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Before
we begin, I would like to announce that my new Patreon exclusive camera series
is now up, with my first post talking about the Chuzhoa M1 Retro Camera. It can
be viewed by either joining my Patreon or buy just buying the post for a
onetime fee. I hope you will check it out, not only will you be part of an
exclusive club, but you will be helping this site out.
You
can find the first post on my new series here:
Remember
to also check out my displate:
https://displate.com/artist/bfennsw?art=66e809bf952d9
Anyway, back to the camera at hand:
This post will be looking at
another amazing small 35mm camera. This is Canon’s Canonet New QL19.
I already went through Canon’s
extensive history in my Epoca 135
post. With that, we will start examining that camera at hand.
At the time when Canon was at
the height of making professional film cameras, they also wanted to enter the
easy to use film market, enter the Canonet, the “…camera for the masses…” (Archambault
2015).
This camera caused quite the
commotion, as it was the first time a big camera company introduced a camera
aimed for the amateur/consumer market. This gamble on Canon’s part was
rewarded, as the camera was a commercial success and kicked of the “…so-called
Canonet boom…” (plasticpopsicle 2014), which was the reason for the “uproar”
from the camera industry after learning “…that Canon, maker of high-end
cameras, was to introduce a mid-class 35mm camera with a fast f/1.9 lens for
less than 20,000 yen. However, the Canonet safely went to market in January
1961. A week’s worth of stock was sold out in only two hours. It was the start
of the Canonet boom. Two and a half years later, a million Canonets were sold…”
(Canon Inc.).
At the time the price of
20,000 yen was unheard of and also contributed to this boom, although this part
of the boom was more about people seeing if Canon would keep it at this price
thinking that they won’t make any profits, but these people were dead wrong
(Eckman 2022)!
Canon released the first
Canonet in 1961, and ended it in 1972 (Marr), and between those eleven years,
canon released fourteen variations of the Canonet.
I won’t go over every Canonet,
but I will go over a few I think are important leading up to the New QL19. And
just to add an extra note, Canon released different variations because Canonet
was one of their biggest sellers and as Cushing (2018), writes, the Canonet
can’t be compared to other cameras as it wasn’t a copy of an archetypal camera
type, instead the Canonet “…created its own archetype, and along with its many
competitors it deserves to be considered on its own merits.”
But even this couldn’t keep
Canonet afloat as camera technology became more advance, the original Canonet wouldn’t
be able to keep up, meaning that the “…competition was always on their heels…”
and thus “…New models were introduced to stay ahead of the other companies in
the market; models with names like Canonet Junior, Canonet S, Canonet 17 and
others…” (Marr).
The first Canonet simply went
by Canonet. It came with a selenium cell
lens (see my Rondo
Colormatic post) and it came with the Canonet series’ iconic feature, an
electric eye (or EE) (Canon Inc.), which was developed by Canon themselves and
known as the “Canonet Electric Eye” system (Cushing 2018) which according to
Canon, “…involved wrapping the exposure meter around the lens itself. Canon
claimed the meter would perceive light in the same way the lens saw it, thus
creating a more precise automatic exposure…” (Archambault 2015). I should also
note that the film advance lever was underneath the camera, similar to the Fujica
35-ML.
 |
| Canon Canonet. Image Source: https://global.canon/ja/c-museum/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/film41_b.jpg |
Two years later came the
second Canonet, the Canonet Junior, which only added “…the single ‘program’
mode without the ability to adjust the shutter speed manually…” (Archambault
2015). This camera also moved the film advance lever to the top.
 |
| Canonet Junior. Image Source: https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTXiwEOzmmDGo3EaURI1eJbJsUGXF-sIs4h8Vw-Gln6vqk3EckCtSozlDk&s=10 |
Then 1964 saw the Canonet S
that came with a faster lens and a switch from the selenium cell to the CdS
cell and can be considered “…The official successor to the original Canonet…” (Archambault 2015).
 |
| Canonet S. Image Source: https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSbwc2JxBqjWntUaRagAZNhgZlhlnp_4eVAVVu2zhl3xk6KP4UeosoeEIs&s=10 |
Then a year later came the
more improved Canonet QL17, which came with a quick film loading system (Archambault
2015), the quick loading system is where the QL in the name came from.
 |
| Canonet QL17. Image Source: https://global.canon/ja/c-museum/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/film53_b.jpg |
Then came the next QL17
version, the QL19. This Canonet came with the original’s lens and was 20%
cheaper (Archambault 2015).
