KonicaC35 AF2

The Konica C35 AF2 comes out of an era when 'point and shoot' stopped being a slur and started being a marketing promise. Catalogued as a autofocus compact, it pairs the Konica Hexanon 38mm f/2.8 (4 elements in 3 groups) with a 35mm film path. A bit of background: The C35 AF2 is the 1980 facelift of the C35 AF — the world's first production autofocus camera, launched in November 1977 and nicknamed 'Jasupin' in Japan.

Format

35mm

Year

1980

Lens

Konica Hexanon 38mm f/2.8 (4 elements in 3 groups)

Shutter

Programmed leaf shutter, 3 speeds: 1/60s, 1/125s, 1/250s

Min. focus

1.1 m

Flash

Built-in, GN 14, output set by the AF distance reading

Battery

2× AA

The Konica Hexanon 38mm f/2.8 (4 elements in 3 groups) doesn't chase exotic specifications; it just renders cleanly, focuses predictably, and gets out of the photograph's way. On the film-availability spectrum, plain 35mm is as easy as it gets in 2026. 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 1.1 m, close enough for a coffee cup or a face but stops short of true macro. One thing worth knowing before you load a roll: its autofocus is the passive Honeywell Visitronic module: it compares two views of the scene like a rangefinder, so unlike later infrared systems it needs contrast rather than reflected light. Best for everyday life and half-length portraits — a 40-ish lens stays out of the way and renders people without distortion.

The Konica C35 AF2 sits exactly where you want a sleeper to sit: low prices, working examples plentiful, and a spec sheet that holds up against far pricier rivals. Worth remembering: Konica is said to have sold a million C35 AF bodies; the design was copied outright in Taiwan as the Paimex 35 AF and loosely cloned in Minsk as the Belomo Elikon Autofocus.

• §1The C35 AF2 is the 1980 facelift of the C35 AF — the world's first production autofocus camera, launched in November 1977 and nicknamed 'Jasupin' in Japan.
• §2Its autofocus is the passive Honeywell Visitronic module: it compares two views of the scene like a rangefinder, so unlike later infrared systems it needs contrast rather than reflected light.
• §3Konica is said to have sold a million C35 AF bodies; the design was copied outright in Taiwan as the Paimex 35 AF and loosely cloned in Minsk as the Belomo Elikon Autofocus.
• §4The lens cap deliberately blocks the viewfinder, so you cannot shoot a whole roll with the cap on.