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

Rolleimagic

Franke & Heidecke · Fixed lens · 6×6 cm on 120 film, 12 exposures; a 16-exposure attachment was listed at $7.50 in 1962 (Mike Eckman) · 1960

Also known as: Rolleimagic · Rollei Magic · Rollei-Magic · Rollei Magic I · Rollei Magic II · Rolleimagic II · Rollei Magic TLR · Rollei Magic Xenar 75mm f/3.5 · Rollei Magic Xenar 75mm F3.5 · ローライマジック · ローライマジック II · ローライ マジック 二眼

Variants & identification

Variant Mount Years Serial ranges Production
Rolleimagic I (K9) · [object Object] Rolleiflex TLR 1960–1962 — About 25,000 (auction-house lot text via search; Mike Eckman gives the same estimate) — not a factory figure
Rolleimagic II (K9) · [object Object] Rolleiflex TLR 1962–1968 — About 12,600 (Mike Eckman, for March 1962–September 1968) — consistent with the forum serial block 2535000–2547597
  1. Dates, lenses and shutter speeds: English Wikipedia model table (K9, October 1960–March 1962 and March 1962–September 1968).
  2. Weight 1,024 g is Mike Eckman's measurement of one Magic II; no factory figure was fetched.
  3. Price: 1962 US advertisement quoted by Mike Eckman; no European price was found.
  4. Production: 25,000 for the Magic I is an auction-house figure repeated by Eckman; 12,600 for the II is Eckman's. Neither is a factory figure.
  5. Bayonet size: Japanese Wikipedia says bayonet II; Eckman says 'size 2 bayonet only' — the larger of the two sizes used on 75mm Rollei TLRs.
  6. Brand: the Magic I was built by Franke & Heidecke; from 1962 the firm was Rollei-Werke Franke & Heidecke, which applies to the Magic II.
How to tell them apart (expand)
  • Round selenium-cell window above the lenses and a slimmer front than a Rolleicord (Mike Eckman)
  • Xenar 75mm f/3.5 taking lens with front-cell focusing — the front element turns; no moving lens board (Mike Eckman, Japanese Wikipedia)
  • Lever wind on the right and a shutter-release lever low on the side; the flash socket sits where other Rolleis have a focus knob (Mike Eckman)
  • Magic I: no manual settings, 1/300 top speed. Magic II: centre button on the exposure wheel for manual, 1/500 top speed
  • Listing trap: 'Rollei Magic' without a number is usually a Magic I; a working meter is the whole value of the camera, and sellers rarely say

Rolleimagic I (K9):

  • Program auto-exposure only: no manual speed or aperture setting (English Wikipedia, Japanese Wikipedia)
  • Prontormat-S shutter topping out at 1/300 (English Wikipedia)
  • Gossen selenium cell on the front, Bay II bayonets, interchangeable hood and screen, front-cell focusing (Japanese Wikipedia)

Rolleimagic II (K9):

  • Manual exposure added: a button in the centre of the exposure wheel decouples speed from aperture (Mike Eckman)
  • Top speed 1/500 (English Wikipedia)
  • 'AUTO' shown in the window beside the focus distance when in program mode (Mike Eckman)

Serial-range notes

2500000–2534999 (Magic I)
A Photrio forum compilation surfaced by search, not fetched or verified. The span of 35,000 is larger than the 25,000-unit production estimate, so the block may include unused numbers.
2535000–2547597 (Magic II)
Same forum compilation, secondhand. Its span of 12,598 numbers matches Mike Eckman's estimate of about 12,600 Magic IIs, which lends it some support.

