Olympus's automatic half-frame Pen EE-2 — 28mm f/3.5, selenium auto-exposure, hot shoe, 1968.
The Olympus Pen EE-2 was a half-frame viewfinder camera by Olympus, released in 1968 as a revised version of the automatic Pen EE within the Pen family that Yoshihisa Maitani began in 1959. It kept the fixed-focus, auto-exposure point-and-shoot concept of the EE while updating the film-loading and hot-shoe details, and it sold in large numbers over a long production run.
As a half-frame camera it exposes two 18x24mm frames in each 24x36mm section of standard 35mm film, roughly doubling the shots per roll to about 72 on a 36-exposure cassette. It uses a fixed 28mm f/3.5 D.Zuiko lens with fixed focus, and a selenium meter around the lens that sets exposure automatically without a battery. The EE-2 added a wider film-speed range and an accessory shoe, and its leaf shutter is metered-selected; a red warning flag shows in the finder in low light. The lens is fixed.
The EE-2 is a straightforward automatic camera for travel and casual street use: frame and press the release while the meter handles exposure. Its compact size, quiet shutter and high frame count suit holiday snapshots and everyday carry, and the fixed focus removes any focusing step, making it approachable for a beginner.
When buying, test the selenium meter, since it drives the automatic exposure and these cells commonly weaken or die with age; a dead cell disables the auto system and cannot take a battery substitute. Confirm the meter responds and the shutter fires, check the lens for haze and fungus, inspect the light seals and finder for deterioration, and verify the film-wind, counter and low-light flag all function correctly.
