Praktica's entry B-bayonet SLR — the B100, aperture-priority auto, electronic shutter, 1979.
The Praktica B100 is a 35mm film SLR made by VEB Pentacon in Dresden, East Germany, launched in 1979 as one of the first cameras in the new Praktica B bayonet system that replaced the long-serving M42 screw mount. It sat as an entry-level model in the B range, bringing a modern electronic body and bayonet lenses to the traditionally screw-mount Praktica line.
It is a Praktica B bayonet SLR with an electronically controlled vertical-travel metal focal-plane shutter. The B100 offers aperture-priority automatic exposure with through-the-lens metering, the electronics setting the shutter speed for the chosen aperture, and manual override is available. The pentaprism finder displays the metering information. Because the shutter is electronically timed, the camera depends on its battery to fire correctly.
The B100 suits students and general users wanting a straightforward auto-exposure SLR with modern bayonet handling, faster to use than the older stop-down M42 bodies. It handles more conveniently thanks to open-aperture metering and aperture-priority auto, though the plastic-and-metal construction feels lighter than the earlier all-metal cameras; the new bayonet lens range is smaller and less universal than M42.
On the used market, the key concern is the electronics: with a dead or failing battery an electronically timed body like this may not fire or expose correctly, so test it with a fresh cell across the auto and manual ranges. Inspect the foam light seals and mirror-damper foam for perishing, confirm the meter and aperture-priority auto respond sensibly, and check the prism for desilvering. Verify the bayonet contacts are clean, and test film advance, rewind and screen condition.