Specifications

Format
6×6 cm on 120 film, 12 exposures; a 16-exposure attachment was listed at $7.50 in 1962 (Mike Eckman) · 12 (16 with the attachment) exposures
Finder
Waist-level folding hood, interchangeable for a Rollei prism finder; screen with split-image focus aid and etched grid, also interchangeable (Mike Eckman, Japanese Wikipedia)
Shutter
Prontor Prontormat-S leaf shutter in the taking lens, programmed by the selenium meter; fired by a side lever near the base with a cable-release socket below it (Mike Eckman) · 1/30–1/300 s, B (Magic I); 1/30–1/500 s, B (Magic II) · flash sync M and X; cold shoe (Mike Eckman); X sync listed in the English Wikipedia table
Film advance
Lever on the right side with an automatic resetting counter (Mike Eckman) — not the Rolleicord's knob
Back
Hinged, with a START mark for the backing paper (Mike Eckman)
Meter
Gossen selenium cell, coupled: program auto-exposure, EV 8.5–18 displayed, film speed ASA 12–1600 / DIN 12–33; manual override on the II only (Mike Eckman, Japanese Wikipedia)
Motor drive
Not compatible
Weight
1024 g
Country
West Germany (Braunschweig)
Original price
$185 (1962, Magic II); Ever Ready case $15, 16-exposure attachment $7.50 (today $1,920)
Accessories
Rollei prism finder in place of the hood (Mike Eckman) · 16-exposure attachment ($7.50, 1962) and Ever Ready case ($15) (Mike Eckman) · Bay II lens hood, filters and Rolleinar close-up sets

Viewing lens Heidosmat 75mm f/3.5, 4 elements in 3 groups (English Wikipedia table, Mike Eckman).

Where sources disagree

Last
  • September 1968 — English Wikipedia model table (Magic II)
  • 1968 — camera-wiki.org, Mike Eckman, Japan Camera Hunter

Better supported: September 1968

Production
  • About 12,600 — Mike Eckman
  • About 12,000 — Japan Camera Hunter

Better supported: 12,600

Eckman's figure matches the forum serial block to within two units.

What reviewers say

History

The Rolleimagic is Franke & Heidecke’s automatic-exposure twin-lens reflex, introduced in October 1960 and, as Mike Eckman records, the first TLR with auto-exposure. It takes the Rolleicord’s Schneider-Kreuznach Xenar 75mm f/3.5 and 6×6 format but almost nothing else: the shutter is a Prontor Prontormat-S programmed by a coupled Gossen selenium cell, focusing is by the front cell rather than a moving lens board, the film is advanced by a lever, and the release is a lever low on the side. The Magic I (K9, October 1960–March 1962 by the English Wikipedia table) has no manual settings at all and a 1/300 top speed; the Magic II (March 1962–September 1968) adds manual exposure through a button in the centre of the exposure wheel and a 1/500 top speed. Japanese Wikipedia notes the Bay II bayonets and an interchangeable hood and screen, and Eckman confirms that a Rollei prism finder fits.

Production figures are estimates: about 25,000 Magic Is (an auction-house figure repeated by Eckman) and about 12,600 Magic IIs (Eckman), the latter matching a forum-compiled serial block almost exactly. A 1962 US advertisement priced the Magic II at $185. camera-wiki.org’s remark that it is “not a real Rolleiflex” is fair — the transport and shutter are its own designs — and it stands beside the Rolleicord Vb as the other fixed-Xenar Rollei TLR of the 1960s. From 1962 the maker traded as Rollei-Werke Franke & Heidecke, so the Magic II carries that name.

Both reviewers found their Magic IIs working and liked them with reservations. Eckman calls it “a camera worthy of adding to your camera bag”, praising accurate metering, sharp and contrasty Xenar results and a bright finder, while warning that the controls are unintuitive, that nothing slower than 1/30 exists outside B, and that few selenium cells still work. Jayden Guthrie on Japan Camera Hunter reaches the same place from the other side: well built, still working as new, an odd and pleasant alternative to a Rolleiflex, but with that 1/30 floor “a camera for bright, sunny days”. Forum opinion is blunter — a Magic whose meter has died is a paperweight — which is why a working cell is the first thing to establish in any listing.

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.

Example photos

Sample photo wanted — shot with a Rolleimagic? We'd love to feature it (with credit).

Live listings

Listings updated 2026-11-02. Links go to the shop or marketplace that carries the item.

Related: Rolleicord Vb · Rolleicord Va

Lenses for this body: Xenar 75mm f/3.5 (Rollei)

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.