Yashica 635 – Yashica’s dual format camera

September 17, 2021September 17, 2021Chris and Carol Leave a comment

In my opinion, Yashica was the hands down leader in producing twin-lens reflex cameras starting in the early 1950s right up until the mid 1980s when the last TLR rolled off the assembly lines. In between there were some very important milestones achieved by Yashica. One of which is the Yashica 635. My good friend Paul Sokk has an excellent site dedicated to everything you’d ever want to know about Yashica so I’d invite you to visit his 635 pages at http://www.yashicatlr.com/66ModelsPage6.html#yashica635

Yashica 635 Instruction Booklet back cover.

One way to figure out when Yashica may have printed an instruction booklet is by the date code in this case printed on the lower left on the back cover. Not all instruction booklets released by Yashica had an obvious date code but in my experience quite a few did especially from the mid-1960s onward. In this example the 691 D 5Y 16 contains the date. I have high confidence that the 691 indicates the year and month 1969 January.

In this example, the serial number begins with 9 and the date code is ***691*** from the cover pictured above.

Here are a couple of additional examples (below).

In the example above, 673 is simply decodes to 1967 March which the hand written serial number 7041480 bears out. The first digit 7 is the year that camera was made. Typically cameras sat around in camera shops or distributer’s warehouses for a while before they were sold. This camera wasn’t sold until January 1969. TLRs were not as popular by the late 1960s as the rise in popularity of the 35mm SLR cut into sales in a big way. I’m sure this camera was heavily discounted by the time it sold.

So pull out your Yashica Instruction Booklets and have a go at “dating” your camera. You’ll be surprised at what you’ll learn. Feel free to contact me here for a go at your camera and instruction booklet. BTW, Canon was fantastic at printing easy to decode dates on their booklets and in their cameras, lenses, and accessories.

Comments are always welcomed as I’ve learned quite a bit from reader feedback. As always, thanks for stopping by and while you’re at it, feel free to visit my camera shop at http://www.ccstudio2380.com (CC Design Studios hosted by Etsy). – Chris Whelan

Please respect that all content, including photos and text, are the property of this blog and its owner, Yashica Pentamatic Fanatic, Yashica Sailor Boy, Yashica Chris, Chasing Classic Cameras with Chris.

Yellow filter from Ihagee

September 9, 2021September 9, 2021Chris and Carol 2 Comments

I “found” this wonderful little filter the other day and as of yet haven’t figured out which lens it was designed to fit. I believe it is pre-war or maybe not but it’s diameter is only 33mm (give or take a millimeter). I was hoping it would fit my Meyer Gorlitz Helioplan f4.5 40mm lens but no such luck.

ATM my best guess is that it was made to fit the Ihagee Anastigmatic Exaktar f3.5 55mm lens but I don’t have that lens and I don’t know the filter size. If someone out there knows I would greatly appreciate knowing a bit more about my filter and the Exaktar lens.

It’s very well made and it looks as though the filter glass is interchangeable. It looks like the case is made of Bakelite and the inner cork lining is clean and intact. I get the feeling this filter was hardly ever used.

Ihagee is best known for making one of the first 35mm SLR cameras in the world back in the 1930s and post-war made a well respected line of 35mm cameras under the Exakta brand.

The Ihagee Exakta Varex (1950) pictured with its pop-up viewfinder in the open position. There was an eye-level pentaprism that was available too making this camera a true interchangeable lens SLR.

Thanks for stopping by!

Well worn traveler – Weston Master II

September 6, 2021September 6, 2021Chris and Carol Leave a comment

Weston Master II Universal Exposure Meter – 1945 to 1953, Model 735

Going strong although a little beat up and the finish is a bit rough.

Selenium cells still putting out power after all these years. The flap can be closed to cut down on the amount of light reaching the cells.

This wonderful meter was hiding out in a dark corner of an old leather camera bag that I was gifted recently by a neighbor. The cameras, lenses, and this meter all belonged to her father. I gave it a good cleaning (Q-tips dipped in a mixture of Windex and alcohol) and it looks like new (a stretch). It’s got plenty of character.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great evening!

