Manufactured or assembled in Germany (Former GDR) from 1973 to (After) 1975.
Index of rarity in France: Rare (among non-specialized garage sales)
Inventory number: 5417

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Chronology of cameras Beier 

This is a summary translation of "Kameras um Dresden herum" by Günther Kadlubek and Wolfgang Beier:

Woldemar Beier was born in 1886, about 40 kilometers from Dresden. He was the son of a steelworker and was expected to follow in his father's footsteps, but he developed an interest in camera manufacturing. He began his career as an apprentice mechanic at the small Merkel company in Tharandt. In 1914, he left Merkel and was hired by Thowe in Postchapel, where he contributed to camera development and eventually became a co-owner.

On April 1, 1923, Woldemar Beier founded his own company, the Freitaler Kameraindustrie Beier & Co. It was a small artisanal enterprise with a few employees. His first camera was named Edith, a medium-format wooden camera available in 6.5 x 9 and 9 x 12 formats. Edith was successful, and subsequent models were also given female names, such as Erika, an evolution of Edith, and Lotte. Erika was named after W. Beier's daughter.
From 1923 to 1937, the company moved several times, the number of employees steadily grew, and production volume increased. The three camera models remained the only ones in the catalog. Despite their lack of originality, they sold well due to their quality craftsmanship. Beier also manufactured cameras for Porst, including Die Gute Kamera and Kamera Spezial.
During the same period, various German camera manufacturers merged to form Zeiss Ikon AG in Dresden. In 1929, changes were made to Woldemar Beier's camera lineup. The Edith, Erika, and Lotte cameras were updated with aluminum bodies and were presented at the Leipzig Fair. A first folding 6 x 9 aluminum camera called the Gloria accompanied them. Beier soon started producing box cameras, some of which were distributed by Kaufhof, and others were subcontracted for Wirgin.
In 1931, W. Beier introduced his first 35mm camera, initially named Beika, later renamed Beira.

The first Beirette model had a similar body to the Beira but featured an integrated optical viewfinder. Production of the Beirette II with a rangefinder briefly appeared in catalogs before camera production ceased due to wartime circumstances.
During the war, Beier had to shift to wartime production, manufacturing components for bombers and submarines. Allied bombings heavily affected the region in August 1944 and escalated. On May 8, 1945, the Red Army entered Freital. Woldemar Beier's factory was spared, and the machines were disassembled and sent to Uljanowsk, Lenin's hometown. Woldemar Beier and his colleagues then produced cigarette rolling machines, apple peelers, shoe horns, sieves, and more.

In 1948, they resumed camera production, including the Beirax 6x6, which had been part of their pre-war program. Werner, Woldemar's son, returned to Freital in October after three years of captivity in the USSR and began working as an engineer in the company.
In 1950, modernizing the product range became necessary. In 1945, just before the war ended, Woldemar's daughter died in an accident, leaving him unable to pay the company's taxes. In 1953, Woldemar Beier lost control of his company due to this tax debt, which he couldn't settle after the disassembly of the factory for the USSR. The company was placed in trusteeship for several months before being returned. During this period, the factory was looted. Disheartened, Woldemar Beier passed the reins to his son Werner.

In 1954, the Beier factory participated for the first time in Photokina in Cologne. Beier realized they were technologically behind. The trend was toward compact 35mm cameras. Upon returning to Freital, the decision was made to manufacture a modern 35mm camera.
In 1955, the new camera was not released, likely due to financial constraints, and they had to settle for upgrading existing models. On March 30, 1956, Woldemar Beier celebrated his 70th birthday in Freital, surrounded by his employees from the factory bearing his name. He passed away on February 18, 1957.

In 1958, the Beirette 24 x 36 mm camera went into production. The new Beirette had little in common with the pre-war Beirette except for the name. From 1958 to 1990, 27 different Beirette models were launched. The Woldemar Beier factory had finally regained its production pace.
By the end of 1958, five camera models were in production.

On January 8, 1959, many companies were forced to merge into VEB Pentacon (the final name adopted in 1964). Beier was not integrated. Private companies in East Germany increasingly struggled to obtain materials and acquire machinery. Werner Beier concluded that he either had to close the business or accept state participation. He agreed to 35% state participation, and the company became a limited partnership (KG).
As a state-participated company, Beier received materials and could purchase new machinery. Under Werner Beier's leadership, new products were introduced rapidly. Almost every year, a new model was launched. Werner Beier and his colleagues presented the Beier-matic.
The popularity of Beier cameras also grew abroad.
In 1962, improvements were made to the Beirette.
In 1964, a new Beirette model was introduced.
The Woldemar Beier company celebrated its 40th anniversary in April, and a gold-plated Beier-matic was presented to Werner Beier on this occasion. Beirette production increased further, with exports reaching 44 countries, bringing foreign currency to East Germany.
In 1965, Beier-matic production was discontinued in favor of the Beirette, which continued to evolve. One model was designed for standard 35mm film cartridges, while another was for SL film cartridges. It was a copy of the Karat system, but with plastic cartridges instead of metal ones, avoiding rights payments to Agfa.
Throughout the 1960s, the Beier camera factory's design office developed numerous Beirette versions. The company prospered, sales increased, and exports reached their highest level since 1949. Methods were sought to increase production efficiency.
Starting on January 2, 1968, Beirette's assembly line production began, marking the first camera assembly line in East Germany. In 1970, a new generation of SL cameras, the Beirette SL 200 and Beirette SL 300, was introduced. Plastic was extensively used, bringing Beier's manufacturing up to Western standards.

