Zenza Bronica EC-TL
Zenza Bronica · Bronica S mount · 55.2 × 55.2 mm on 120 (12 exposures) or 220 (24 exposures); 6×4.5 with Film Back E (Tamron spec sheet; camera-wiki) · 1975
Also known as: Bronica EC-TL · Zenza Bronica EC-TL · Bronica ECTL · Bronica EC TL · Zenza Bronica ECTL · Bronica EC-TL 6x6 · Bronica EC-TL Nikkor · ゼンザブロニカ EC-TL · ゼンザブロニカEC-TL · ブロニカ EC-TL · ブロニカ ECTL · ブロニカEC-TL
Variants & identification
| Variant | Mount | Years | Serial ranges | Production |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EC-TL (1975–80) | Bronica S | 1975–1980 | — | No production figure is known to have been published |
- All body figures are Tamron's: 55.2 × 55.2 mm, 2 s–1/1000 auto, B and 4 s–1/1000 manual, 1/40 mechanical, EV 4–19, ASA 25–3200, 88.7% finder coverage, Eveready No. 544, 139 × 170 × 117 mm, 2,050 g, ¥219,500. camera-wiki gives the same metering range and the 1/40 red dot.
- The auto range starts at 2 s and the manual range at 4 s (Tamron); the finder readout shows 13 speeds (Tamron), and camera-wiki says it shows nothing slower than 1/30 only on the EC-TL II.
- Auto diaphragm with every lens except the 800 mm and 1200 mm (Tamron). The 105 mm leaf-shutter Nikkor-Q is officially not usable: its shutter is triggered by the stop-down lever that the meter also uses (Japanese Wikipedia; Seiden as cited in the research).
- The standard lens is not named on Tamron's sheet. The research cites shiura.com for the EC-TL catalogue's five standard-lens options and their prices; the Nikkor-P·C 75mm f/2.8 is the usual one.
How to tell them apart
- Red 'A' and red dot on the shutter dial, ASA ring in its centre (camera-wiki)
- Dial runs from B and 4 s to 1/1000; the EC-TL II's manual range starts at 1/2 s (Tamron spec sheets)
- 13-step speed scale printed on the focusing screen (camera-wiki; Tamron)
- Split mirror with lock-up, battery chamber for a 6 V silver cell, two tripod sockets and accessory shoe, as on the EC (Tamron spec sheet)
- Body of 139 × 170 × 117 mm and 2,050 g, 90 g heavier than the EC (Tamron spec sheets)
EC-TL (1975–80):
- Red 'A' (auto) position and red dot (1/40 mechanical) on the shutter dial, with the ASA setting in the dial's centre (camera-wiki)
- Shutter dial running to 4 s at the slow end; the EC-TL II starts at 1/2 s (Tamron spec sheets)
- Shutter speeds printed on the focusing screen for the 13-step finder readout (camera-wiki; Tamron)
- Depth-of-field preview button doubles as the meter switch (camera-wiki)
- EC-TL (1975–80): The only form. No finish or edition variants are recorded in the sources read; the revised EC-TL II of 1978 is a separate model with different electronics and a different speed range.
Specifications
- Format
- 55.2 × 55.2 mm on 120 (12 exposures) or 220 (24 exposures); 6×4.5 with Film Back E (Tamron spec sheet; camera-wiki) · 12 on 120, 24 on 220, selected on the back (Tamron spec sheet) exposures
- Finder
- Interchangeable waist-level hood opening and closing in one action, with interchangeable magnifier and interchangeable focusing screen; 13-step shutter-speed readout in the finder with exposure warning, which doubles as the battery check (Tamron spec sheet) · 88.7% coverage
- Shutter
- Electronically timed vertical-travel focal plane (Tamron spec sheet) · Auto: 2 s–1/1000 stepless; manual: B, 4 s–1/1000 with intermediate speeds; 1/40 mechanical without a battery at the red dot; T by the release (Tamron spec sheet; camera-wiki) · flash sync Auto-switching socket, manual mode only: X (electronic flash) at B, 4 s–1/60 and the mechanical 1/40; FP bulbs at B, 4 s–1/15 and 1/125–1/1000; M at B and 4 s–1/15; F at B and 4 s–1/30 (Tamron spec sheet) · no self-timer
- Film advance
- Crank, two full turns per frame, with fine advance possible (Tamron spec sheet)
- Back
- Interchangeable back fully coupled to the body, with multiple-exposure switch, 12/24 selector, separate film-advance knob and a dark-slide pocket with lid; Film Back E for 6×4.5 and a Polaroid back (Tamron spec sheet; camera-wiki)
- Meter
- TTL centre-weighted instantaneous stop-down metering in the body, EV 4 (f/2.8) to EV 19 (f/22) at ASA 100, ASA 25–3200, with aperture-priority auto-exposure and manual; the metering cells sit in the mirror, so the camera meters with any finder (Tamron spec sheet; Japanese Wikipedia; English Wikipedia)