Ihagee-Exakta Vacublitz (Flashgun) 1950

September 4, 2021September 4, 2021Chris and Carol Leave a comment

Rare set and camera. Exakta Varex early model mid-1950.

Made in Soviet occupied East Germany (Dresden) in early 1950. It’s pretty rare to find one of these in such a good condition. I have it in my camera shop at http://www.ccstudio2380.com

Thanks for stopping by!

New to me Ihagee Exakta Varex – 1950

August 28, 2021August 28, 2021Chris and Carol Leave a comment

I’ve had the good fortune to acquire this lovely camera and lens from a neighbor who gifted it to me. The camera was purchased new in West Germany in the early 1950s (the exact date is unknown) by her father, US Army Colonel Marshal C. Winton (Ret.).

The Varex was the model sold outside the United States between 1950 and 1951. In the US the model is known as the Exakta V. The Varex and for that matter the V are not common cameras today and are quite difficult to find on the many online auction and selling sites. The follow on models made by Exakta are quite common and are easy to find online and I’m sure locally in thrift shops and at swap meets.

If you’re interested in exploring the Exakta line of cameras you’ll find an array of uniquely styled cameras. Exakta did not manufacture their own lenses so you’ll find a variety of German made lenses available in the Exakta bayonet mount (early Topcon cameras were made with this mount). Zeiss, Schacht, Schneider, and Kilfit to name just a few. If you’re interested to dive deeper may I suggest you pop on over to https://www.wrotniak.net/photo/exakta/lenses.html

The lens on my Varex is the rather rare Meyer Gorlitz (sometimes Goerlitz) Primoplan f/1.9 58mm. This lens was first released in 1952. Shown here with the waist level finder in the open position ready for picture taking. The finder is removable and can be replaced with an eye-level pentaprism finder.

If I may ask for help, I’m having a great deal of difficulty finding an owner’s manual or instruction book for the Varex model either in German or English. Even the Exakta V instructions will do in a pinch. Consistent with the short production run of this model almost anything associated with it is hard to chase down. Please contact me if you have or know of someone who has the instruction book. Thank you!

To the left is the high-speed dial with shutter speeds up to 1/1000th second and on the right is the slow-speed dial with timed exposures up to 12 seconds.

Pictured here with its waist level finder closed.

Canon Model 7 instruction booklet from 1962

August 16, 2021August 16, 2021Chris and Carol Leave a comment

There’s not many opportunities to find an original Canon Model 7 instruction booklet in Japanese here in the US, but one did pop up on an auction site recently so I added it to my collection.

The date code printed on the bottom center of the back cover (1162) is the date that this booklet was printed. In this case November 1962 which is about a year and a half after the camera was first released.

The back cover (top) translates as – Canon Camera Co., Ltd., Headquarters Factory Shimomaruko-cho, Ota-ku, Tokyo and their sales office at 7-1 Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo (Yamato Building, 3rd Floor).

Here’s a scan from inside the booklet showing how to properly hold the camera. I might mention that any translations come directly from my Google translation app on my phone.

The English Edition of the same booklet but printed in 1966.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day and please, be safe!

Canon Model 7 Instruction Booklet – 1968

August 13, 2021August 13, 2021Chris and Carol Leave a comment

I was rather surprised to find such a late date booklet for the original Canon 7 35mm rangefinder camera (August 1968) since the camera went out of production in 1964. The Canon Model 7s was in full production during this period (it followed the Model 7 with only slight improvements).

A scan of the front cover and inside back cover from the booklet. Canon didn’t feature their 50mm f/0.95 lens in this edition.

A scan of the back cover – take note of the 08/68 date code (bottom center). Again the f/1.4 lens is featured.

I haven’t had the opportunity to use my Model 7 yet as I’ve been super busy with a refresh of my kitchen (paint, new floors, and new cabinets) but I hope to soon. Here in Florida COVID-19 the Delta variant is running rampant so the thought of a walkabout with the camera is on hold for now. I’m vaccinated but apparently not many of my fellow Floridians and tourists are (https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#county-view). What a shame as the local hospitals are nearly full with sick unvaccinated people.

Thanks for stopping by and be safe.

