CanonSure Shot Supreme

Place the Canon Sure Shot Supreme in context and you land in the late 1980s, the golden age of the autofocus point-and-shoot. Catalogued as a autofocus compact, it pairs the Canon 38mm f/2.8 with a 35mm film path. Worth knowing up front: sold as the Top Shot in Japan and the Autoboy 3 in some markets.

Format

35mm

Year

1986

Lens

Canon 38mm f/2.8

Shutter

1/8 – 1/500 s

Min. focus

0.8 m

Flash

Built-in auto

Battery

2× AA

The Canon 38mm f/2.8 sits in the daylight sweet spot: sharp wide open, well-corrected against flare, and small enough to disappear in a jacket pocket. Standard 35mm keeps it compatible with whatever Kodak, Ilford, Fuji or CineStill stock you find on the shelf today. It runs on common AA batteries — you can resurrect one on a Sunday afternoon with whatever the corner shop has in stock. The built-in flash will fire whenever the meter decides it should, so learn the override before your first night out. Minimum focus is 0.8 m, close enough for a coffee cup or a face but stops short of true macro. Worth knowing in the field: its smooth, rounded shell earned it the 'soap bar' nickname among collectors. The mild-normal focal length flatters faces and street scenes alike without either looking forced.

The Canon Sure Shot Supreme hasn't been swept up by the algorithm yet, which is the entire window — get one before the rest of the internet catches up.

• §1Sold as the Top Shot in Japan and the Autoboy 3 in some markets.
• §2Its smooth, rounded shell earned it the 'soap bar' nickname among collectors.