The Canonet 19 is a 35mm 24x36 rangefinder camera. It is the first model of the brand to carry the Canonet name. Even though the distributor Bell & Howell renamed it Canonet 19 for their purposes, its series name remains "Canonet." In the Canonet series, the number always corresponds to the maximum aperture of the lens: here f/1.9.

This Canonet has excellent build quality and finish.

It features a shutter priority automatic mode, thanks to its selenium cell around the lens (EE > Electric Eye), although it can be switched to manual operation. Its lens (Canon SE 1.9/45 mm) is of superb quality, which has established its reputation. The viewfinder is framed for 45mm with automatic parallax correction. The rangefinder image is rectangular, pinkish, well-contrasted, and large. In the viewfinder, there is also an aperture indication in automatic mode. The mechanical frame counter appears in a window next to the shutter release.

The film advance is rapid thanks to the lever located underneath the camera.

The COPAL SV shutter offers speeds from 1 second to 1/500th (+ B). It has a mechanical self-timer and X and M flash sync.
Even today, this battery-free model remains highly attractive for the pleasure of "playing with the rangefinder" in film photography. The quality of the photographs is recognized as excellent.

In August 1950, Mr. Mitarai, President of Canon, made a trip to the USA to seek partnerships for distributing their cameras. At that time, Japanese products were poorly regarded in the USA, and Canon sought to gain some recognition. The initial visit to Bell & Howell ended in failure, as Bell & Howell claimed that Canon cameras were constructed of wood and therefore risked catching fire. Canon then turned to the C.R. Skinner Company of San Francisco to import their cameras. They were then labeled "Made in Occupied Japan / Services and Guaranteed in San Francisco California".

In 1955, Canon opened offices in New York but still needed a major partner to penetrate the American market. They reestablished contact with Bell & Howell, and an agreement was signed in 1961, which lasted until 1976.

The first Canon 7 and Canonflex RM cameras appeared under the Bell & Howell / Canon brand in April 1962, and subsequently, cameras like the FD 35 were exclusively labeled Bell & Howell (equivalent to the Canon TX).