 Having set up the Precision Optical Instruments Laboratory, Yoshida devoted himself to making cameras. He faced many significant obstacles, because not only making exact replicas of Leica and Contax cameras, two major brands on the market at the time, which was difficult with the technique at the time, he strove to incorporate original ideas into the mechanical workings of cameras.
Since the laboratory was not a factory, all parts were sourced externally. Processing precision did not match the level of overseas countries at the time, but lathe machining, milling, pressing, casting, plating, lens grinding and other processes necessary for making camera parts could be handled in a small suburban factory. However, while it was not difficult to get the parts required, cameras involved a concentration of several unique technologies despite their small size. Yoshida's task, therefore, was not an easy one. Nevertheless, armed with the passion of a pioneer, he continued development of Japan's first high-grade 35mm camera.
In 1934, Yoshida succeeded in producing a prototype of the first domestically made 35mm focal-plane shutter camera. A believer of the Buddhist faith, he named it "Kwanon" after the Goddess of Mercy, and placed an advertisement for "Kwanon Cameras" in the June 1934 issue of Asahi Camera magazine.
| 1935 |
 |
Launching the "Hansa Canon"
35mm Focal-Plane Shutter Camera. |
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 Production of Canon cameras was proceeding smoothly. Meanwhile, an advertisement for Hansa Canon Cameras appeared in the October 1935 issue of Asahi Camera. This was an announcement of the intention to sell cameras, and in the December 1935 issue an advertisement for sales of Hansa Canon Cameras appeared. Both advertisements were placed by a company called Omiya Shashin Yohin Co., Ltd., and in neither case was Precision Optical Instruments Laboratory mentioned. This was because the laboratory was still not a prominent name and did not have strong sales channels. Exclusive sales rights were proffered to Omiya, and the name of the cameras included the word "Hansa," which was Omiya's trademark.
The Hansa Canon was priced at 275 yen, around half the price of a Leica. The commercialization of a high-grade 35mm camera by an unknown entity had a major impact on the camera industry in Japan. Moreover, the launch of the new product enabled the laboratory to meet its management objectives and set itself on the road to success. New staff were hired, and the Takekawaya Building in Roppongi became increasingly cramped. For this reason, the company leased a plot of land in Nakane-cho, Meguro Ward, and built a new production facility, shifting its operations there in June 1936. Coinciding with the move, the company changed its name to Japan Precision Optical Instruments Laboratory, Co., Ltd.
1945-1954
| 1957 |
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The L1 still camera is selected to receive the first "Good Design Product" awards in Japan. |
The L1 used an original Canon design that aimed at completely breaking away from the Leica-type design while emulating the traditional orderly proportions of Japanese aesthetics. The 8T was Canon's first 8mm camera and was designed to be easy to operate so as to eliminate camera shake.
| 1961 |
|
The Canonet is released, sparking a boom for EE cameras. |
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 The development of the Canonet, a major hit camera incorporating the world's newest automatic exposure mechanism, was motivated by the desire of a young staff member to "create a camera that people everywhere can buy." However, just after the pre-launch announcement in August 1960 that its price would be below 20,000 yen, vigorous objections to this price, which was against accepted thinking at the time, were raised within the industry.
Nevertheless, the Canonet was released in January 1961 at a price of 19,800 yen, which was considered affordable to new college graduates on the starting salaries paid by most companies. On the day of the launch, Canonet units stocked for sale at Mitsukoshi's Nihonbashi department store in central Tokyo sold out in two hours. This sensation was covered in an article entitled "Knock Over Canonet" in the Shukan Bunshun (popular weekly magazine) on February 6, 1961.
The appearance of the Canonet as an EE ("electric-eye") camera affordable to everyone and easy enough to use for beginners to shoot without exposure errors, was a major event that completely changed the way cameras were enjoyed. By November 1961, more than 210,000 Canonet cameras had been produced, and the one million mark was reached in July 1963. The era of the EE camera had arrived.
