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New and Second Hand: Rolleiflex T vs Voigtlaender Bessamatic

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New and Second Hand: Rolleiflex T vs Voigtlaender Bessamatic

Postby Eddie Vaughan » Tue Aug 04, 2015 3:55 pm

The Rolleiflex T and the Voigtlaender Bessamatic were both introduced in 1959. At that time, the price in Australia of a new Bessamatic with 50mm Color Skopar lens was about 20 per cent higher than than a new Rolleiflex T. The Bessamatic was the first and only 35mm SLR camera to be produced by Voigtlaender before it became absorbed into Zeiss Ikon Voigtlaender and it compared closely in price at the time with the Zeiss Contaflex. It was an expensive camera, and, as 1964 listings of second-hand cameras in the Australian Photography magazine show, its second hand value held up well for a few years, exceeding that of the Rolleiflex T and even a Rolleiflex 3.5 with a Xenotar lens. That seems extraordinary now. The average price of a good condition Rolleiflex T on eBay is presently about five times that of a Bessamatic. The digital photography revolution led to a collapse in demand and prices for 35mm film cameras (except for a few classics, such as Leica rangefinders and Zeiss Contarex SLRs) but there has not yet been a slackening in demand for quality medium format film cameras such as Rolleiflex or Hasselblad.

The Voigtlaender Bessamatic remains a good camera and is arguably now a bargain. If sold with the rare 90mm Dynarex or Zoomar lenses shown here, it still sells for a good price. Expect to pay at least US$1,000 if it is sold with both.
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Eddie Vaughan
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