A 35mm SLR system developed and manufactured by the Japanese company Cosina based on the Pentax K bayonet mount with fully automatic diaphragm and support for TTL open-aperture exposure metering.
Cameras in this system can be divided into two categories: (1) models with a mechanical shutter and manual exposure mode, and (2) models with an electronically controlled shutter and aperture priority auto exposure mode. Cosina produced many of these models under various names for Vivitar and other distributors of photographic equipment.
Initially, only 50mm standard lenses were produced for the cameras, but in 1981 Cosina announced a small line of accessory lenses with focal lengths ranging from 24mm wide angle to 300mm super telephoto, plus several zoom lenses.
NOTE: We were unable to find any photos of the following lenses, which are not recorded in the database for this reason:
- Cosinon-T 300/5.6 MC: 8E - 4G, CFD 4m, 55mm filters, 450g;
- Cosinon-Z 70-150/4 MC: 12E - 9G, CFD 1.5m, 52mm filters, 480g.
NOTE: Multi-coated standard lenses had the same marking format as the older screw mount lenses: COSINON AUTO MC F=1.x f=50mm, but this was soon changed to COSINA MC COSINON-S 50MM 1:1.x.
NOTE: The year of production of a particular Cosinon lens can be easily determined by the first two digits of the serial number, which is located on the side of the lens barrel or on the front ring in the case of early copies.