1962-1970
| 1971 |
|
The Canon F-1, a top-of-the-line 35mm
SLR camera, debuts. |
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From around 1964, there were growing calls for Canon, as a comprehensive camera manufacturer, to develop a top-class model suitable for professional use. This prompted camera makers to focus on systemizing the single-lens reflex (SLR) system for professionals. The fundamental prerequisite was that such a camera must prove "reliable under the most strenuous conditions." Canon set to work to develop a camera to meet this prerequisite.
"Reliability" meant a number of things, namely that the camera be motor-driven, and have automatic exposure and expanded photometric functions. It also had to be durable enough to take 100,000 consecutive frames, allow instant interchange of all systems without adjustment, perform in temperatures from -30 degrees to 60 degrees Celsius, and come with a multitude of attachments to suit specific photography needs. To achieve such reliability, Canon not only mobilized its Camera Division but also got technical experts from its Optical Equipment Division involved. In this effort, Canon was said to have expended sufficient energy to develop 10 conventional cameras. In March 1971, we launched the Canon F-1 following five years of product development. This camera was nicknamed the "heavy tank" by news-related companies and professional photographers, whose abiding confidence it earned. The Canon F-1 firmly positioned Canon as the leader in 35mm SLR cameras and served as the starting point for other mainstay models released later. |
| 1976 |
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The AE-1 microcomputer-embedded camera is unveiled, sparking a boom for AE SLR cameras. |
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|
 In April 1976, Canon launched the AE-1, the world's first camera with an embedded microcomputer. It was priced at an exceptionally low 85,000 yen with standard F1.4 lens and case, and was a major market hit. "AE" stood for "Automatic Exposure Control," and "AE-1" meant "No. 1 electronically controlled fully automatic SLR camera."
The AE-1 was Canon's first fully composite-technology product. Canon successfully combined electronic, precision mechanical, optical and computer-related design technologies with ultraprecise-processing, production, and other basic technologies to create an automatic-exposure, 35mm shutter-priority, TTL SLR camera. In the planning stages, engineers from various departments were mobilized to form the largest product development team since the company was founded. To ensure that it could be competently used by anyone, Canon cited three main objectives for the new camera: safe and reliable photometry, automatic exposure and other automated functions, and a technologically supported low price. The realization of these three objectives was the reason this camera became such a huge hit.
In recognition of its "development of an SLR camera integrating advanced electronics technologies," Canon was awarded the 1977 Ohkoshi Memorial Prize in October 1977. The AE-1 was also chosen 1976 European Camera of the Year in the SLR category by Photo Magazine of Germany. In September 1979, it received the 1979 Good Design Award from the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, and in April 1985, Torakiyo Yamanaka, head of Canon's Camera Development Division when the AE-1 was being developed, received the 27th Science and Technology Agency Director's Award in recognition of his contribution to progress in the camera industry.
The AE-1, embraced by both amateur and professional photographers, provided the impetus for a major leap forward for the company. |
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| 1979 |
|
The AF35M (Autoboy) fully automatic
auto-focus compact camera is launched. |
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 November 1979 saw the release of Canon's first auto-focus 35mm lens-shutter camera, the AF35M. This product's official name was "AF-Plus Motor-Drive Camera." However, Canon Sales Co., Inc.(at the time), our domestic sales subsidiary, nicknamed it the Autoboy, while Canon USA dubbed it the SureShot. Both nicknames became more famous than the camera's official name.
The initial idea for an auto-focus function was proposed a half-century earlier. It took a full 14 years to bring the Canon AF, the world's first auto-focus prototype, to practical use. With the Autoboy, anybody could easily take photographs, thanks to a host of features, including an auto-focus function that worked regardless of brightness, contrast, or distance; and automated film-forward, film-rewind, and flash operation.
In addition to these multiple functions, the Autoboy was priced at around the same level as auto-focus models of other companies, positioning it prominently as a compact auto-focus camera. It received the Ministry of International Trade and Industry's 1980 Good Design Award in September 1980. In the second half of 1981, monthly production was 110,000 units. Canon then unveiled the AF35ML (Autoboy Super), a top-class version mounted with the 40mm F1.9 lens, the brightest lens among compact auto-focus cameras. This and subsequent models were market hits, making the Autoboy series long-lasting bestsellers for Canon. |
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1982-1986
| 1987 |
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Canon releases the EOS650 auto-focus SLR camera. |
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 In 1985, Canon relinquished its position at the top of the SLR camera market when Minolta Camera Co., Ltd., unveiled the world's first fully auto-focus (AF) SLR camera. Aware that AF SLR models would dominate the market, Canon decided that it should enter the market with a highly refined "Canon-style" AF SLR camera. The company decided to spend two years in development, to ensure that the final product would be perfect in every way. Charged with this mandate, a large organization was set up to undertake the development project.
