The
Voigltländer Vitoret 110EL was introduced in 1978 by the Rollei company
under the Voigtländer brand, another higher end camera for Kodak 110
pocket film*(see below).
It is the successor of the Vitoret 110 which had 4 shutter/aperture
combinations. The 110EL has a good multicoated Lanthar lens, 2
apertures and an electronic shutter. The pure design was created by
Heinz Waaske. Waaske had already created the Edixa 16, the Rollei 35
and the Rollei A110, all very small and elegant.
*
110 film was introduced by Kodak in 1972. The film sits in a cartridge,
like Kodak's earlier 126 film, but is much smaller. A frame is 13mm ×
17mm, has one perforation per image to control film advance and 24
frames per cartridge (12 were also available). The film is protected by
a backing paper like 120 film. The frame number is visible through a
window at the back of the cartridge. The basic film is ordinary 16mm
film which was already on the market, so it could be processed in
existing machines. The small picture size made very small, pocketable
cameras possible.
Kodak introduced with its 110 film a line of
Kodak Pocket Instamatic cameras which were followed by
cameras from other manufacturers. Most cameras were cheap
point-and-shoot, but very sophisticated models were also made. Small
digital cameras made 110 film obsolete. Bit by bit manufacturers stopped making 110 format film (Fujifilm in 2009), but in 2012 (and 2019) Lomography made a large batch of 110 film, followed by other firms.
The
110EL has a body of high class plastic and automatic features for an
easy use. It was the smallest higher end 110 camera, even a bit smaller
than the Minox A110. Its main features are:
23mm F5.6 Voigtländer Lanthar lens, 3 elements, F5.6 and F11, fixed focus, min. focus 1.2m Electronic shutter, 4s - 1/300 Size 122x25x35, Weight 126 gr. with batteries 100 and 400
ISO, automatic coding, parallax indication
Camera closed all parts well protected.
Camera
front open. Big and bright viewfinder with bright framelines, only
parallax marks. The slider is multi-purpose: it opens the camera, cocks the shutter and advances the film Back view. The
window shows the film type and the frame number. The battery
compartment (which has lost the black plastic covering) takes 2 LR44
batteries, easily
available.
Seen
from the top. Slider for 2 apertures. The symbols change automatically
if ISO 400 film is inserted. The shutter release can be half pressed to
check exposure. If no red light appears, it's fine. The red light will
warn if slow shutter speeds are used.
Seen
from below. The button top left must be pressed to release the film
compartment lid. Handling is a bit unusual, you have to push the
battery compartment bit towards the left which releases the film
compartment lid to open.
Tripod socket. There was a chain/strap available to be screwed into it.
Flash hot shoe. There was a clip available to be inserted which would secure the camera in your shirt or vest pocket.
Camera film compartment open. The cartridge fits tightly, you may have to push a little bit.
Camera next to film package. You can see how small the camera is.
Camera with its electronic flash.
Seen from the back. This camera came with the strap, but it also lacks the plastic bit of the cover on battery compartment.
Hot shoe connection and On/Off switch.
Front. There is a "ready" diode on top.
Battery compartment. Takes 2 AAA batteries.
This
camera is very easy to use, silde it open and it's ready. Except
aperture pre-choice, it has no
manual settings, everything is perfectly automatic. You have only to
frame, which is easy via the bright finder. Half pressing the shutter
lights a red lamp in the viewfinder, if the
camera will use slow shutter speeds. There is an electronic flash
available, but the camera deals well with available light. After taking
a picture, you have to push the slider once for film advance and
shutter
cocking. Putting a film is easy as well,
you drop the film into the compartment, advance to the first frame and that's it.
It's
a very good and elegant point and shoot camera
with very good picture quality, high quality
finish in an incredibly small and light pocketable body. This camera
feels very solid and is the smallest of the bunch. Picture results
were very good under any circumstances. As it's well protected when
closed, it would not even need a pouch. Pocket camera at its best.
