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.
View profile →rangefinder-35mm
The Mamiya Saturn 35 (1962) is a 35mm coupled-rangefinder camera produced by Mamiya for export sale, featuring a fixed Mamiya-Sekor lens and a selenium-based automatic exposure system. The Saturn name was applied to Mamiya bodies sold under export branding in markets where the Mamiya name was less established - a common practice among Japanese camera manufacturers of the period. The camera offers automatic (selenium-driven shutter-priority) and manual exposure modes, a coupled rangefinder for focus, and a Copal SV leaf shutter. No battery is required; the selenium cell powers the meter and the auto-exposure mechanism directly.
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.
View profile →BW
Ilford HP5 Plus is a flexible ISO 400 black-and-white film with classic grain and strong push-processing tolerance.
View profile →BW
Kodak Tri-X 400 is a classic black-and-white film known for strong tonality, visible grain, and documentary character.
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Before you buy used
About this camera
A 1962 selenium auto-exposure rangefinder built for the export market with a Copal shutter.
| Field | Value |
|---|
| Format | 35mm |
| Lens | Mamiya-Sekor ~45mm f/2.8 or f/2, fixed |
| Shutter | 1s - 1/500s + B, Copal SV leaf |
| Flash sync | ~1/50s X sync |
| Meter | Selenium, coupled to shutter-priority AE |
| Modes | Auto (selenium AE), manual |
| Focus | Coupled rangefinder |
| Battery | None |
| Weight | ~550 g |
By 1962 Mamiya was competing in a crowded field of Japanese rangefinder makers offering selenium auto-exposure cameras for the export market. The Saturn 35 name was applied to cameras sold through US and European distributors, following the practice of camera makers such as Ricoh (Auto 35), Yashica (Electro 35's predecessors), and Minolta who produced export-badged variants for different retail channels. The Copal SV shutter was a widely trusted Japanese unit of the period, used across dozens of camera models.
The Saturn 35 represents Mamiya's attempt to participate in the early-1960s boom in automatic-exposure 35mm rangefinders that led, a few years later, to the fully electronic shutter-priority cameras exemplified by the Yashica Electro 35 (1966). Unlike the later electronic designs, the Saturn 35's auto system is purely mechanical-selenium: no electronics, no battery, no programmed obsolescence from dead capacitors.
The Mamiya Saturn 35 is a minor historical footnote in the context of Mamiya's broader product history - the company's main trajectory was toward medium format - but it is a reasonable example of early-1960s export-badged Japanese rangefinder design. The selenium auto-exposure with no battery requirement is its most practically relevant feature for contemporary users: the camera either meters or it does not, with no capacitor failure modes and no need for obsolete mercury cells. Cameras of this type are today among the least expensive functional 35mm rangefinders available, frequently found in thrift stores and estate sales.
C41
Kodak Portra 160 is a professional C-41 color negative film with fine grain, soft contrast, and natural color.
View profile →C41
Kodak Gold 200 is a daylight-balanced C-41 color negative film with warm color, moderate grain, and a classic consumer-film look.
View profile →Mamiya Saturn 35
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