Fuji’s ‘Construction Camera’. For more check this out!
Thanks for stopping by!
Chris
Author Chris and Carol
Nicca 3-F… Nicca Camera Co., Ltd. & Yashica
For those new to this blog, here’s another look at a bit of the history of Yashica and an important step in the development of the Pentamatic – Yashica’s first 35mm SLR camera.
What connection could this attractive 35 mm rangefinder camera have with Yashica? And why on earth is it in a blog about the Yashica Pentamatic???
Nicca 3-F from early 1957 (maybe late 1956). Obviously, it is one of many Leica copy cameras that were built during the 1950s and beyond.
First a little bit about Nicca. Nicca was one of the literally hundreds of camera manufacturers in Japan during the late 1940s and through the 1950s. Production appears to have been, on average, anywhere from just a few hundred units per year to nearly 5,000 per year by 1958. Nicca made what many consider to be one of the better Leica copy cameras. The fit and finish of this particular 3-F are extraordinary. After six decades of use, the camera still functions perfectly and the finish is beautiful. Of note, the leatherette is some of the finest we’ve seen from…
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Happy SUNday! Violent Cartoon Edition
“Willie Mouse” on a 1960s era movie editor.
Mickey’s delinquent cousin? I can’t remember how many times when I was a kid that I’ve watched this cartoon – there was something fun about running your own cartoon through the family projector.
Super cool 8mm film editor – we love the 1960s style of this thing! It was made in Japan by Ohnoya Shoten, Ltd.
Back to the movie. “Baby Faced Battler” by Castle Films, produced by United World Films. The character first appeared in 1938. Crazy violent!
DeJur Model 750 8mm movie projector – c1953
Mindless fun!
Have a great day y’all!
Chris
Yashica Pentamatic II – The Phantom
A new Pentamatic joins the family – this one was made in September of 1960.
Seldom seen in the wild, Yashica’s “Phantom” camera – the P2
The Pentamatic II was fitted with a limited production lens made by Zunow Optical – a 5.8cm f1.7 Auto Yashinon with 10 aperture blades. It’s a massive camera with a ton (1,028 grams) of brass and glass.
It’s a distinctive design – very modern but classic at the same time. A clean pentaprism without the cold shoe mounted on it – in fact, the cold shoe (accessory shoe) is mounted on the camera’s left shoulder just above the hidden rewind knob.
The serial number (NO. 96000944) indicates the “when” of this camera. The “9” is for September and the next digits, “60” is for 1960. The last 5 digits are the sequence number or production number. This one is the 944th made since production began in August 1960.
A rather unique lens for its time – I feel that the lens was made by Zunow Optical for Yashica and was only produced in an extremely limited number for the short run of the Pentamatic II (about 6 months). This is one of Yashica’s hardest cameras to acquire – there may only be less than 500 of these (if that much) left in the wild.
Thanks for stopping by!
Chris
Another one bites the dust – more destruction = less trees
Former residential property is now commercially zoned along a quiet stretch of Sadler Road here on Amelia Island. With proper tree protection zones established around the massive oaks on the front of the property, these trees may make it through the construction process – but as you can see in this image, destruction is in progress with NO tree protection barriers in place! Soil is also being dumped over the existing grade which tends to suffocate the tree’s root system.
These 5 beautiful oaks need immediate protection from the destruction-construction process. The City of Fernandina Beach has tough tree protection ordinances on the books but at this moment, it would appear that some of those codes may have been broken. Stay tuned!
Chris
Olympus 35 SP Brochure
Here’s a nice sales brochure from Olympus – published May 1969
Take note of the camera store’s stamp in the lower right corner. Our translation app isn’t doing a good job at translation at the moment so we’re not quite sure which camera shop this is from.
Carol and I love to collect vintage sales brochures for the cameras in our collection. This one came to us recently from a collector in Japan. The date of publication is 0569 which we assume is May 1969. The young man’s clothing certainly screams the 1960s!
The Olympus 35 SP is considered by many to be a nearly “perfect” 35mm rangefinder camera – with a host of automatic exposure controls plus full manual shooting. The 42mm lens is considered to be the perfect focal length for 35mm photography as it closely matches the field of view of the human eye.
Thanks for stopping by!
For more “good stuff” please stop by our online store at http://www.ccstudio2380.com
Chris
Evening Portal
The Nassau County (Florida) Courthouse – Amelia Island
Camera: Samsung Galaxy S8+
Chris
Kodak Vigilant Junior Six-20
Here’s an interesting camera from Kodak – the Vigilant Junior Six-20 which was produced between 1939 to 1949. I’m sure there are more than a few of these floating around in junk bins and what not.
We acquired the camera during one of our camera buying forays – the owner wanted it to go to a good home and told us that it was his families only camera for many years. It was dirty but the bellows are in good condition (I think we were the first ones to open it in maybe 30 or more years) as it was a struggle to get the bellows to deploy. We “bought” the camera along with a few of his Minolta lenses and a Minolta SR-T 101.
The camera is missing its winder knob but the film can still be advanced with a little effort (and luck). The Junior version of this popular camera was as basic as basic can be – simple shutter and even simpler aperture settings. We have no plans to shoot with this camera – 620 film is no longer available and although 120 roll film can be re-spooled to fit it’s not worth the effort. With 120 film you’d get only 8 exposures in the 6x9cm format.
So this little time machine gets added to our collection and for now, makes a nice display piece. I found a great new place to set up as a makeshift studio (see the picture above). Nice natural lighting and interesting backgrounds.
Thanks for stopping by! By the way, this camera is available for purchase at https://www.ccstudio2380.com if you’d like to add a nice clean vintage camera to your home or office decor.
Chris
Sad SUNday! Remembering the kitties we lost this year
Zoe – Our Sunroom Kitty – 2000 to 2018
Zoe was nearly 18 years old and she went missing just 2 days after we found Pirate dead.
Pirate – The King of the Neighborhood – 2003 to 2018
Sukoshi – The Soft One – 2003 to 2017
As much as Carol and I have enjoyed our different kitties over the 45 years of our marriage, with the loss of these three we have moved on from pet ownership. It’s painful to think about it but as we age it’s best for the cats and us.
Our first kitty – Avon – 1975
Our cats: Avon 1975, Tank 1975, Sony 1981, Candy 1983, Zoe 2000, Pirate 2003, Sukoshi 2003 ^.^
Thanks for stopping by. Have a beautiful SUNday!
Chris and Carol ^.^
Fujicolor Simple Ace Disposable Camera
Great review, awesome pics, and a timely message about plastic consumption! Well done my friend!
Be sure to check out her blog – always great stuff!
A couple of years ago there was a bit of a “thing” about this single use camera after a 30th-anniversary edition was released. I bought one and shoved it in my fridge and basically forgot about it.
As you can see it came with a cover, which I didn’t use. Recently I have seen a rubbery cover on sale too. Anyway, as for his style of camera – it seems ridiculous to me, given all the issues with plastic consumption. Plus there are literally thousands upon thousands of great film cameras around that cost the same as one of these. I tried another one I found in a junk bin, but this is the first time I have ever bought one and I felt guilty every time I used it. Lomography have released a semi-single use camera which is slightly better, but even they say reloading it is tricky.
While researching…
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