C41
Kodak Portra 400
Kodak Portra 400 is a professional C-41 color negative film known for flexible exposure latitude, natural skin tones, and fine grain.
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compact-35mm
The Contax TVS, introduced in 1993, is Kyocera's first compact camera combining an autofocus zoom lens with Contax's premium titanium construction and Carl Zeiss T* optical coating. The fixed Vario-Sonnar T* 28-56mm f/3.5-6.5 lens covers a useful wide-to-short-telephoto range in a body genuinely small enough for a jacket pocket. It offers program AE and aperture-priority modes, multi-pattern metering, and a leaf shutter syncing at all speeds up to 1/500s. The TVS was positioned to complement the fixed-lens Contax T2 (38mm f/2.8) for shooters who wanted zoom flexibility without abandoning the Contax/Zeiss quality standard.
Reference
Recommended film stocks for the 35mm format your camera takes.
C41
Kodak Portra 400 is a professional C-41 color negative film known for flexible exposure latitude, natural skin tones, and fine grain.
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Kodak Gold 200 is a daylight-balanced C-41 color negative film with warm color, moderate grain, and a classic consumer-film look.
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Kodak UltraMax 400 is a versatile consumer-grade ISO 400 daylight-balanced color negative film with T-grain emulsion, delivering warm Kodak colors, fine-for-speed grain (PGI 46), and wide exposure latitude. Currently in production and available globally as a single-roll and multi-pack.
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Before you buy used
About this camera
Contax's first premium AF compact zoom - titanium body, Vario-Sonnar 28-56mm T*, full pocket-size.
| Field | Value |
|---|
| Format | 35mm |
| Lens | Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T* 28-56mm f/3.5-6.5 |
| Years | 1993 – ~1997 |
| Shutter | 8s – 1/500s, electronic leaf |
| Flash sync | 1/500s (all speeds) |
| Meter | Multi-pattern silicon |
| EV range | ~EV 4 – EV 18 |
| Modes | Program, Aperture-priority |
| Focus | Autofocus |
| Weight | ~225 g |
| Battery | 3x CR2032 |
Contax's premium compact line began with the T (1984) and T2 (1990), both fixed 38mm-lens bodies that sold on the strength of Zeiss optics and titanium construction at a high price point. The T2 became a coveted editorial camera in the early 1990s. In 1993 Kyocera expanded the concept with the TVS ("T Vario-Sonnar"), reasoning that a zoom capable of 28mm at the wide end would appeal to travel and street photographers who found 38mm constraining.
The 28-56mm range was selected to emphasize wide-angle utility - 28mm being genuinely wide for a compact at the time - while keeping the telephoto end modest to control lens size and weight. The TVS was succeeded by the TVS II (~1997) and TVS III (2002), each refining the formula. The original TVS is the widest-aperture zoom of the three at its shortest focal length (f/3.5 at 28mm).
The TVS demonstrated that a zoom-lens premium compact could be built to the same finish standards as fixed-lens high-end compacts, and set a template that influenced the premium compact zoom category through the late 1990s. The 28mm wide end was meaningful when many competing zoom compacts started at 35mm or 38mm.
The Vario-Sonnar T* coating brings genuinely good contrast and flare resistance by compact standards, and the titanium body resists the cosmetic wear that plagues plastic-body compacts of the same era. For contemporary shooters, the TVS offers a Zeiss-branded zoom in a pocketable package - a niche that has no modern film equivalent.
Documented editorial use is limited by the camera's status as a personal carry rather than a declared working tool for most photographers.
C41
Kodak ColorPlus 200 is an affordable, consumer-oriented daylight-balanced color negative film at ISO 200. Known for warm, slightly muted color rendition, fine grain, and wide exposure latitude, it is currently in production and widely available in Asia and select global markets.
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Kodak Tri-X 400 is a classic black-and-white film known for strong tonality, visible grain, and documentary character.
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