Month May 2018

Funny Flickr

Chris and Carol 2 Comments

You just never know which images will “take off” on Flickr. Sometimes you think that you’ve nailed a shot only to see it fall flat. I was pleasantly surprised this morning to find out that one of my pictures (below) was invited to be in Flickr’s “in explore” group. Cool beans!

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It’s far from my best ever studio shots of my camera collection but I bet that the popularity of this image has something to do with the popularity of the camera.

“This camera is actually quite famous – back in its day it was considered a groundbreaker in the 35mm SLR autofocus “world”. This one has led a very gentle life – I’ve fully tested it with film and the thing that impressed me the most was how quickly the autofocus locked on to my subjects. The lens is a Minolta AF Zoom 35-70mm f4 and is sharp as a tack!
The camera, lens, and 4 (AAA) batteries weigh in at 847 grams (1 lb 14 oz)!”

My caption that accompanied the picture on Flickr.

Have a great day – thanks for stopping by!

Chris

Happy SUNday!

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A couple of the advertising boys from Yashica

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Could this be the camera that our Sailor Boy is holding? Yashica’s Auto Focus Motor 35 from 1981.

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Since Yashica has never officially named their advertising doll, I’ve always referred to him as ‘Sailor Boy’ for obvious (to me) reasons. Sailor hat and blue sailor pants. The other boy – well that’s still up for discussion. I originally thought of him as being a party boy and then a Christmas elf and now back to party guy and now… Yashica’s take on the nursery rhyme, “Wee Willie Winkie”. Floppy hat with the little ball or tassels on the end, and pointy slippers. It appears that Yashica used him to “announce” the arrival of their new camera. A stretch but thanks to my friend Paul, a good stretch.

The camera that the boy is holding resembles the Yashica Auto Focus Motor which was released in the early 1980s. The brochure shows the camera on a table with party hats, presents and a cake with candles – a birthday cake?

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Party hat? Christmas hat? Sleeping cap? It is missing a green decal on the front of the hat that says Yashica in katakana. The green decal and the white hat with red stars made me think that these were Christmas colors.

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The Sailor Boy (far right) with his proper green decal on his cap. Pointy (elf?) shoes and what appears to be a Christmas ball hanging from the cap… or maybe not.

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A true Christmas Sailor Boy – he’s a candle and so is his tree.

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Could this be Yashica’s inspiration??? Hmmmm

Thanks for stopping by Y’all! Have a great day!

Chris and Carol

Minolta SR-T 101 from 1969

Chris and Carol 3 Comments

We’ve got a wonderful vintage classic from Minolta – the venerable SR-T 101. Actually, quite a groundbreaking camera back in its day with many never before seen features and functions. This one was purchased by a young man serving in the U.S. Army in South Vietnam in 1969.

It was a combat camera having flown with him on several missions aboard a helicopter over the Mekong Delta region. He told me that he purchased it almost as soon as he arrived in country at a Post Exchange in Saigon. Despite its exciting beginnings, it’s made it to today with no dents and only a few bright spots in the satin chrome finish. It’s a fully mechanical camera – the shutter operates independently of a battery from Bulb to 1/1000 of a second. A battery is only needed to operate the TTL meter.

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This good-looking Minolta has received a complete inspection and has been meticulously cleaned inside and out by me. I tested it with a fresh 1.5v alkaline battery and the light meter works just fine. It will be off by about 1/2 to 1 full stop but when shooting with negative film the wide exposure latitude of film usually makes any exposure differences unnoticeable.

That’s a “fresh” roll of expired Fujicolor film (from 2010) and the original soft body cap from Minolta. For more details and to see additional pictures of it, visit our online store at https://www.ccstudio.com

Or you can purchase it directly from here – I’ll ship nearly worldwide. Please drop me a line for a shipping quote to your country. In the USA, I will ship it USPS Priority Mail for only $6.00  Just click on the “Pay with PayPal” button below.

Many thanks for stopping by! Chris

Minolta SR-T 101 35mm Film Camera

Vintage (100% fully working) 35mm SLR from Minolta - the SR-T 101

$49.00

Yashica’s ‘Sailor Boy’ with his Electro 35 camera

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We’re super lucky to have run across a rather hard to find Sailor Boy – this one came to our attention from a visitor to our blog – then through eBay by way of South Africa to Florida! Welcome, little guy!

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This unique version of Sailor Boy – complete with his Yashica Electro 35 camera. He was introduced in 1966 to promote the new camera release. He’s based on the Scottish nursery rhyme ‘Wee Willie Winkie’.

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Cousins, not brothers. The only thing missing on our little guy is his green decal which should be on the front of his hat.

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Sailor Boy convention. The new guy cleaned up nicely. A little bit of warm soapy water and a soft brush and he’s good as new!

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Made in Japan is about all we know at this point. We’re not even sure about when he was made.

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Cool shoes – but are they really Wee Willie Winkie’s shoes? Yep as best as I can tell. Yashica didn’t leave a paper trail for history to discover his true identity.

More about the history and variations of Yashica’s advertising figurine soon. As always, feel free to share your Sailor Boys with us – we’re looking to add to our collection with new versions of this cute guy.

Thanks

Chris and Carol

Yashica’s ‘Sailor Boy’ – 1962

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Here’s another look at this cute little guy and his cousins. We’ve added a new boy via South Africa -more details shortly!

Chasing Classic Cameras with Chris

Yashica’s advertising figurine the ‘Sailor Boy’ first appeared in 1962 – closely associated with the launch of Yashica’s J-3 35mm single-lens reflex camera. It was made for Yashica by Modern Plastics of Japan and was produced in a variety of sizes – from a 20cm shop and dealer display model down to this little 10cm guy.

This one ⇓ came to our collection from Germany and man was he a dirty guy!

DSCF5218 Covered with a coat of nicotine and grime, he looked like he was in a bar room fight! But he has a good casting and the paint looks good. Notice how grungy his hat is.

DSCF5219 Since he was covered with a thin film of nicotine he was sticky! 

DSCF5220 Looks like he has a black eye! 

After some restoration work in the studio, he’s looking ⇓ much better and brighter.

DSCF5221 Nice and shiney! Still a hint of a black smudge…

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Ida and Thomas Whelan

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I recently found the time to scan some wonderful photographs of my family. This one of my father’s parents is one of my favorites. This is a direct scan of the print that was made back in the early 1930s. I haven’t touched up the image in any way except to add a touch more brightness. The tones are original. The image was taken in Brooklyn, New York c1932.

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Chris’ grandparents – Ida and Thomas c1932

Thanks for stopping by!

Chris

 

Mickey & Minnie by Fujifilm

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Another neat find from our collection – this rather rare Mickey and Minnie Mouse APS camera by Fujifilm. From about 1999 or so, purchased at Tokyo Disneyland.

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This limited edition Mick & Min camera was only available for a limited time at Tokyo Disneyland. The camera inside the collectible tin has never been opened and is still loaded with Fujicolor APS color negative film. I believe my translation of the “40” means that there are about 40 flashes available with the cameras built-in flash. Chances are (although they may still be working) the batteries have long since expired.

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For more details on this wonderful Disney collectible, stop by our online store at https://www.ccstudio2380.com

While in our store, feel free to browse around and check out our many rather unique and classic cameras. We’re offering a 10% discount (Code YSB) on your total purchase (less shipping) if you purchased an item you saw on our blog!

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Thanks for stopping by!

Chris & Carol