CONTAX G2

Film camera Contax G2 review and photo examples

Table of contents

Photo example
Review
Specification
Dedicated lenses
Options
Reference links

Photo example
The lens is a Planar G 45mm, the film is PKR-64, and the film scanner is a DiMAGE Scan Multi PRO.

Review

The Contax G2 is an autofocus (“AF”) 35mm film camera released by Kyocera/Contax in 1996.
In addition to the 16mm, 28mm, 45mm, and 90mm lenses released with the G1, 21mm and 35mm lenses were released with the G2, and a 35-70mm zoom lens was released a little later to complete the lens lineup.
The AF accuracy of the G2 was faster and better than that of the G1, but there was no way to resolve the weakness of not being able to see the focus position in the viewfinder, and the G2 was the end of this AF mirrorless camera.
Still, the focus yield when using the Sonar 90mm is much better than that of the G1, and with this AF system, the G2 seems to have finally become a normal camera. Still, it is not super good at bushes and fences.
Personally, I think the G1 is the most complete camera design to date, as the focus dial on the top of the grip breaks the balance of the camera design, and I feel it is not as good as the G1’s more cohesive design.

The G2 exists in a titanium gold exterior and a black body that comes with the lens. In addition to the black body version, lenses other than the 16mm Hologon lens are also available with black barrels, but since only a small number of these lenses are manufactured, they are about twice as expensive as the regular titanium-colored lenses on the second-hand market. I have a 28mm and a 90mm lens with black barrels that have been converted to M-mount.

Lenses are available in the necessary focal lengths: 16mm, 21mm, 28mm, 35mm, 45mm, 90mm, and 35-70mm. The lens lineup is a bit lonely compared to that of a single-lens reflex camera, but it should be enough for ordinary photographic enjoyment. Yashica Contax lenses can be used via the GA-1 mount adapter, but since AF is not available, the distance measurement function is used to set the focus position, which is not very practical.

Specification

Camera name	CONTAX G1	CONTAX G2
Finder	Real-image zoom finder	←
Viewfinder magnification (Infinity, 45mm, Diopter -1D)	x 0.57	←
Field of view (Infinity, 45mm, Diopter -1D)	90%	←
AF system	Passive Continuous not supported	Passive/Infrared Active Combination Continuous support
Continuous shooting rate	2 frames/second	4 frames/second
Shutter system	Electronically controlled, longitudinal running focal plane shutter	←
Shutter Speed	1/2000 – 16 sec (aperture priority) 1/2000 – 1 second (manual)	1/6000 – 16 sec (aperture priority) 1/4000 – 1 second (manual)
Battery	CR2-3V 2本	←
Size(mm) W x H x D	133 × 77 × 42	139 x 80 x 45
Weight(g)	460	560
Price(Yen/No-tax)	¥143,000-	¥163,000-

Dedicated lenses

Focal length	Lens name	Release date
16mm	HOLOGON 16mm	Year 1994
21mm	BIOGON 21mm	Year 1996
28mm	BIOGON 28mm	Year 1994
35mm	PLANAR 35mm	Year 1996
45mm	PLANAR 45mm	Year 1994
90mm	SONNAR 90mm	Year 1994
35-70mm	VARIO SONNAR 35-70	Year 1999