Alpa 10d

Pignons · Alpa mount · 24×36mm on 35mm film · 1968

Also known as: Alpa Alpa Reflex 10d · Alpa Alpa 10d · Alpa Alpa 10s · Alpa Alpa 10f · Alpa Revue Alpa · Alpa 10d · Alpa Reflex 10d · Alpa 10d · Alpa 10s · Alpa 10f · Revue Alpa · 10d

Variants & identification

Variant	Mount	Years	Serial ranges	Production
Alpa 10d (1968–74)	Alpa	1968–1974	—	2,540: chrome the majority, 946 black crinkle, 101 gold-plated, 117 badged Revue Alpa for Foto-Quelle, 27 half-frame (Pacific Rim Camera). Serials 52501–57100
Alpa 10s	Alpa	1968	—	186; serials 57101–57198, with half-frame bodies at 56702–57107
Alpa 10f	Alpa	1968	—	24, 'some of which may have been half frame'

The 117 Revue Alpa bodies are 10ds badged for Foto-Quelle, as the Bessa R was later badged Revue; they are counted inside the 2,540, not beside it.
The gold 10d — 101 made — is the first of the plated Alpas; the 11si repeated the exercise with 160.

How to tell them apart (expand)

The first Alpa whose prism is part of the body casting
A window under the shoe showing the meter needle from above
Gold-plated and Revue-badged versions exist in three-figure numbers

Alpa 10d (1968–74):

Prism housing cast into the body — the 9d's separate black box is gone
Speed dial that no longer rotates during exposure, with equidistant speed marks
Three CdS cells with compensation; a second meter needle visible through a window under the accessory shoe as well as in the finder
Red Alpa crest on the prism for the American market only

Alpa 10s:

Simplified: no compensating meter, no meter lock, no self-timer; sold with a Schneider Xenon 50mm f/1.9 to bring the price down; some black, some half-frame

Alpa 10f:

Meterless

Specifications

Format: 24×36mm on 35mm film
Finder: Integrated 90° pentaprism, split-image spot, meter needle; second needle in a top-deck window · no rangefinder image
Shutter: Horizontal cloth focal-plane · 1 s – 1/1000 and B; non-rotating dial · self-timer
Meter: TTL CdS, three cells with compensation, match-needle in finder and on the top deck; no open-aperture metering — the lens stops down through the PAD arm
Country: Switzerland

What reviewers say

James Tocchio (Casual Photophile), Alpa 10d (blog) — "Over-engineered in nearly every way, the Alpa 10d is deliberately robust and incomparably precise": brass and steel, industrial fasteners, a transport spindle that gleams, and lenses from Kern, Kinoptik, Schneider and Zeiss chosen by scrutiny. The finder is dim and the film-speed control sits under a light press of the speed dial, easy to knock.

History

The 10d of 1968 is the Alpa brought up to date without being made like anyone else’s camera. The pentaprism, a separate black housing on the 9d, is now cast into the body; the speed dial stands still during exposure and carries its speeds at equal spacing; the TTL meter has three CdS cells with compensation and shows its needle both in the finder and through a small window under the accessory shoe, so the exposure can be set from above. The lens still stops down through Alpa’s external coupling arm, and the standard lens was Kern’s Macro-Switar 50mm f/1.8 — a macro as the normal lens, unusual for the time. Casual Photophile’s James Tocchio calls the result “deliberately robust and incomparably precise,” over-engineered in every part from the industrial fasteners to a gleaming transport spindle, with a dim finder and a film-speed control that a light press on the speed dial can knock.

Pignons built 2,540 to 1974: most in chrome, 946 in black crinkle, 101 gold-plated, 117 badged Revue Alpa for the German mail-order house Foto-Quelle, and 27 with half-frame gates. The 10s, 186 made, dropped the compensating meter, the lock and the self-timer and came with a Schneider Xenon to lower the price; the 10f, 24 made, had no meter at all. The 11e replaced the needle with lamps in 1971 while the 10d was still on sale.

