135compact.com       16mm film ultra compact cameras       Edixa 16 MB

The Edixa 16 was first released 1962, the model presented, an Edixa 16 MB, was launched in 1967, an upper range camera for unperforated 16mm film
* (see below). It has a very good Schneider lens and a coupled matched needle selenium meter can be attached. It was designed was by Heinz Waaske, who later created the Rollei 35, the Rollei A110, the Voigtländer Vitoret 110 and others, all very small and elegant.

* 16mm film is a movie film format, as was 35mm film. In the early days it was cut from 35mm film and thus had perforations on one side (single perforation). Please note, that the perfs and their area of 35mm are bigger than those of modern 16mm film. As soon as 1923 Kodak introduced a set with camera, projector, tripod, screen and splicer (or was it a slitter?) aiming at amateurs. The new format was rapidly adopted by still camera producers to build smaller devices. The film usualy sits in a cartridge, but no standard has been established, many have 2 cassettes, one feeding and one taking. So every maker made his own system. Some, like Minolta, even sold a choice of readily available film cassettes. If you want to use your camera, you should at least have one (pair of) cassette(s).

16mm film is still made. There is double perf, single perf and unperforated film. Check, which one suits your camera. Some need perfs to advance. Smaller picture formats can use double perf film, bigger ones would have the perfs (or sprockets) visible in the picture area. There is 10mm of usable space between the perfs of double perf film, 12.5mm to the side of single perf film. Film can also be s(p)lit from other formats like 120.


The camera's 
main features are:

25mm F2.8 Schneider-Kreuznach Xenar lens, F2.8-F16, min. focus 0.4m(!)
Shutter speeds: B, 1/30, 1/60 and 1/150 at F2.8, 1/150 at all othe F-stops
12x17mm picture format, can use only single perf or unferfed 16mm film
Size 84x38x25,  Weight 185 gr.
6 - 100 ISO, viewfinder, only parallax compensation marks, PC flash socket


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Camera and leather case.

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Camera with lightmeter attached and strap.

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Camera front. Big and bright viewfinder with bright framelines. Standard PC flash socket.

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Back view. Big Finder. Film compartment opening mechanism. A=Auf=open, Z=Zu=closed.

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Seen from the top. Coupled matched needle Selenium meter. Aperture and shutter setting with LV indications. F2.8 at B, LV8 (1/30s), LV9 (1/60s) and LV10 (1/150s). F4-F16 (1/150s). ISO setting in the center. Shutter release and cable release socket, can be blocked by turning the little ring to the red mark. Distance setting with meters and feet scale.

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Seen from below. Film advance, single stroke, rewind release knob, film counter and rewind handle.
No tripod socket, but strap socket can be used as tripod socket.

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Camera set to flash use. This sets speed to 1/30, uncouples the meter and lets you choose the F-stop.

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Camera film compartment open. 
Edixa sold its own film in cartridges, which were technically like 35mm canisters, film taped to to a core so that is could be re-wound into the canister. The camera has a removable winding spool which you need if you want to use this camera. The camera uses unperfed film. You can use single perf film if the perfs are towards the top of the camera, the camera opens from the bottom and lies on its top in the picture above. I have not seen an Edixa cartridge yet.

Nevertheless you can load and unload the camera in the dark or a changing bag. Please consult this page.


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Winding spool taken out.

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The winding spool has a clip to safely engage the film start..


This camera is very easy to use, it's always ready.
You only have to match the needle with the pointer, focus and frame, which is easy via the big and bright viewfinder. After taking a picture, you have to action the advance lever for film advance and shutter cocking. Putting a film is a bit longer, you have to engage the film into the winding spool, advance to the first frame and that's it.

It's a very good point and shoot camera with very good lens, superb picture quality, good quality finish in a small pocketable body. When it came out, it was the smallest 16mm camera in Europe. This camera feels solid. It has a very luminous lens. Picture results were good. It has 2 rare features: focussing down to 40cm without extra lenses and a B shutter. It has the bigger 12x17 format, which means + 50% of picture area.

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