SEM Semflex1948

History

SEM was a French camera manufacturer active in the postwar period, producing cameras for a domestic and export market that was underserved by West German manufacturers in the immediate postwar years. The Semflex appeared in 1948 as France rebuilt its consumer optics industry. It occupied a market tier below the Rolleiflex 2.8 and broadly comparable to the Rolleicord — a capable, affordable medium-format TLR for serious amateurs and working photographers who could not access German-made cameras during the period of postwar currency controls and import restrictions.

Multiple variants appeared over the production run. The Semflex Standard relied on manual film advance with a red window; the Otomat introduced automatic frame spacing. Later variants received updated shutters and lens coatings. Production details are not fully documented in English-language sources.

Why It Matters

The Semflex represents an often-overlooked chapter in postwar European camera manufacturing. While Germany and Japan dominated the postwar camera market, France maintained a small but technically competent camera industry, of which SEM was a notable participant. The Semflex demonstrates that quality 6x6 TLR cameras were produced outside the Rollei-Yashica axis.

Photographically, the Semflex matters primarily for its Berthiot lenses. The Som Berthiot 75/3.5 delivers results that are distinctive within the crowded field of 1950s medium-format TLR glass — slightly softer wide open than a Zeiss Tessar or Xenar, with a rendering that some photographers prefer for portraiture and available-light work. Collectors value the Semflex as an accessible entry to French camera manufacturing history.

Sample Photographers / Notable Use

• Used by French photojournalists and portrait photographers in the late 1940s and 1950s as a locally available alternative to the German TLR cameras that were restricted or expensive under postwar import conditions.
• Collected today primarily by enthusiasts of French camera history and by photographers seeking inexpensive 6x6 TLR cameras with distinctive optical character.

References

• Camera-Wiki: Semflex