Bronica SQ-A
Zenza Bronica · Bronica SQ mount · 55.6 × 55.6mm on 120 or 220; 24 × 36mm with the 135N back; Polaroid pack film with the CB102/CB103 backs (Tamron JP specification; camera-wiki). 6×4.5 with the SQ-i 120J/220J backs and 24 × 54mm with the 135W back, both introduced with the SQ-Ai in 1990 · 1982
Also known as: Bronica SQ-A · Bronica SQA · Bronica SQ A · Zenza Bronica SQ-A · Zenzabronica SQ-A · Bronica SQ-A 6x6 · ゼンザブロニカ SQ-A · ゼンザブロニカSQ-A · ブロニカ SQ-A · ブロニカSQ-A · ブロニカ SQA
Variants & identification
| Variant | Mount | Years | Serial ranges | Production |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SQ-A (1982–91) | Bronica SQ | 1982–1991 | — | No production total is known to have been published. The English Wikipedia model table and collection-appareils end it in 1991. |
| SQ-A SF (Safari) | Bronica SQ | — | — | 100 sets, with the matching accessories; safari-coloured lenses sold to buyers on order (Japanese Wikipedia). No year is given. |
- Dimensions and weight are Tamron's figures for the camera with standard lens, back and waist-level finder, identical to the SQ's; no body-only figure is given.
- The end year rests on the English Wikipedia model table, which lists it ambiguously as December 1991 or March 1991, and on collection-appareils; Tamron and Japanese Wikipedia give no end date.
- 6×4.5 and 24 × 54 need the SQ-i backs of 1990; camera-wiki lists 120, 220 and 135N as the backs of the SQ/SQ-A years.
How to tell them apart
- ZENZA BRONICA SQ-A on the front plate; mirror lock-up lever with S and C positions and a multiple-exposure lever on the body (Tamron JP)
- Red LED at the top centre of the screen for battery check and shutter-closed warning (Tamron JP)
- Round shutter-lock collar on the body release (camera-wiki; K. Praslowicz)
SQ-A (1982–91):
- SQ-A engraved on the front plate; mirror lock-up lever on the body with S (returns after the exposure) and C (stays up) positions (Tamron JP)
- Grey dark slides that lock when withdrawn from the back (camera-wiki)
- Extra connector pins in the finder bay for the AE prism finders, which do not seat on the plain SQ (camera-wiki)
SQ-A SF (Safari):
- Safari-coloured body, finder and back; safari-coloured lenses were made to order for buyers of the set (Japanese Wikipedia, citing Classic Camera Senka No. 57)
- SQ-A (1982–91): The standard black body. Japanese Wikipedia describes it as the SQ redesigned around eye-level use and AE, powered by one 6 V alkaline or silver-oxide cell.
- SQ-A SF (Safari): The one limited edition of the SQ-A. Japanese Wikipedia, citing Classic Camera Senka No. 57, gives the 100-set run and the made-to-order lenses but no date within the 1982–91 production.
Specifications
- Format
- 55.6 × 55.6mm on 120 or 220; 24 × 36mm with the 135N back; Polaroid pack film with the CB102/CB103 backs (Tamron JP specification; camera-wiki). 6×4.5 with the SQ-i 120J/220J backs and 24 × 54mm with the 135W back, both introduced with the SQ-Ai in 1990 · 12 on 120, 24 on 220 (Tamron JP specification) exposures
- Finder (waist-level finder)
- folding hood, supplied in the standard set (Tamron JP)
- Finder (AE Prism Finder S)
- eye-level prism with aperture-priority automatic exposure, coupled to the body through the finder-bay pins and to the back's ISO dial (camera-wiki; Japanese Wikipedia)
- Finder (ME Prism Finder S and MF Finder S)
- metered prism and metered chimney finder, manual exposure (camera-wiki)
- Shutter
- Seiko #0 electronically controlled leaf shutter in each lens; mechanical fallback at 1/500 (Tamron JP) · 8s–1/500 and T in whole steps, no intermediate speeds; no B (Tamron JP; camera-wiki) · flash sync X contact only, at all speeds (Tamron JP)
- Film advance
- Crank, one full turn, with small-increment winding possible; a thumb lever on the Speed Grip S (Tamron JP; K. Praslowicz)
- Back
- Interchangeable backs for 120, 220, 35mm and Polaroid pack film, each dedicated, with an ASA/ISO dial coupled to the metered finders (Tamron JP); grey, locking dark slides (camera-wiki)
- Meter
- None in the body; CdS metering in the ME and MF finders, aperture-priority AE in the AE Prism Finder S (camera-wiki)