It’s just a box

August 7, 2021August 7, 2021Chris and Carol Leave a comment

Chasing boxes — sounds pretty lame and it is in the big picture of collecting classic and vintage cameras but a camera box from the early 1960s can be either a rat or a gem after all these years. They’re just colorful cardboard with some stickers here and there after all and cardboard doesn’t do well if stored improperly. Moisture, bugs, sunlight, heat, pollution and crushing are just a few of the nasty things that can degrade 40, 50, and 60 year-old cardboard.

So, knowing all of the things that are stacked against finding a collectible camera box I’m happy to say that this one is a pleasant surprise. It’s far from perfect but it’s still very nice (no not so funny smells either).

My best guess is that this box was made in late 1962 based on the serial number of the camera that’s written on the bottom of the box.

Originally the area that’s blacked out said 50mm f1.4 lens but a previous owner carelessly modified the box when the body was separated from the lens when sold.

Here’s the camera that came with the box (a nice bonus). The box is nice because the camera is in near mint condition and is fully functional. The Canon Model 7 accepts LTM screw-in lenses from Canon, Nikon, Fuji, Leica, and a bunch of others. The bayonet part around the opening was designed to accept Canon’s ‘dream lens’ the 50mm f/0.95 which you can discover more about it at https://global.canon/en/c-museum/product/s43.html

So there you have it… another aspect to collecting classic film cameras, collecting the boxes that went with them. Most people dispose of the camera box right after they took their new camera out of the box (I’m guilty) and some left the original box at the camera shop when they took their camera home (not guilty).

A scan from a *Canon Product Catalog* from March 1967 (the Canon 7S had already been released). Note the ‘dream lens’ is affixed in this catalog’s image.

Chasing the Canon Model 7

August 5, 2021August 5, 2021Chris and Carol Leave a comment

Being a fan of most of Canon’s cameras and lenses it was only a matter of time before I started chasing after the Model 7. Although this model was released while the world was catching the SLR craze, it stood out as one of the best rangefinders Canon had produced up to that point. It also served notice to Nikon and Leica that Canon was a serious competitor capable of building outstanding cameras and lenses. Here’s my Canon 7.

Super bright and accurate view-rangefinder (Leica M challenger).

Dual range selenium cell light meter that’s still very much active and hopefully still accurate.

I haven’t decided on a lens for it yet but I’m looking for a nice 50mm f1.4 lens that would have a serial number in the range of this body. From what I can tell, this camera left the factory with a lens in the range of 114000 to 116000. The chase is on!

I’ll post additional updates on this camera as I get the original box and case “in the studio” for some glamour shots. I’m also chasing after the appropriate instruction booklet for it in either English or Japanese (or both), a brochure, and of course, the proper lens. For now, my trusty Nikkor fits nicely.

Contax RTS – an old dog gets new life

July 19, 2021July 19, 2021Chris and Carol Leave a comment

My Contax RTS (Real Time System) 35mm SLR camera with its new “skins”. These cameras which were first released back in 1975 are notorious for shedding their original factory applied coverings. If you search online selling sites you’ll find plenty of these cameras for sale but very few have their leatherette covers still attached as they tend to peel away from the metal bodies and shrink (dry out) over time. The good news is that the old coverings are a breeze to remove and there’s a wide selection of aftermarket replacement options to choose from. Black is no longer the only color as bold colors like red, blue, and even green have become popular and textures like lizard skin to well, whatever you think you may like. I wanted to stay with the more traditional look and feel so I went with recycled leather from Hugo Studio’s Custom Camera Covers (hugostudio.com).

The previous owner of my RTS had attempted to reattach the original leatherette with some type of contact adhesive but even that failed over time. Yashica’s choice of coverings just didn’t stand the test of time no matter how they were reattached.

While waiting for the new coverings to arrive I added a new to me Yashica ML 50mm f1.7 lens which I was able to chase down in near mint condition. I went with the Yashica made (likely Tomioka-Zeiss) f1.7 based solely on cost. The original Carl Zeiss designed glass for the RTS is way out of my comfort zone pricewise so I went with what I know. Besides, both lenses were made in Japan probably on the same factory line by Yashica anyway.