[Canon] Demi Rapid | June 1965
Demi Rapid
In May 1964, Germany's Agfa announced its Rapid System to compete with Eastman Kodak's Instamatic camera system.
It used a special cartridge containing 35mm-width film. When the cartridge was loaded, the film speed was set automatically. The exposed film was also contained in an adjoining cartridge, making film rewind unnecessary. The Demi Rapid was a half-size camera from the Rapid System, based on the Demi S. It featured a CdS meter in place of the selenium exposure meter, and a built-in self-timer.
- Type: 35mm Lens Shutter zone-focusing half-frame camera (Rapid system)
- Picture Size: 24 x 18 mm
- Normal Lens: Canon SH 30mm f/1.7 (5 elements in 4 groups)
- Shutter: Seiko-sha B, 1/8 to 1/500 sec. Built-in self-timer. X-sync flash.
- Viewfinder: Reversed Galilean viewfinder with projected frames. 0.45x magnification, 90% coverage. Exposure match needle and exposure window (with aperture scale). Overexposure and underexposure zones, exposure warnings. Near, medium, and far pictographs for focusing.
- Focusing: Lens ring with zone focusing marks. Focusing range from 0.8m to 15m.
- EE (Exposure Control): CdS element for shutter speed-priority EE. Metering range from EV 4.5 (f/1.7 & 1/8 sec.) to EV 17 (f/16 & 1/500 sec.) at ISO 100. Film speed range: ISO 25 to 400 (set automatically with the film cartridge).
- Film Loading & Advance: Load an empty Rapid cassette on the take-up side, then load the unexposed film cassette. Film advances automatically to frame 1 when the camera back is closed. Film is advanced via the camera's top lever (145 single or partial strokes and 20 extra strokes).
- Frame Counter: Counts up, resets automatically when the camera back is opened.
- Film Rewind: None.
- Power Source: 1.3 V HM-N mercury battery.
- Dimensions & Weight: 118 x 66 x 50 mm, 440 g.