- Motor drive
- Not compatible — No motor coupling; the motorised version is the separate SQ-Am body (camera-wiki; Japanese Wikipedia)
- Weight
- 1500 g
- Dimensions
- 92 × 179 × 109 (W × D × H) and 1,500g with the 80mm lens, SQ 120 back and waist-level finder (Tamron JP) mm
- Country
- Japan
- Original price
- ¥207,000 for the standard set of body, 120 back, Zenzanon-S 80mm f/2.8 and waist-level finder (Tamron JP, which gives set prices because of the tax rules of the time) (today ¥285,000)
- Accessories
- Finders: waist-level, plain prism, ME Prism Finder S, MF Finder S, AE Prism Finder S; the AE-i prism fits but its 16s and B functions need the SQ-Ai (camera-wiki) · Backs: SQ 120, SQ 220, 135N; Polaroid backs CB102 and CB103; later SQ-i 120, 220, 120J, 220J, 135N and 135W (camera-wiki) · Speed Grip S with hot shoe, thumb advance lever and mechanical release; winding crank; cold battery pack (camera-wiki; K. Praslowicz) · Extension tubes 18 and 36, auto bellows, bellows lens hood, 2× teleconverter, close-up lenses 1 and 2, focusing lever (camera-wiki)
camera-wiki's table lists the plain prism, ME prism, MF chimney, AE prism and the later AE-i prism as fitting the SQ-A; the AE-i finder's 16s and B functions belong to the SQ-Ai body and do not apply here.
Where sources disagree
- Last
- 1991, listed ambiguously as December or March — English Wikipedia model table
- 1991 — collection-appareils
- Not stated — Tamron JP and Japanese Wikipedia
Better supported: 1991
What reviewers say
- K. Praslowicz, kpraslowicz.com (blog) — Years of posts from 2013 on: bought over a Hasselblad on cost, shelved twice for light leaks from worn seals and a damaged dark slide, then kept for negatives he preferred to his Yashica-Mat's and for flash sync at any speed. The Speed Grip's thumb lever, hot shoe and lock earn praise; the round shutter-lock collar on the body is awkward in winter. A dunking in Lake Superior in 2016 killed the lens, but the body recovered. single source, unconfirmed
History
The SQ-A of January 1982 is the SQ reworked for eye-level use. Japanese Wikipedia calls it an AE single-lens reflex redesigned for handling convenience, and the two changes that matter are a mirror lock-up lever, with a single-shot position that lets the mirror return after the exposure and a continuous one that holds it up, and a finder bay with extra pins so that the AE Prism Finder S can set the shutter from the aperture chosen on the lens. Those pins are why the AE finders do not seat on the original SQ (camera-wiki). The dark slides became grey and lock when pulled, the frame, shutter range (8 s to 1/500 and T, no B), crank wind and 6 V battery are the SQ’s, and Tamron’s set dimensions and weight are unchanged at 92 × 179 × 109 mm and 1,500 g with the 80mm and waist-level finder.
The SQ-A was the hub of the system for nine years. Backs for 120, 220, 35mm and Polaroid pack film, the metered ME prism and MF chimney, the plain prism, the Speed Grip S with its hot shoe and thumb lever, extension tubes and a bellows all fit it, and every Zenzanon-S and Zenzanon-PS lens mounts (Tamron JP; camera-wiki). A motor-only version, the SQ-Am, followed in 1982, and the SQ-Ai of 1990 replaced it with TTL flash metering and a 16 s–B shutter range; the English Wikipedia table and collection-appareils end the SQ-A in 1991. One limited edition exists: the SQ-A SF, a safari-coloured set of 100 with matching accessories and lenses made to order, recorded by Japanese Wikipedia from Classic Camera Senka without a date.
In use, the SQ-A’s reputation is that of a workhorse undercut by its foam. K. Praslowicz, who bought one in 2013 instead of a Hasselblad on cost, lost it to light leaks twice before straightening the magazine’s metal seals and replacing a damaged dark slide, then kept it for negatives he preferred to his Yashica-Mat’s and for leaf-shutter flash sync at any speed. He rates the Speed Grip highly and the round shutter-lock collar on the body poorly, especially in gloves.
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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