This legendary camera company made the first 35mm SLR a whole decade before Nikon… but barely anyone remembers it

When you think about iconic German cameras, the names Leica and Zeiss instantly come to mind. The Leica M series, the legendary rangefinder cameras, the precision optics – these have become almost mythical in photography circles. And of course, there's Rolleiflex and Contax, other giants of the mid-century. These names survived decades of change, tech revolutions, and even world wars.

But they weren't the only ones. There were dozens of other camera makers once brimming with innovation – some even ahead of the curve. Most just didn't make it. One such brand is Ihagee – and if you haven't heard of them, you're not alone.

Ihagee was innovative, bold and a fierce competitor during the golden age of German photography. Founded in Dresden, Germany, in the early 20th century, Ihagee quickly established itself as a serious player. While Leitz (maker of Leica) focused on compact rangefinders with groundbreaking 35mm formats, Ihagee leaned heavily into the SLR world.

Ihagee's cameras

Ihagee's big moment came in 1936 with the Kine Exakta – the first widely available 35mm SLR. This was a full decade before Nikon or Pentax released their own SLRs. Unlike Leica's quiet precision, Ihagee's cameras were bold and often a bit quirky, with unique controls and innovative features.

Where Leica perfected the rangefinder, Ihagee pushed the boundaries of the SLR, offering interchangeable lenses at a time when many cameras were fixed system, mirror reflex viewing, prism or waist-level finders, some early macro photography accessories and even medium-format options, with its Exakta 6x6 and Exakta 66 models.

But Ihagee models were not as sleek or compact as the Leica counterparts. They were often heavier, sometimes fiddly, but with a cult following that appreciated this type of ergonomic layout.

Why isn't Ihagee around anymore?

Despite being bombed during the war, Ihagee survived WWII. Dresden fell under Soviet control and Ihagee became part of East Germany's centrally planned camera industry. That survival, ironically, was part of the problem.

As West German and Japanese brands – Leica, Zeiss (West), Nikon, Canon – gained access to global markets and capital, Ihagee was stuck behind the Iron Curtain. It kept producing cameras, and some were great – the Exakta VX, the Real, even the budget-friendly Exa series – but it couldn't evolve fast enough.

The Japanese camera boom in the Sixties and Seventies brought faster shutters, built-in light meters and lighter materials. Ihagee, still leaning on its mechanical, modular designs, started to look outdated. Innovation alone wasn't enough – it needed market access, mass production and modern electronics. None of which East German firms had.

Ihagee's story isn't unique. Legendary German brand Voigtländer also struggled with post-war transitions. Unlike Ihagee, though, the Voigtländer brand found a second life, with beautifully crafted manual lenses produced under Cosina in Japan.

If Ihagee had survived...

It's tempting to wonder, what if Ihagee hadn't been stuck in East Germany? What if it had kept innovating freely like Nikon or Pentax?

It might have transitioned into the AF (autofocus) era with its SLR lineage intact. Maybe it would have created rugged, modular digital SLRs or gone all-in on medium format mirrorless, blending its Exakta DNA with modern tech. Think about a digital Hasselblad with East German engineering vibes!

More realistically, Ihagee could've become a niche high-end brand – like Leica – offering mechanical purity in a digital world.

So, the next time you're holding a precision-engineered Leica, spare a thought for Ihagee. It was ahead of its time – and like so many others, time just didn't play fair.

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