Agfa Isoly (1960–1971)
The Agfa Isoly is a line of medium format viewfinder cameras that Agfa had made in Spain by Certex S.A. and sold from 1960 to 1971. All of them shoot 120 roll film and give sixteen 4×4 cm frames per roll. This is the square "superslide" format, and it's the reason the series exists. Agfa pitched it as a point-and-shoot medium format alternative to Kodak's 127 cameras. The cameras were geared toward slower films like ISO 40.
The lineup is broad: the Isoly (I), Isoly Junior (also seen as Jsoly or Isoly 0), Isoly II, IIa, III, IIIa, and Isoly-Mat. The entry-level Junior sits at the bottom. The III and IIIa sit at the top, with faster lenses and Prontor shutters reaching 1/250. Bodies are mostly plastic. You open one by turning a switch on the base and sliding the back off, and film advances by thumb winder. Lenses are glass throughout, from a single-element meniscus on the Junior up to multi-element Color-Agnar and Agnar optics on the better models. One structural detail: the early Isoly I uses a bent film plane for improved sharpness, while the Isoly II and everything after it went to a flat film plate. The Isoly-Mat is the odd one out. It adds a built-in selenium cell meter below the lens, with a green/red exposure indicator in the viewfinder. Most models have a ¼" tripod mount, and the Isoly III and IIIa add a cable release and self-timer.
Two things to flag for anyone browsing these. First, the design has real lineage. It shares roots with the Certex Werlisa cameras and the Agfa Iso-Rapid C, and the later Diana, the cult toy camera, was a cheaper copy of the Isoly's design. Second, the name was reused. The "Agfa Isoly 100" of the 1980s is a 35mm camera with no relation to this series, so listings can be misleading.
Past the model list and the broad strokes above, the record is thin. There are no production years for individual models, no original prices, no dimensions or weights, and no complete shutter or aperture specs for most of the range. The lens figures that circulate, "Achromat f8" and "Color-Agnar 1:5.6/55", come from eBay listing titles rather than manufacturer documentation. Treat them as leads, not verified specs. An owner's manual for the Isoly-Mat is available through archive.org, which is the best primary source currently in reach.
eBay Listings
As an eBay Partner, we earn from qualifying purchases. This helps support our independent vintage technology research.