The name of the project was EOS, and its task was to distance itself from Canon's existing SLR cameras to develop a totally new system that would become a prelude of cameras of the future. To assure high functionality, the team actively introduced leading-edge elemental technologies that could be practically applied, and made all signal transmission and control functions fully electronic. It pursued the vision of creating a camera that would enable amateurs to competently take photographs comfortably and enjoyably.
The EOS650, Canon's first AF SLR camera, was released in March 1987, the 50th anniversary of the company's founding. Two months later, the EOS650 seized the top market share in Japan and Europe. Canon had regained the position it lost to Minolta two years earlier. |
| 1996 |
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Canon launches the ELPH/IXUS 2x-zoom compact camera for the Advanced Photo System. |
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 The Advanced Photo System is a new photographic system developed jointly by five companies: Canon, Eastman Kodak, Fuji Photo Film, Minolta, and Nikon. Film for this system comes in cartridges 30% smaller than conventional 35mm film rolls, allowing the production of lighter, more compact cameras. In addition, film-loading mistakes have been eliminated, and users can select between three types of prints. Moreover, image data magnetically recorded on the film can be used to make high-quality prints or enlarged to suit various media.
Canon released the ELPH/IXUS, an Advanced Photo System camera, in 1996. In order to best exploit the advantages of the small film size, Canon introduced the latest miniaturization technologies and achieved an ultracompact body small enough to be carried or stored anywhere. In fact, it was the smallest camera in the world to incorporate a zoom lens. In addition to a 24-48mm 2-x zoom lens, it also featured such superb technologies as a newly developed hybrid auto-focus mechanism, in which the camera would automatically shift between active and passive mode depending on photographic conditions.
In addition to being the world's smallest compact camera, the ELPH/IXUS became renowned for its high-class design, which rejuvenated the image of traditional cameras. The ELPH/IXUS helped ignite the Advanced Photo System boom.
| 2000 |
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The IXY DIGITAL, an ultracompact digital camera, is released. |
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 In May 2000, Canon released the IXY DIGITAL (PowerShot S100 DIGITAL ELPH/DIGITAL IXUS in other regions), the world's smallest and lightest 2-megapixel-class digital camera with an optical zoom lens (as of May 8, 2000).
In the digital camera market in general, higher numbers of pixels means higher resolutions, and lead to better quality images. For this reason, the number of pixels has been a prime issue in new product marketing, as well as an emphasis in product development. The IXY DIGITAL has gone a long way in changing this trend, providing all of the basic functions of a digital camera. However, the most notable facet of this new digital camera is its design.
The IXY DIGITAL inherits the ultracompact, stylish body design of the IXY (ELPH/IXUS in other regions) series, Canon's popular cameras for the Advanced Photo System, and has succeeded in greatly changing the image of digital cameras as personal computer (PC) peripheral products. High-quality stainless steel was adopted for the exterior body of this camera to provide a luxurious exterior. In addition, the camera's full flat body fits easily into the user's pocket, creating a feeling of stylishness and the mobility of a fashion accessory.
Advanced miniaturization and high-density mounting technologies have been incorporated in the IXY DIGITAL to reduce camera size, such as an ultracompact optical system that makes the lens a slight 20 mm in diameter (the size of a small coin) when not in use, and an ultrathin liquid crystal display (LCD). As a result, the IXY DIGITAL has been highly praised in the marketplace not only for its design, but also for its advanced technologies.
Reflecting the strong evaluations Canon has received in the digital camera field for its technologies and product design, the IXY DIGITAL has won numerous awards, including the U.S. magazine Popular Science's Best of What's New Award, around the globe. |
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2001-
more detail..canon camera museum |