.png) |
| Canonet QL19. Image Source: https://nth-ave.com/image/2021/canon-canonetql19-my-first-classic-camera/01.jpg |
But this wasn’t the cheapest,
as this honour (at the time) went to the QL25 (Archambault 2015).
 |
| Canonet QL25. Image Source: https://vintagecameradeals.co.za/image/cache/catalog/vintagecameradeals/products/VCDfeb2018img2665-3000x3000.jpg |
The QL19 was then followed up
by the QL19E, which used an electrical shutter. Then in 1968 came the cheaper
plastic bodied Canonet 28. A year later saw the return of the QL17, with the
New QL17, a more lightweight and smaller variation. Then another year later,
the QL17-L (L for luxury) that looked like the New QL17, but came with a check
battery system (Archambault 2015).
 |
| Canonet QL19E. Image Source: https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcROrRdfeLErYWdHLYKmsXTqBiqzfY6-XbsqIQWHR5mOMOFV1Q15ItEpyvM&s=10 |
.png) |
| Canonet 28. Image Source: https://www.petervis.com/Cameras/canonet-28/canonet-28-price/canonet-28-price.webp |
 |
| Canonet New QL17. Image Source: https://www.canonclassics.com/img/product/20-142.jpeg |
 |
| Back of Canonet QL17-L. Image Source: https://live.staticflickr.com/2434/3608638079_d3d5938f08_b.jpg |
This idea of rebranding old
cameras as New, seemed to be a big hit, because Canon kept on doing it with the
release of the camera from this post, the New QL19 (discussed later) and the
New Canonet 28 (Archambault 2015).
 |
| Canonet New 28. Image Source: https://www.35mmc.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/A7_06508c12x.jpg |
Then we have the final set in
the series, the GIII cameras, the G means: “…’Grade Up’ which referred to the
quality improvement…” and the III means: “…the third-generation Canonet series,
following the original Canonet and the New Canonet…” (Canon inc.).
These were the QL17 and QL19
GIII. Both are similar, the only big difference is that the QL19 GIII was
cheaper than the QL17 GIII, due to the fact that the QL17 GIII had a check
battery button and the QL19 GIII didn’t (Archambault 2015).
 |
| Canonet QL17 G-III. Image Source: https://cdn.assets.lomography.com/48/67ee2ea6b583d8f97a7cf5664f91ec86e563d2/1216x912x2.jpg?auth=158ac7e3d60b4a1851bdc35a3d9882a5e3c66c4f |
 |
| Back of the Canonet QL17 G-III. Image Source: https://live.staticflickr.com/2434/3608638079_d3d5938f08_b.jpg |
 |
| Canonet QL19 G-III. Image Source: https://www.jogeier.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1dbd97b42e04cb7ac4e0f6606f781674/2/1/2110000850760_28469_1_canon_canonet_ql19_g-iii_w_1945mm_7db8558d.jpg |
These two were the last in the
series and were made from 1972-1982 and “…was a long-selling bestseller over 11
years. About 1.2 million units were made…” (Canon Inc.).
And just for some honourable mentions, Canon also teamed up with Bell and Howell, releasing the Bell and Howell/Canon Canonet series, such as the Bell and Howell/Canon Canonet 19. The reason why Canon teamed up with Bell and Howell was, according to Taverna (2025) was to help Japan sell and distribute the Canonet series in the USA and overseas market as Japan had no experience in that regard.
