Glass Bodies a variant-level encyclopedia of vintage lenses and cameras by iwillpat

Contax G2

Contax (Kyocera) · Contax G mount · 24×36mm on 35mm film · 1996

Also known as: Contax G2 · Kyocera Contax G2 · Contax G-2 · Contax G2 black

Variants & identification

Variant Mount Years Serial ranges Production
G2, champagne titanium Contax G 1996–2005 — Unpublished
G2, black Contax G 1998–2005 — Unpublished; scarcer than champagne
  1. The GD-2 data back, made for the G2, records exposure data between frames and on the first two frames after the last picture — Camerapedia calls it one of the most sophisticated data backs any maker built. Zörkendörfer of Munich converted the Voigtländer 12mm and 15mm Heliars to the G mount, the only third-party lenses the system ever had.
  2. Production figures were never published by Kyocera. Macfilos gives European prices of about €1,250 for the body.
  3. Discontinuation: 2005, when Kyocera left the camera business; Macfilos says production had ceased by the early 2000s. The G2 was in the catalogue to the end.
How to tell them apart (expand)
  • Seven contacts; the focus wheel on the front plate; 1/6000 on the dial; three finishes
  • Ten millimetres deeper and 110 g heavier than a G1

G2, champagne titanium:

  • Seven lens contacts; focus wheel on the front; 1/6000 top speed; 560 g; 45 mm deep

G2, black:

  • Black paint or black chrome, both from 1998 (camera-wiki); sold as the 'Millennium Edition' in black (Camerapedia), the black chrome the preferred of the two

Specifications

Format
24×36mm on 35mm film
Finder
As the G1 — zooming optical finder 28–90mm (to 70mm with the zoom), automatic parallax correction, LCD — with a wider base; hybrid autofocus, passive phase-detection plus active infrared triangulation, single and continuous; manual focus by wheel on the front · 0.59× magnification · automatic parallax correction · 90% coverage
Shutter
Vertical metal focal-plane, electronic · 16 s – 1/6000 on aperture priority; 4 – 1/4000, B on manual · flash sync X at 1/200 · self-timer
Film advance
Built-in motor, 4 fps
Back
Hinged
Meter
TTL centre-weighted silicon cell, aperture priority and manual, exposure compensation, AE lock, auto-bracketing
Weight
560 g
Dimensions
139 × 80 × 45 mm
Country
Japan
Original price
US$2,250 with the 45mm f/2 (1999, Popular Photography via Wikipedia) (today $4,240)

What reviewers say

History

The G1 made right, from 1996: a hybrid autofocus that adds active infrared triangulation to the phase-detection, a wider finder base, single and continuous focus, a 1/6000 top speed and 1/200 sync, four frames a second, the focus wheel moved to the front where a Contax rangefinder’s always was, and seven contacts so that the 35–70 zoom of 2000 could tell the finder where it stood. Heavier at 560 grams and ten millimetres deeper. Black paint and black chrome versions came in 1998; $2,250 with the 45 in 1999.

James Tocchio: “the G2 is what a modern rangefinder should be. Fast, accurate, incredibly capable” — point it and shoot; the manual focus is the one weak feature. Matthew Thompson found it “so close” and sold it because nobody will be able to fix the electronics; Ibraar Hussain kept one thirteen years, “lightning fast, locks instantly into focus,” except with the 90. Kyocera stopped making cameras in 2005, and the G2 ended with them.

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

Contax G2
Two Contax G2 bodies with data backs — Lordcolus, via Openverse (flickr) (BY 2.0)
Contax G2
Contax G2 bodies and G lenses — Lordcolus, via Openverse (flickr) (BY 2.0)

Live listings

Asking price, USD: a median of $3,000 across 38 fixed-price listings on 2026-09-11 (middle half $2,500–$3,500). Tracked since 2026-09-10, 2 days: unchanged from $3,000.

By day
DateMedianMiddle halfListings
2026-09-11$3,000$2,500–$3,50038
2026-09-10$3,000$2,500–$3,50038

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

Show 72 more listings

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

Related: Contax G1

Lenses for this body: Hologon T* 16mm f/8 (Contax G) · Biogon T* 21mm f/2.8 (Contax G) · Biogon T* 28mm f/2.8 (Contax G) · Planar T* 35mm f/2 (Contax G) · Planar T* 45mm f/2 (Contax G) · Sonnar T* 90mm f/2.8 (Contax G) · Vario-Sonnar T* 35–70mm f/3.5–5.6 (Contax G)

Sources (7)

Every page here is assembled from public sources, and the gaps are real ones. If you own this camera, know a serial number I'm missing, or can see where I have it wrong, tell me — corrections, serials and sample photos are all worth having.