The First Sony E-Mount Film Camera Is Here

In the 2000s, Sony jumped straight into DLSRs, forgetting all about film cameras. Users longed for a Sony film camera and this week, a hobbyist made his (and probably many other’s) dream come true. He showed off his Sony E-Mount 35mm film camera prototype, built with his own hands right at home and affectionally named LEX. #fotomagic

Alexander Gee worked for over an year on his first, and probably the world’s first, Sony 35mm film camera. He started LEX from a shutter mechanism borrowed from a Sony A7 camera.

“[…] the 18mm flange focal distance which makes E-Mount amazing for building compact cameras like the Sony A6500 was going to rule out adapting any existing film body I could find,” Gee explained to Sony Alpha Rumors. “The easiest approach was to start at the beginning and make a whole system from scratch.”

So, Gee came up with the design and then relied on 3D printing and electronics to make the first unit. Granted, it’s nothing fancy on the outside but it works well as these images prove.

The inventor is not stingy with his creations either. He wants to release the open source plans and maybe make a batch of devices that will allow you to buy one directly from him.