35mm SLR · 1975–2005

Contax/Yashica (C/Y) mount cameras

The C/Y bayonet came out of Yashica's 1973 project with Carl Zeiss and arrived with the Contax RTS in 1975. Every 35mm Contax and Yashica SLR shares it, so a Yashica body takes the same Zeiss lenses as a Contax like the 139 Quartz. Zeiss C/Y lenses come in two kinds. AE lenses are the earlier type, and MM lenses add a setting that lets the body choose the aperture as part of its autoexposure. Kyocera, which bought Yashica in 1983, ended production in 2005.

Both AE and MM lenses mount on any C/Y body, but only MM lenses let the body pick the aperture. Kyocera's later Contax N-mount lenses don't fit C/Y bodies.

1 camera we cover.