The Prominent was introduced in late 1950 or early 1951 to compete at the upper end of the amateur market alongside the Leica and Contax. Only a limited range of lenses was available but these covered the requirements, if not the aspirations, of most amateur photographers. The camera also achieved some use by professionals due to the Compur shutter providing flash synchronisation at all speeds. In Britain the Prominent was not greatly advertised and import restrictions were in place for half of its life.

The Prominent was a well-built camera of high specification but suffered from the lens-range limitation imposed by the Compur shutter. The layout of the controls, especially the focusing wheel, proved awkward for many users, and the view-finder fell short of what might have been expected, it was also a heavy camera. The position of the shutter made coupling the rangefinder to the lens difficult unless focusing was carried out on the camera body.

When first introduced the Prominent had a Compur Rapid shutter, after this a Synchro Compur was used. Several other modifications were made most noticeably the inclusion of strap lugs, accessory shoe, lever-wind and a view-finder with suspended frames, these were introduced separately in that order. An improved model designated the Prominent II was introduced in 1959 with a larger and improved finder, the earlier model has become known as model I.

The example shown here is the last version of the model I prior to the introduction of the II.

Rangefinder Coupling

The decision to place the rangefinder focusing adjustment in the camera body and alter the lens focus by moving the shutter/lens mount forward and back worked well for the standard lenses but with the wide-angle and telephoto lenses it led to problems and restrictions. The 35 and 100 mm Dynaron lenses were mounted on the outer bayonet surrounding the shutter assembly which was fixed to the body, the linear movement of the shutter housing (from moving the rangefinder wheel) acted on a spring-mounted plate at the rear of the lens and this caused the necessary movement of the optical elements. In effect the rangefinder was driving the lens movement, in comparison, on the Leica focusing is carried out on the lens which moves a cam at the rear of the lens which in turn presses on a roller connected to the rangefinder optics. With the 150 mm Super-Dynaron the lens was left un-coupled.

Telomar

The Telomar mounted in a reflex housing is a very odd device, the lens is only 100 mm in focal length which could be matched by a rangefinder-coupled lens. The lens is built into the housing, the front lens group can be removed for cleaning the rear group is fixed. The reflex housing, then, can only be used with this lens, unlike the Leitz Visoflex for instance. The standard finder for the reflex housing was a vertical 'chimney' type which could be hinged down to give an eye-level finder of Kontur pattern i.e. a direct vision finder. Two Kontur frames are shown, for infinity and 6 feet focus. The whole finder could be removed and replaced by a 45° prism. The mirror sits between the two lens groups, it follows that the rear group behind the mirror has to be replicated above the mirror below the focusing screen. The mirror is only 20 mm wide and slides sideways when the release on the reflex housing is depressed.

Microscope attachment

This consists of two parts: A connecting tube to attach to the microscope collar (part no. 127/33) and a focusing attachment (part no. 127/34) which connects to the camera lens and has a fixed glass plate to reflect the image to a telescope eyepiece. The eyepiece has cross hairs and a field outline. The focusing attachment is clamped to the tube 127/33, a stud fixes into a small hole in the tube for alignment. This is the same device as was used on the Bessamatic range of cameras, an extra ring is required to fix the focusing attachment to the lens either 145/22 for Color-Skopar and Color-Lanthar or 145/23 for Septon and Skopagon lenses.

Proximeter

The Proximeter comprises a close-up lens placed in front of the camera lens and a 'spheric/prismatic unit' (a section of a plano/convex lens) to deflect light reaching the rangefinder/viewfinder windows. Two strengths were produced - Proximeter I focusing to 19.5 inches and Proximeter II focusing to 13 inches. The two units could be combined allowing focusing to 10 inches. When used with the 100 mm Dynaron lens a 'field mask' was fitted between the lens and the Proximeter to show the field of view. Early versions of the field mask had a clear acrylic window set in a metal frame, later yellow acrylic was used without a metal frame.

