quality was required without a large bag, the Super Ikonta B was one of the best available tools.
The Tessar 75/3.5 is a proven design — four elements in three groups, sharp center wide-open, excellent corner performance at f/8–11. The images produced on medium-format negative have a rendering quality that 35mm cannot match, and the 6×6 frame allows portrait-orientation recomposition in darkroom printing without rotating the negative.
For contemporary film photographers, the Super Ikonta B is a practical choice: it meters without a battery (early versions) or requires no battery at all, produces large negatives on readily available 120 film, and the Tessar lens is fully coated on postwar examples. Repair parts and service information are available.
Fixed non-interchangeable lens. Standard: Tessar 75/3.5 or Opton-Tessar 75/3.5 (Carl Zeiss Oberkochen optical design, manufactured by Zeiss Ikon). Some rarer examples carry the Biogon 80/2.8 (symmetric wide-angle design). Accessories: bayonet-fit filters (series VI size), cable release socket, close-up supplementary lenses (diopter attachments over the main lens).
BW
Kodak Tri-X 400 is a classic black-and-white film known for strong tonality, visible grain, and documentary character.
View profile →Zeiss Ikon Super Ikonta B
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