New twin-programme camera

Press, 19 February 1986, Page 13

New twin-programme camera

The Chinon CP-5s twin programme camera is the top of the company’s range. Recently I was lent one to try out and comment on.

The New Zealand agents of this Japanese camera (Multi Products, Ltd) were careful to give me the instruction handbook with the camera,

and it was a necessary precaution. The camera has a combination of sophisticated capabilities which as far as I know are unmatched on anycurrent camera. This does not, of course, mean it is necessarily the best — simplicity is often a virtue.

As the owner of several PK-mount lenses, I was immediately enthused by one capability of the CP--5s — it will work satslfactorily on all programmes and modes with any PKbased lens, whether the original PK or the more specialised KPR or PKA. For anyone who, like-me, owns several PK-mount lenses and was contemplating having to sell them ail off cheap and reequip with PKA-based

lenses in order to move up to a programmed camera, the existence of a camera which did not need special lenses was good news indeed. I checked the assertion of PK-compatibllity very carefully. The CP-5s obliged with both standard and zoom PK-mount lenses, using both of the camera’s programmes pliis its automatic, manual and bulb modes. In addition, it proved compatible with Chinon’s 50mm autofocus lens. This lens, containing as it does the power supply and circuitry for the autofocusing, is naturally more cumbersome than a manual-focus lens of similar focal length, and requires focusing to be carried out

with a special button on the lens, but at least it uses the modem infra-red beam system. The zoom autofocus Chinon lens makes use of special contacts which are provided on the CR-ss. Other attributes of the CR-5s include spot and centre-biased average metering and a combination of these, exposure lock, X-flash synchronisation, and a multiple-expo-sure key. The batteries are three AAAs, indicating that they should have a relatively long life, compared with the little silver-oxide batteries found in many cameras. Pan Pacific Cameras quote the CP-5s at $1099.—R.M.