Paulo J Moreira
Canon FP
The Canon FP, along with the similar FX were the first Canon with the FL mount. This camera is unmetered, a surprise for me, but I am not a Canon expert. The camera is typical from 1964, but not too big, yet quite heavy. It features mirror lock-up and nothing else worthy of notice. The viewfinder is not the brightest, yet it does without the micro-prism circle, replacing it with a huge circular split image screen. No info whatsoever in the viewfinder. The camera vibrates less than usual and is also slightly more silent than a Spotmatic, all courtesy of the usual Canon build quality.
The camera comes with the FL 50/1.8, second generation, recognizable because of the violet coating instead of the original amber, although my picture doesn’t show it too much, but it is. It is also a completely different optical design and a better lens. The apertures are located at the front of the lens (I suppose it was Canon’s rangefinder heritage) and it is the first ever Canon SLR lens that I have that does not feature any sort of synthetic material, everything is made from solid metal. Those were the days for Canon users…
Canon FP
The Canon FP, along with the similar FX were the first Canon with the FL mount. This camera is unmetered, a surprise for me, but I am not a Canon expert. The camera is typical from 1964, but not too big, yet quite heavy. It features mirror lock-up and nothing else worthy of notice. The viewfinder is not the brightest, yet it does without the micro-prism circle, replacing it with a huge circular split image screen. No info whatsoever in the viewfinder. The camera vibrates less than usual and is also slightly more silent than a Spotmatic, all courtesy of the usual Canon build quality.
The camera comes with the FL 50/1.8, second generation, recognizable because of the violet coating instead of the original amber, although my picture doesn’t show it too much, but it is. It is also a completely different optical design and a better lens. The apertures are located at the front of the lens (I suppose it was Canon’s rangefinder heritage) and it is the first ever Canon SLR lens that I have that does not feature any sort of synthetic material, everything is made from solid metal. Those were the days for Canon users…