Bell and Howell/Canon Canonet 19. Image Source:
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRVCca0nBTTE0LLZ6BpGdxBig9JB1Xp9NpZvZXrx0BRyxrC2K8jPsAr0pQL&s=10
But that changed in 1961 as
Canon joined “…Chicago based Bell & Howell to distribute cameras in
American photo stores. The first camera
distributed under this agreement was the Canonet, which when sold under the
Bell & Howell name, was known as the Canonet 19, rather than just the
Canonet…” (Eckman 2022).
Bell and Howell seemed to only
be in charge of distribution in the Midwest, as Canon and Bell and Howell
didn’t seem exclusive, because Canon was still free to make deals with other
distributors. But this doesn’t matter as it seems that Bell and Howell had the
co-branding rights to not only a few other Canonets, but also had the rights to
Bell and Howell only cameras (Eckman 2022), such as the Bell and Howell Auto
35.
 |
| Bell & Howell Auto 35. Image Source: https://global.canon/ja/c-museum/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/film71_b.jpg |
But as Eckman (2022) points
out these Bell and Howell exclusives only went through a brand name change from
Canon to Bell and Howell, as the name “…was purely cosmetic as no functional
changes were ever made to any of the models.”
The agreement between the two
companies ended in 1976 when Canon was big enough and more recognisable enough
to market their cameras by themselves (Eckman 2022).
Both companies greatly
benefited from this collaboration as it helped Canon reach a wider audience and
it helped Bell and Howell break into the 35mm market (Eckman 2022).
And just as a final two
honourable mentions that I found interesting:
The Canonex, a Canonet SLR,
that was a flop (Archambault 2015).
 |
| Canon Canonex. Image Source: https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49519031936_9b8aa169c6.jpg |
Then, as with Kodak’s popular
series the Brownie cameras (see my Model
1 post), that released 8mm cameras (see my Kodak
Brownie 8mm Movie Camera II f/2.7 and f/2.3
posts), Canon released the Cine Canonet 8 (cameracollector.net 2022).
 |
| Cine Canonet 8. Image Source: https://camdex.xyz/1648.jpg |
But these two cameras,
although similar in name to the Canonet series are actually “…unrelated models,
introduced in the same year (1963) …” and “…were meant to ride on the earlier
models’ success but were soon forgotten…” (cameracollector.net 2022).
Now with that out the way,
let’s go over and examine the camera at hand, the Canon Canonet New QL19.
The New QL19 had a metal body,
weighed 630g (Burgess 2017) and its size is 5 x 3.2 x 2.5 inches. Released in
1971 in May, meaning that it was sold for less than a year before being
replaced by the GIII version (Burgess 2017), making it “…one of the least
common variants…” (filmosaur 2013).
Now let’s have a closer look
at the camera itself. Starting with the front-
First the lens-
This camera has a Canon lens
with 5 elements in 4 groups, meaning (from the Halina
Super X35 post), this camera has five pieces of glass, but two of them are
cemented together meaning it has four pieces of glass. It has a focal length of
45mm, and has a max f/stop of 1.9, which is where the 19 in QL19 comes from and
is also what separates the New QL19 from the New QL17, as the QL17 has an
f/stop of 1.7 (filmosaur 2013).
This lens is also element
coated (see my SX-70
post), for colour correction. And these are 3 elements known as Spectra coated
in “…amber, purple and magenta…” (Burgess 2017).
Above the lens is the CdS cell
window. As mentioned in my Ricoh
Hi-Color 35 (please see post to learn more about CdS), this cell replaced
the selenium cell, which we can see above, is what happened to the Canonet
series.
Speaking of the Ricoh Hi-Color 35, the New QL19 also has ring settings around the lens.
Anyway, the first ring is the shutter speed setting, and can be set to ¼, 1/8, 1/15, 1/30, 1/60, 1/125, 1/250 and 1/500 second.
Now on the lens are also
weather symbols.
I can’t really find anything on it, but from what I can tell from online forums and other sites, these three symbols, (from left to right) indoors, cloudy and sunny, correspond to and indicate which shutter speed after 1/30 the symbol represents. From what I can tell, 1/500-250 second is sunny, 1/125-60 second is cloudy and 1/30 is indoors. But this is only my theory.