On April 24, 1972, the Woldemar Beier KG company was nationalized, along with 11,700 other businesses. This was a catastrophe for the Beier family. Woldemar Beier KG became VEB Kamerafabrik Freital (VEB roughly translates to "People's Factory"). Werner Beier retired in 1976. Beier cameras produced from this point were marked with the VEB Kamerafabrik Freital logo on the back or beneath the cameras.
Development work on the Beirette vsn was underway. This new version was lighter, replacing Duroplast with thermoplastic. The back became hinged, and the cover was made of aluminum rather than chrome-plated brass sheet metal. The name vsn simply stood for vs neu (vs new). The Beirette vsn was first presented at the Leipzig Fair in 1974. Its export success was demonstrated by production on order for Boots Ltd., sold as Boots B.L. In December 1975, the Beirette vs production line was converted to produce the Beirette vsn.
In 1976, the Beirette K100 model was launched. New models were introduced in 1977: the Beroquick KB 135, which was a Beirette vsn intended for export on behalf of Beroflex AG; the Beirette vsn was also featured in Quelle's catalog as the Revue 35 N; and the Beirette SL 400, a semi-automatic cassette SL camera. The third novelty of that year was the Beirette SL 300, essentially an economic version of the SL 400.

In 1980, VEB Kamerafabrik Freital became part of the VEB Pentacon conglomerate in Dresden.
At the Spring Fair in Leipzig in 1981, VEB Kamerafabrik Freital once again created a sensation by presenting the Beirette electronic. The camera was in high demand worldwide, with most of the production intended for export. From 1982 to 1989, a special series of 28,973 cameras were even produced on order for Beroflex AG under the name Beroquick electronic.
Starting in January 1985, the restructuring of the conglomerate and the transition to VEB Carl Zeiss Jena began.
The Carl Zeiss Jena company logo appeared either on the back or underneath the cameras.

1988 marked the final year of VEB Kamerafabrik Freital.

Post-War Beirette

The Beirette was indeed the great success of Beier. It came in multiple versions over more than thirty years.

First generation

The early models of the Beirette somewhat resembled West German models. They were simple, but the manufacturing quality was decent. They all had a film advance lever and parallax compensation at the viewfinder window.
The models evolved gradually to remain competitive with their counterparts in West Germany.

1 Thick 2 Very flat 3 Dorsal 1 Round 2 Asymmetric 3 Flat 1 Big 2 Little Film advance lever Top Viewfinder

Shutter release position   Front plate at the base of the lens   1 Above the shutter 2 On the side of the shutter   1 Rectangular 2 Asymmetric 3 Symmetric

 

		Years	Top	Lever	Viewfinder	Shutter release	Plaque	Shutter	Lens
Beirette		1958-59	1	1	1	1	1	Junior	Meritar 2.8/45
Beirette		1958-59	1	1	1	1	1	Junior II	Meritar 2.9/45
Beirette		1958-59							Trioplan 3.5/45
Modification of the front plate
Beirette		1959-1964	1	1	1	2	2	Junior II
Beirette v		1966-1967	1				2			Hot shoe. No model indication.
Modification of the top
Beirette		1964-	2	2	1	2	3
Beirette		1964-	2	2	1	2		Priomat	Meritar 2.9/45
Revue 35 N		1965-70	2	2	1	2	3		Meritar 2.9/45	Multiple variations under the same name.	Foto-Quelle
Different top (Film advance is done by a slider on the back)
Beirette K		1965-70	3	3	1	2	3	Priomat	Meritar 2.9/45	Using SL cartridge
Beirette K		1965-70	3	3	1	2	3	Priomat	Domiplan 2.8/45	Using SL cartridge
Beirette KF		1966-67		3	1					Using SL cartridge with bulb flash	Export.
Modification of the front plate
Beirette vs		1967	2	2	1	2	3			Hot shoe

Second generation

In the early 1970s, Beirette cameras were falling behind in comparison to Western productions and even more so compared to the first Japanese cameras arriving in Europe. Beier made a radical change to the Beirette. The top cover was made of aluminum.

		Years	Shutter	Lens
Beirette		1973-	Priomat	Meritar 2.8/45
Beirette		1973-		Meritar 2.8/45	Fake cell around lens
Beirette vsn		1974-	Priomat	Meritar 2.8/45	Also available in black, blue ou red
Boots Beirette B.L.		1974-79	Priomat	Meritar 2.8/45	Similar to Beirette vsn. Sales only in UK by Boots shops
Boots Beirette IV		1976-78		Meritar 2,8/45	Sales only in UK by Boots shops
Beirette K100		1976-86		Chromar 11/52	Also available in black (1986)
Beroquick KB 135		1977-	Priomat	Meritar 2.8/45	Similar to Beirette vsn. Export only
Beirette vsn 2		1980-86	Priomat	Meritar 2.8/45	Painted in black

Third generation using Orwo-SL cartridge

These cameras are made of plastic. They have a rectangular shape, and film advance is achieved through a slider inserted on the back.

Beirette SL 200		1970-		Meritar 2.8/45	Fake cell around lens
Beirette SL 300		1970-	Priomat	Meritar 2.8/45
Beirette SL 100		1973-		Chromar 8/50
Beirette electric SL 400		1976-	Priomat	Meritar 2.8/45	CdS light sensor controlling the aperture. Powered by two PX 625 batteries.
Beirette SL 100 N		1987-		Chromar	Made of colored plastic (pink, green, orange)

Fourth generation

Beirette Electronic		1981-88		Meritar 2.8/42
Beroquick Eletronic		1982-89			Export Model similar to Beirette Electronic
Beirette 35		c.1986		Meritar 2.9/45

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