Canon New F-1

This page is part of the vintage Canon collection I maintain at canonfd.org

Serial: 139061

This is my pride and joy, the flagship prosumer SLR first released in 1981. Canon had three cameras in a series with some variation on the "F-1" name: the original F-1, the F-1n, and the New F-1, also called the F-1N. One hypothesis as to why the last version was not called the F-2 was because at the time it came out, Nikon had just released its own F-2 and Canon didn't want to come across as copying the branding. The New F-1 is easy to differentiate, though, because of its matte body. Similarly to the A-1, it's built like a tank and feels very solid. Unlike its earlier versions, though, this one is largely electronically controlled.

Another benefit to the New F-1 is that it's built to operate on alkaline 6V 4LR44 batteries as opposed to the now-banned mercury 1.35v PX625-type battery.

canon-a1

This camera would go on to become the official 35mm camera of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.

Additional perks you would get if you bought a New F1 included membership cards and a booklet

If you sent in a small form that came with the manual, Canon would send you a membership card, as well as a booklet "The New F-1 World", and the privilege to have your name engraved in the back at any service store.

The first page in the concept catalog included full photos of the F1 This is the first page of the Canon New F1 manual in Japanese The first page of the manual describes all the parts, in Japanese The last page of the manual describes the back of the device and its parts, in Japanese