BRONICA EC

The Bronica EC, released in 1972, was a 6x6 medium format SLR that replaced the S2A and introduced electronic focal plane shutter control to Bronica's lineup. Initially bundled with 75mm Nikkor lenses, production issues led Bronica to switch to their own 80mm f/2.8 MC Zenzanon lenses manufactured by Carl Zeiss Jena. The camera featured a redesigned split mirror system with incompatible film backs and viewfinders compared to previous models, though it maintained lens compatibility. The EC-TL variant (1975) became one of the first 6x6 SLRs to offer built-in TTL metering with aperture priority mode, while the later EC-TL-II revision simplified electronics but removed slow shutter speeds and manual metering capability. This series represented Bronica's final focal plane 6x6 design before transitioning to the leaf-shutter SQ series in 1980.