The second ring is the ASA/ISO
window and setting lever.
The ISO is set on a small lever on the side of the lens.
The window is on top and
indicates the film speed and can be set between 25-800.
Then there is the f/stop
setting ring.
These setting range from 1.9,
2, 2.8, 4, 5.6, 8, 11 and 16.
Then there is the A, this is
the automatic setting, which when set, set “…the proper f-stop relative to
distance is automatically set for you…” (Burgess 2017).
Next to the A setting are
three numbers in blue, these are flash guide numbers (Burgess 2017), and are
used with an external flash’s guide on the back. All you do is follow what the
flash’s guide says and move the ring to “…match your electronic automatic flash…”
(Burgess 2017).
.png) |
| Flash guide example. Image Source: https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60569c169cfcce3187147daa/1634356265867-LNFFVKZW16JXKP40FA1C/Flash_Coverage_Canon_EX+II-RT.jpg |
On the next ring is the
self-timer lever, which sets a timer off for nine seconds (Burgess 2017).
Then lastly, is the focal
range ring.
This is set with a tiny handle
on the side, and can be set between 2.6-15 feet and infinity. The marker is top
left of the lens.
Then above the lens is the
rangefinder window.
This camera has a coupled
rangefinder (Eckman 2022), and here is also the second complaint about this
camera, as Eckman (2022) writes, it has a “…lack of contrast from the
rangefinder patch in the viewfinder…”
This camera’s rangefinder
works similar to the Fujica
35-ML and the Vokar
I. There is a yellow square, that gives a double image of what you are
looking at, and to make sure the camera is in focus you use the focus ring to
align the yellow square image with the object you are trying to take a picture
of, this is also known as parallax compensation ((Burgess 2017).
.png) |
| Screenshot from the manual. |
Next to that is the
viewfinder, which the rangefinder is directly connected to.
This viewfinder also has a
f/stop indicator, which tells you what f/stop you are on when setting it. This
is known as the aperture scale and “…is shown in yellow with black numbers on
the left of the screen. A needle rises and falls to indicate the aperture
chosen by the camera…” (Burgess 2017).
.png) |
| Screenshot from the manual. |
On top, from left to right-
First is the film rewind
crank.
This is used in tandem with
the rewind button on the bottom.
Then there is the focal plane
mark, (see my Fujica
35-ML post for more information).
Then next to that is the
hot-shoe plate, which fires off flash guns that aren’t cable release reliant.
After that is the film frame
counter.
Next to that is the film
advance lever.
Honestly, I wish they kept the
lever at the bottom, as in my opinion that is much better and more comfortable.
And then finally, in the middle of the film advance lever is the shutter release, which has a socket for remote cable release.
This camera’s shutter is a Copal.
A Copal shutter was the industry standard in Japan, and is a leaf shutter for large format lenses (Arca-Swiss USA 2026).
Copal shutter diagram. Image Source:
https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0256/6550/3331/files/copal-0-1.png?v=1659740657
But, there is an upside to
this, because if you use the wrong f/stop, the needle in the viewfinder will go
in the red zone and this causes the shutter to lock until you “…adjust the
shutter speed so the needle returns to within an acceptable range for correct
film exposure. A fail-safe system works perfectly…” (Burgess 2017).
At the bottom, from right to
left-
First is the battery
compartment.
This camera uses the same
battery as the Ricoh
Hi-Color 35.
Next to that is the tripod
socket.
Then there is the film rewind
button. This unlocks the film advance/film counter sprocket, to allow the user
to rewind the film.
Right side-
At the top is the PC flash cable socket.
The placement of this socket
is what separates it from the original QL19, as on that camera the flash cable
socket is on the front.
Under that is the eyelets
where the neck strap goes.
This can be found on either
side of the camera.
On the back-
Here is the film compartment
cover.
Above the cover is the
viewfinder.
The indicator for where the
rangefinder window is, is next.
