The Average Joe may not have heard of them but ask any photographer about Alpa of Switzerland and they’ll probably wax lyrical. Well, the brand are celebrating a couple of significant dates in their history by releasing its first medium format model, the ALPA 12 SWA.

ALPA started making 35mm cameras in the early 40s, and was officially registered all the way in 1946. After some years of turbulence in the early 90s, the brand was purchased and resurrected in 1996, making Medium Format cameras. To celebrate both dates, ALPA are releasing Anniversary Edition Camera Set.

The ALPA 12 SWA pays tribute to the last 70 years of manufacturing with a camera that’s dedicated to analog photography. It comes with a 6 x 9 roll film back and a special edition of the Rodenstock/ALPA HR Alpagon 5.6/70 mm lens which suits perfectly also the most recent digital backs up to 100 MP today.

But if your photography skills are firmly stuck in the present, fear not. The ALPA 12 can be used in both analog and digital. Though, the digital back is third party made and isn’t part of the standard Anniversary Edition Set.

With each special edition ALPA 12 SWA camera, Joes will also receive a Rodenstock/ALPA HR Alpagon 5.6/70 mm with a lens hood, an ALPA/Linhof 6 x 9 roll film back, and an ALPA viewfinder, as well as a load of other accessories like a light meter and a Fujilfilm Acros 100 roll film.

The ALPA Anniversary Edition Camera Set is strictly limited to 20 units representing 20 years of the ALPA 12 Medium Format System. Head over to the ALPA Website for more details, where the camera will set you back around a whopping £17,000.

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