Unop Outfit Case

Early versions of the Unop had push-in fittings for filters and no provision for the Proximeters, later models (Unop-B) had a different layout with elastic loops for filters and space for Proximeters. The bag was introduced before the 150 mm lens and was intended to store the standard, wide-angle and 100 mm telephoto lenses.

Copying Outfit

This device can be set up in two ways - as a copying stand where the camera is positioned horizontally or as a table tripod. Integral to the device is a 50 mm Repro-Skopar lens, set in a focusing mount. The lens is mounted into a plate (tripod head) that has screw holes for the tripod legs and sockets to fit the ball & socket head. The plate carries a fixing for the camera/focusing magnifier.

To focus, a tube carrying a ground glass screen is mounted on the tripod head, a focusing magnifier attaches above the screen. The tube is then removed and replaced by the camera, a coupling ring attaches to the outer bayonet of the camera and fits into the collar of the tripod head. A clamping ring on the tripod head holds the focusing tube/coupling ring in place. Alignment is ensured by a lug on the focusing tube and coupling ring that fits a socket in the the tripod head collar.

Copying stand configuration. Three tripod legs, together with three sets of extension legs, if required, attach to the tripod head, in this configuration the camera coupling ring and focusing tube have to be positioned correctly relative to the tripod legs, this is enabled by aligning index marks on the tripod head and the collar to which the camera coupling rings fits. A mat sits underneath the tripod legs to outline the field of view.

In this configuration the subject size is between 74 x 105 mm and 297 x 420 mm.

Table tripod configuration. The tripod legs screw into the 'intermediate head', a column screws to the top of the intermediate head. The ball & socket head fits onto the column. The tripod head can then be screwed to the top of the column or to the ball & socket Head.

Copying Stand parts:

• Repro-Skopar 50/f3.5 (127/35).
• Ground glass adapter (127/36).
• 5x Focusing magnifier 127/17).
• Camera coupling ring (127/32). This piece was also listed as a separate item for attaching the Prominent to other instruments (such as oscilloscopes), it came fitted with three screws around the barrel to tighten on to the other device these had to be removed to use with the copying outfit.
• Ball and socket head with column (127/27).
• Tripod head (127/37).
• Intermediate head.
• 3 Base legs.
• 9 Intermediate legs.
• Base mat.

Macro Unit

This was a very odd and complicated device giving two fixed reproduction ratios - 1:1 and 2:1. The 100 mm Dynaron lens was used attached to the camera, for the 1:1 ratio a 105 mm Color-Skopar was fitted to the Macro Unit base and the camera plus 100 mm lens attached to the Color-Skopar, for the 2:1 ratio the standard 50 mm lens was fitted to the base unit (but reversed so that the rear of the lens faced the object) the camera plus 100 mm lens then attached to the base unit.

The necessity for such an arrangement was that the shutter blades, fixed in the camera, would have a vignetting effect if an extension piece was placed between the camera body and the lens.

Prominent Lenses and Accessories

Two other standard lenses were available - f3.5 50 mm Color-Skopar and f2 50 mm Ultron.

Accessories, other than those mentioned above, were a neck chain (93/122), a clip-on accessory shoe for early models, a flash gun built into a camera case and an adapter to fit Prominent lenses to an enlarger (127/30).

Early Focar lenses were designated Focar 1 and 2. There was also a Focar O for use on the Telomar.

The first Turnit view-finder had a plastic body, this was replaced by one with a leather covered metal body. Both of these models were for 35 and 100 mm lenses, the Turnit 3 had an additional hinged mask for 50 mm lenses. There was in addition a removable mask for the 150 mm lens.

Lens accessories came in 47 mm push-on fitting and, later, 49 mm screw fitting, a stepping ring (331/49) turned a 47 mm filter into a 49 mm filter. Lens hood masks were produced for 100 mm and 150 mm lenses.