The Ikoflex Favorit is the last of the TLR cameras built by Zeiss Ikon. It was produced from 1957 until 1960 and combined features from both the Ikoflex Ic and IIa. Perhaps the most helpful of these features is the non-coupled lightmeter, displayed in the viewfinder of the camera - not many twin lens reflex cameras boast that feature. The meter reads in exposure value units, which then need to be transferred to shutter and aperture controls, making this step in the process a bit more tedious. The taking lens on the Favorit is a Carl Zeiss 75mm f/3.5 Tessar. While not terribly common, if you do come across a Favorit, and it tests out in good working order, they are an excellent TLR and one that will quickly grow on you.
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Ikoflex Favorit
Forgive us for making a slightly provocative statement. As much as we love our Rolleiflexes, the Zeiss Ikon Ikoflexes may just be some of the most beautiful twin lens cameras ever made. They may not be as user-friendly, and they are certainly nowhere near as easy to repair as a Rollei, but hold a late Ikoflex, like this Favorit, in your hand and you will see what we mean. ⠀
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This Ikoflex had a bit of an odyssey. It belongs to a long-time customer of ours and she refused to give up on it after its focusing hood got mangled. Even a seemingly simple repair like this proved almost impossible due to the lack of available spare parts. It traveled to three different repair shops before replacement pieces could be found, and even then they had to be scavenged off of eBay. Despite the time this took, our customer stuck with her camera, refusing to consider replacing it with something like a Yashica Mat or Rollei. She knew those cameras, and loved them too, but nowhere near as much as her Favorit. All that loyalty and patience certainly paid off, after a long repair journey, the camera was fixed and is now back in her hands and making images again!