Miranda camera family

Original SLR Miranda models

Post-war Japan saw a glut of camera manufacturers founded from most unlikely mechanical backgrounds. It could be originally bicycle or sewing machine part makers, now sourcing shutter and lens from a few specialized manufacturers and copying bodies from established and proven brands. Most lasted until the end of the U.S. occupation and became a brief anecdote in the camera collectors’ universe. This branch included mainly klapp and simple viewfinders. There is a list of over 400 (!) such makers.

Some manufacturers stepped deeper, having their own designs and meaningful model list; regrettably, only a handful managed to reach the next millennium. Japanese camera makers that made a splash and are long gone are the likes of Petri, Kowa, Taron, Beauty, Leotax, Ricoh and Topcon, and Miranda.

The Miranda brand was established in 1946 by a Navy propulsion lab specialist, beginning with the service and customization of high-end models. Initially named Orion, it changed to Miranda in the Late 1950s.

At first, the company used subcontractors to build their cameras, a practice common at the time, where mom-and-pop shops specialized in part making and assembly. By 1957 Miranda opened its factory, and in twenty short years, it was dead. Wall to wall, in its brief history, Miranda made less than a million cameras, insignificant compared to the East German and Soviet export models that made a similar volume at a single model.

The cameras were sold in the U.S. via Allied Impex, building a certain reputation, yet much behind the Japanese flag bearers. There was no driving force behind the brand in Europe, so it had achieved only mild recognition. In the 1970’s Allied Impex gradually took control over Miranda, to a total holding, and after that shutting it down.

Miranda’s product line began with vaguely influenced Exakta models,35mm SLR mechanical models, and no light meters, and evolved into similar models, with external and later TTL models. There were a few breakthrough models, and most of the rest were variations of them.

A scientific model line, the Laborac, meant for lab work and astronomy, covered a coveted niche, where the last model, the Laborac III, was made in the U.S. after a distributor purchased the tooling and molds from the defunct Miranda and renamed it Mirax.

A single rangefinder, the Sensoret, did not achieve much recognition.

The Japanese camera industry was fighting tooth and nail for dominance within the home and German brands. The legacy, all-mechanical models succeeded with electronically controlled cameras. This required further research, knowledge, and state of mind, which Miranda did not possess. The one model frayed into this, the 1975 DX-3, was too late to the market and too early for the teething problems to be ironed out. Plagued with faults, it had sealed Miranda’s fate.

Miranda brand saw a second coming, with Dixons, a U.K. distributor, selling cookie-cutter Cosina cameras rebranded as Miranda. Just like the Exakta Japanese wannabes. A line of point-and-shoot cameras also popped out; I am unsure if it was Dixons or another entrepreneur.

For the collector, the holly grail is the early model ‘T’, sold under Orion and later under Miranda tags. Other original Miranda models are kind of nice to have; please see the table below for values. The Cosina rebrands are a waste of shelf space. The Laborec / Mirax models are nice to have if you are into these camera types.

Note about the lens mount. Most legacy Miranda models carry the four-claws proprietary bayonet mount with an additional 44mm internal thread; see the image below. The thread has no original matching lens; it is meant to attach external accessories or lens adapters. Notwithstanding, some specialized lenses were made for the 44mm thread.

Miranda SLR models

Scientific Miranda models

Rangefinder Miranda

Sensoret, 1972

Dixons SLR Miranda models

More:

Knippsen
Silly Pages (archived)
Miranda Cameras (archived)
Camera Quest