Chinon Bellami

Photos by PS text by Sylvain Halgand. From the collection of PS. Last update 2024-06-11 par Sylvain Halgand.

Manufactured or assembled in Japan from 1980 to (After) 1982.
Index of rarity in France: Infrequent (among non-specialized garage sales)
Inventory number: 10584

See the complete technical specifications

Chronology of cameras Chinon

Bellami! It evokes a certain idea of luxury and old Europe...

Inspired, the eyes of Chinon's Japanese designers must have turned towards Germany, where Minox, with its 35 series, had paved the way. So, they had similar goals but different means. Certainly, the lens has the same focal length and aperture (2.8/35mm) as the camera it's trying to compete with, and indeed, the lens is retractable, but the assembly is different. In the case of the Bellami, a small bellows is hidden inside the camera. Phot'Argus, when presenting it upon its release, described it as the only camera with an internal bellows.
Here, there's no horizontal flap, but rather two opening flaps activated by a lever.

The lens, a 2.8/35 mm, has four lenses. Its minimum focusing distance is 1 meter. The distance of three meters is engraved in green on the distance ring, with a noticeable click.
The shutter is an electronically programmed Seiko, ranging from 1/8 to 1/100 of a second. The film sensitivity ranges from 25 to 400 ASA. This camera is powered by a PX26 battery. At the top of the camera, there's a charge test button.

The viewfinder has a bright frame. There's an indicator for under and overexposure. Naturally, it doesn't have a rangefinder like the Olympus. So, its classification among its contemporary competitors is solely based on its fairly close size.

A specific Chinon S-120 flash can be attached to the left side of the camera, similar to an Olympus XA. It has a three-position switch: ON (sync at 1/60), Daylight (sync at all speeds), and OFF.

This camera was introduced at the PMA (Chicago) in 1980. There are two variants: a black one and one covered in red fabric. The latter is more luxurious (and more expensive), with doors adorned with the drawing of a carriage.

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Interesting links or bibliography :

Sur Camera-wiki.org, suggested by Sylvain Halgand

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