- Weight
- 2050 g
- Dimensions
- 139 (W) × 170 (D) × 117 (H) (Tamron spec sheet) mm
- Country
- Japan
- Original price
- ¥219,500 for the standard set of body, film back, standard lens and waist-level finder (Tamron spec sheet). The EC-TL catalogue priced the standard-lens options separately: Nikkor 75mm f/2.8 ¥39,500, Nikkor 75mm f/2.8 DX ¥53,500, Zenzanon 75mm f/2.8 ¥39,500, Zenzanon 80mm f/2.4 ¥43,000, Zenzanon 100mm f/2.8 ¥43,000 (shiura.com, as cited in the research) (today ¥448,000)
- Accessories
- Film backs: 6×6 120/220 back and insert, Film Back E for 6×4.5, Polaroid back (camera-wiki) · Finders: waist-level finder, magnifying hood, prism model A, viewfinder model C; focusing screens A (matte centre), B (microprism), C (split image), D (matte), E (grid, EC-TL) (camera-wiki) · Close-up: bellows and compact bellows for EC/EC-TL, reversing ring, extension rings on the 57 mm thread (camera-wiki; Tamron spec sheet) · L-grip, T-grip, focus lever (camera-wiki)
Coverage 88.7% (Tamron). camera-wiki says the EC-TL's hood was changed so that the magnifier no longer leaves a gap for light to enter, and that its screens carry the speed scale; screen E (grid) was added for the EC-TL. Finders do not interchange with the S2 series (camera-wiki).
Where sources disagree
- First
- June 1975 — Tamron; English Wikipedia (1975-06)
- July 1975 — Japanese Wikipedia
Better supported: June 1975
What reviewers say
No reviews aggregated yet — this family is still in the research queue. Written one? We'd love to index it.
History
The EC-TL of June 1975 put a meter and an auto-exposure circuit into the EC body, and by Japanese and English Wikipedia’s shared account it was the first medium-format SLR with aperture-priority auto-exposure. The metering is through the lens, centre-weighted, read at the instant of stop-down, and the cells are in the mirror rather than the finder, so the body meters on its own with any hood or prism fitted (Japanese Wikipedia). Tamron’s sheet gives EV 4 at f/2.8 to EV 19 at f/22 at ASA 100 and a film-speed range of ASA 25 to 3200, set on a ring in the centre of the shutter dial. On auto the shutter runs steplessly from 2 s to 1/1000; on manual it is B and 4 s to 1/1000 with intermediate speeds, and a red dot gives a mechanical 1/40 that works with a dead battery (Tamron; camera-wiki). The finder shows the chosen speed on a 13-step scale printed on the focusing screen, which doubles as the battery check.
Under the electronics the camera is the EC: the same 6 V silver cell, the same two-part quick-return mirror with lock-up, the same removable 14 mm helicoid with small bayonet and 57 mm thread in front of the large body bayonet, the same back with multiple-exposure switch and 12/24 selector, and the same 139 × 170 × 117 mm body, now 2,050 g. Every S-series lens fits, and the diaphragm is automatic with all but the 800 and 1200 mm (Tamron). The one official exception is the 105 mm leaf-shutter Nikkor-Q, whose shutter is tripped by the stop-down lever the meter also uses (Japanese Wikipedia). The standard set cost ¥219,500; the catalogue let the buyer choose the normal lens, Nikkor 75 mm f/2.8 at ¥39,500, the multicoated Nikkor DX at ¥53,500, or Zenzanon 75 mm f/2.8, 80 mm f/2.4 and 100 mm f/2.8 lenses at ¥39,500 to ¥43,000 (shiura.com, as cited in the research).
camera-wiki calls the EC-TL the last focal-plane 6×6 SLR Bronica made, which is true of the design: the EC-TL II of October 1978 reworked its circuitry and trimmed its slow speeds but did not change the camera. The whole focal-plane line was dropped in March 1980 when the leaf-shutter SQ arrived (English Wikipedia). No blog or video review of the EC-TL was found in the searches made for this entry; owners on forums call it comfortable to handle and quieter than the S series, and name spare parts for the electronic shutter as the thing to worry about, but those are threads, not reviews.
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.
Live listings
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- ★難あり美品★ ブロニカ ZENZA BRONICA EC-TL NIKKOR-P.C 75mm F2.8 #100
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