The 1973 Canon EF

The “Black Beauty”

So, today we’re taking a look at the Canon EF – affectionately known as the “Black Beauty” – as it was only available in black. But I can’t help but wonder if this made the Canon F-1 jealous – as it was also only available in black. Hmm…

The EF debuted in 1973, and it filled the position under the F-1 and above the FTb. The F-1, of course was a true pro-level camera – rugged and flexible with tons of accessories. And the FTb was more of an entry-level offering for the time. But the EF is notable for being the only Canon FD body to make use of the Copal Square shutter. This shutter is vertically-traveling and allows a faster flash-sync speed of 1/125 sec. And even more interesting is that it’s a mechanical/electronic hybrid. The range of shutter speeds is 1/1000 sec down to a very-unusual-for-the-day 30-seconds. Speeds from ½ sec to 1/1000 sec are mechanical. But speeds from 1-sec to 30-secs are electronically controlled.  This camera is also historically significant, in that it was the first Canon camera to offer shutter priority auto-exposure – a feature that they’d continue on their later AE-1 series.

Check out the video for the full review and photo shoot!