Ricoh M42

35mm SLR system • Discontinued

Overview

A 35mm film SLR system introduced by Ricoh in 1967 and based on the M42 screw mount.

The following cameras were produced by Ricoh:

  • Ricoh Singlex TLS - a base model with mechanical focal plane shutter with top speed of 1/1000th of a second and a TTL stop-down exposure metering;
  • Ricoh TLS 401 - a version of the TLS with shutter of a new design, dual viewing system (conventional eye-level and top-viewer viewing) and dual light measurement system (spot or average light reading);
  • Ricoh SLX 500 - a stripped-down version of the TLS with a shutter speed range from 1/30 to 1/500th of a second;
  • Ricoh Singlex II - similar to the TLS, but the shutter speed dial was located on the top of the camera body;
  • Ricoh Auto TLS EE - a model with TTL full aperture metering and shutter-priority automatic exposure metering with Rikenon EE (Electric-Eye) lenses.

As for the line of lenses, it was quite practical and allowed to shoot a wide range of subjects. However, it is unlikely that these lenses were produced by Ricoh itself: most wide-angle and (super) telephoto primes look suspiciously like Tokina lenses made in the mid-1960s - mid-1970s, while some other models were clearly made in collaboration with Tomioka/Yashica.

M42 mount lens list

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