And then there is the film
rewind and advance indicator, which works as the one on the back of the Praktica
Sport AF.
Then there is the film
compartment-
This is opened like most other
cameras with a rewind crank, by pulling out the crank until the latch unlocks.
It is a standard 35mm camera with a 24x36mm format, and has a pressure plate on the door.
Then there is the film advance/counter
sprocket.
But this camera has something extra, as the name suggests, QL, it has a quick loading system.
And works as such:
.png) |
| Screenshot from the manual. |
.png) |
| Screenshot from the manual. |
.png) |
| Screenshot from the manual. |
To learn more about this film
please see my Kodak
200 Colorplus film post.
The Canonet is very similar to
the Ricoh
Hi-Color 35, and to be honest, I prefer the Ricoh, as you can still take
photos without a battery. But that doesn’t mean I am not impressed by the
Canonet. It is an amazing piece of machinery and I can see what all the hype is
about.
Most compare the Canonet to
other cameras and as stated earlier, I don’t think that is possible, even now
with me comparing it to the Hi-Color, I am wrong, as these two cameras are in
different leagues and the Ricoh doesn’t even come close!
Even today the Canonet series
still holds up and proves why Canon is still a giant in the photography
industry.
And that is that. What do you
think? Would you use a Canonet? Do you think Canon should bring it back with a
modern update? Or should they just keep up with improving digital photography?
Let me know in the comments.
And as always, thank you for making it to the end and I hope you enjoyed this as much as I did researching it.
Please
remember to check out my Patreon at: patreon.com/OnlineCurator
where you can find my first post of my new series, as well as pictures and
links to my other Fantasy Blog series.
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see the Please help this site post
on this blog, for more information.
Or if you want to help in another way, please visit my Displate Store. Thank you for the support.
Arca-Swiss USA. 2026.
Using the Copal Shutter. https://arca-swiss-usa.com/blogs/blog/the-copal-shutter
Archambault, M. 2015.
A Brief History of the Canon Canonet Rangefinder. https://petapixel.com/2015/07/18/a-brief-history-of-the-canon-canonet-rangefinder/
Burgess, A. 2017. Canon
Canonet QL19 “New” (1971) Excellent f1.9 45mm Canon lens. https://rangefinder-cameras.com/canon-canonet-ql19-new-1971/
Cameracollector.net.
2022. Canon Canonet family. https://cameracollector.net/canon-canonet-family/
Canon Inc. Canonet. https://global.canon/en/c-museum/product/film41.html
Canon Inc. Canonet
G-III 17. https://global.canon/en/c-museum/product/film84.html
Cushing, C. 2018. Canon’s
Canonet Rangefinder Does the Impossible – A Canon Camera That’s Not Boring. https://casualphotophile.com/2018/03/19/canon-canonet-35mm-film-rangefinder-review/
Eckman, M. 2022.
Canon Canonet 19 (1961). https://mikeeckman.com/2022/10/canon-canonet-19-1961/
Filmosaur. 2013. Meet
the Camera: Canon Canonet QL19. https://filmosaur.wordpress.com/2013/03/30/meet-the-camera-canon-canonet-ql19/
Marr, F. The Canonet Canon
begins to “Point and Shoot”. https://flynngraphics.ca/the-collection/the-cameras/canonet/
Mike. Canonet QL19
Manual. https://www.cameramanuals.org/canon_pdf/canon_canonet_ql17.pdf
Mike. Canonet QL19E
Manual. https://www.cameramanuals.org/canon_pdf/canon_canonet_ql19e.pdf
Mike. Canonet G-III
17/19 Kdyttriohje. https://cameramanuals.org/canon_pdf/canon_canonet_g-iii_17-19-finnish.pdf
Plasticpopsicle.
2014. Lomopedia: Canon Canonet. https://www.lomography.com/magazine/268052-lomopedia-canon-canonet
Taverna, C. 2025. Canon
Canonet 19 - is a 35mm Film Camera Rangefinder Review 45mm f1.9 Lens
Photography Class 468. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YaCLob8O2Rw&t=4s
