Exakta EDX 3 (1978)

The Exakta EDX 3 is a 35mm film SLR produced in 1978. It is not a Dresden camera. It is the same camera as the Topcon RE 300, so if you know the Topcon, you know the EDX 3.

The EDX 3 was sold with an F1.7 Exaktar 55mm lens and used the Exakta bayonet mount. That mount took interchangeable wide-angle, telephoto, standard, zoom, and macro optics. Meter-coupled operation worked with EDX lenses. Classic and RTL bayonet lenses could be used with stop-down metering. The camera had LED light metering and auto-winder capability. Period materials described it as compact, in a black finish, and "designed for both professionals and advanced amateurs."

It was sold alongside the nearly identical EDX 2, and the two shared an instruction manual. A 1986 catalog lists the EDX-3 body at $24.00 and the Exakta Auto Winder at $149.95. That catalog is from eight years after launch, so the prices may reflect closeout or wholesale pricing rather than original retail.

Known Specs

Type: 35mm single-lens reflex (SLR)
Production year: 1978
Manufacturer: Ihagee Westberlin, made in Japan
Lens: F1.7 Exaktar 55mm
Mount: Exakta bayonet
Metering: LED light metering; meter-coupled with EDX lenses, stop-down with classic/RTL bayonet lenses
Other: Auto-winder capable
Relationship: Same camera as Topcon RE 300

The record is thin past this point. No detailed specifications - dimensions, weight, shutter speed range, or viewfinder coverage - have surfaced in the verifiable sources. No original 1978 retail price is documented, and no owner reviews or common-problem reports have been located. If you have an EDX 3 and can fill in the gaps, the archive would welcome the details.