Expand Collapse

This history is AI-written, from the sources listed at the foot of the page. Where the record is silent it says so rather than filling the gap — but no human wrote these sentences.

Photographs

Alpa 10d with the Kern Macro-Switar 50mm f/1.8 — Xavier León, via Openverse (flickr) (BY 2.0)

Live listings

Asking price, USD: a median of $580 across 12 fixed-price listings on 2026-09-11 (middle half $160–$1,400). Tracked since 2026-09-06, 4 days: up 38% from $420.

By day

Date	Median	Middle half	Listings
2026-09-11	$580	$160–$1,400	12
2026-09-09	$750	$160–$1,400	11
2026-09-08	$580	$37–$1,400	13
2026-09-06	$420	$30–$850	14

Asking prices from the listings scanned, not sales; junk-flagged rows and auction lots excluded; other currencies are not converted.

ALPA 10d VIEWFINDER BAYONET PLATE TRIM PLATE HOLDS EYE CUP ON VIEWFINDER — $19.00 · eBay
Orig Vintage Camera related: 1970 ALPA 10d -- 12pgs, light wear only — $37.04 · eBay
Alpa 10D camera Box & instruction RED, made in Switzerland, US SELLER "LQQK" — $155.00 · eBay
ALPA Angenieux 28mm f3.5 Wide-Angle Lens. Type R11. Alpa 10d, Alpa 11el, Alpa 9d — $420.00 · eBay
Alpa 10d 35mm SLR Camera Silver Body — $579.00 · eBay
Alpa 10d 35mm SLR Camera Silver Body — $579.00 · Cardinal Camera (Used)
ALPA 10d SLR 35mm Film Camera Made In Switzerland Near Mint — $750.00 · eBay
【 Appearance N MINT / READ】 ALPA 10d SLR 35mm Film Camera Switzerland from Japan — $849.99 · eBay
ALPA 10D 35mm Film Camera W/ Very Rare Schneider ALPA-Xenon 50/1.9 (No.4232591) — $1,400.00 · eBay
Alpa 10D with Kern-Macro-Seitar 1:1 9/50 Ar Lens. Open Box . Great condition — $2,999.00 · eBay
Perfect Alpa 10D All Black set // Switar 1.8 All black [Leica, Zeiss, Rectaflex] — $3,004.18 · eBay
Vintage rare ALPA 10D Gold 35mm camera New — $6,600.00 · eBay
ALPA 10D BODENDECKEL , RÜCKTEIL , SHC Art. 759760 / N — €179.00 · eBay
【 Aussehen N NEUWERTIG / LESEN】 ALPA 10d SLR 35mm Filmkamera Schweiz aus Japan — €744.01 · eBay
ALPA 10D Chrom mit Kern-MACRO-SWITAR 50mm F1.8 AR sehr selten — €2,500.00 · eBay
Perfect Alpa 10D All Black set // Switar 1.8 All black [Leica, Zeiss, Rectaflex] — €2,599.00 · eBay
Alpa 10D Chrome Avec Kern-Macro-Switar 50mm F1.8 Ar Très Rare — €2,650.00 · eBay
ALPA 10D Chrom Mit Kern-MACRO-SWITAR 50mm F1.8 AR Sehr Selten — €2,650.00 · eBay
ALPA 10D Chrom Mit Kern-MACRO-SWITAR 50mm F1.8 AR Sehr Selten — €2,685.00 · eBay
ALPA 10D Chrome Avec Kern-MACRO-SWITAR 50Mm F1.8 AR Très Rare — €2,685.00 · eBay

Show 2 more listings

【 Appearance N MINT / READ】 ALPA 10d SLR 35mm Film Camera Switzerland from Japan — £637.82 · eBay
Perfect Alpa 10D All Black set // Switar 1.8 All black [Leica, Zeiss, Rectaflex] — £2,226.81 · eBay

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Listings updated 2026-09-11. Links go to the shop or marketplace that carries the item.