In the Shop – New Arrivals for May

May 3, 2020May 3, 2020Chris and Carol Leave a comment

Hi all! I hope you are doing well and staying safe. Here are some items that I’ve listed in my camera shop recently which can be visited by popping over to http://www.ccstudio2380.com

snip may 3

snip may 3 a

Lots more in the shop and a big thank you all for stopping by! – Chris

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.

Friday Fotos! – Classic Rangefinders

May 1, 2020May 1, 2020Chris and Carol Leave a comment

Image courtesy of Paul Sokk www.yashicatlr.com

Recently my good friend Paul Sokk added this wonderful Leica IIIc to his collection of 35mm rangefinder cameras from the late 1940s and 1950s. The Leica is an original design made in Germany and the Nicca and Leotax are considered copies or clones made in Japan.

The Leica IIIc (front) is from 1946-47, the Nicca 3-F (middle) is from 1956, and the Leotax K is from 1955-58. These cameras use what is known as L39 (LTM) screw mount lenses of which literally thousands were made and thousands are still available today in a wide range of focal lengths.

If you’re looking to get into film photography with a totally manual camera then these should be on your list to take a closer look at.

On the left, the Zeiss Ikon Contax IIIa and on the right the Nicca built Tower Type-3.

Pictured above are a couple of contenders from 1951. The Contax is an original design from the 1930s and was manufactured in Germany. The Tower branded camera was made by Nicca in Japan and features a Nippon Kogaku Nikkor f/ 2 5cm lens. The Contax sports a Carl Zeiss Sonnar f/ 1.5 50mm lens. The Contax also has an attached selenium cell exposure meter that can be useful for setting the correct aperture and shutter speed. A word of caution about these 70-year-old meters, if they are working (responding to light) then assume that it’s not accurate until you can check it against a modern meter. Most of these types of meters have long since failed.

Zeiss Ikon Contax IIIa with selenium meter (top center) flap opened.

Paul’s beautiful Leica IIIc

Paul’s gorgeous Leotax F with Topcor f/ 3.5 5cm lens.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope my post stirs some interest in these wonderful cameras. I do have a Tower (Nicca) set available in my camera shop at http://www.ccstudio2380.com if you care to take a look at it, pop on over.

Take care and stay safe! – Chris

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.

Happy SUNday! – bluejeans and cameras

April 26, 2020April 26, 2020Chris and Carol Leave a comment

Happy Sunday everyone – I hope y’all are safe, happy, and with your families.

Yashica PS on jeans

This was taken in early 2015 shortly after a walkabout with my Yashica Pentamatic S and Yashica 135mm lens. There’s nothing quite like an outing with a favorite camera (c. 1961) and an old pair of comfortable jeans (c. 1999).

Shot with my then Samsung Galaxy S4 in natural light. This pic was recently favored on my Flickr photostream by a visitor to my site. It reminds me that we leave a long electronic trail on the internet (so be careful what you post).

Thanks for stopping by and be sure to stop by my camera shop at http://www.ccstudio2380.com – Chris

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.

1951 Classics – Contax & Tower (Nicca)

April 18, 2020April 18, 2020Chris and Carol 2 Comments

Zeiss Ikon Contax IIIa and Tower (Nicca) Type-3

Two extremely different cameras that accomplish the same thing – recording an image on 135 film. The Contax is a much bigger camera and for the most part, it is an original design by Zeiss Ikon of Stuttgart. The Tower was made by Nicca Camera for the Sears, Roebuck Company for sale in the US and Canada. The Nicca was inspired by an original design by Leica and it’s often considered to be one of the better Leica “copies”.

Both cameras feature interchangeable lenses and both are rangefinders. The Contax has an attached exposure meter (non-coupled) and with the Tower, you would use a separate meter for determining proper exposures.

The Contax is a slightly larger camera and it’s a tad bit heavier due to the additional weight of the exposure meter. The Contax weighs 773 grams and the Tower weighs 591 grams.

The standard lens on the Contax is a Carl Zeiss Sonnar f/ 1.5 50mm and the Tower has a Nikkor H.C f/ 2 5cm.

DSCF8174

What’s interesting is that back in 1951 these cameras were considered to be “miniature” 35mm cameras per their advertising of the time.

contax iia clip 1

contax IIIa and IIa

Thanks for stopping by and be sure to visit my camera shop at http://www.ccstudio2380.com – Chris

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.

Contax IIIa – 1951

April 14, 2020April 14, 2020Chris and Carol Leave a comment

My Zeiss Ikon Contax IIIa is a 35mm rangefinder camera that was first introduced in March 1951. What differentiates the IIIa from the IIa is the addition of an exposure meter.

Here’s my Contax.

By the serial number of the body, this camera appears like it was made in the early part of 1951. It features the black dial and non-synced flash connection typical of the first models. This one works perfectly and the only cosmetic issue is a slight dent on the lens filter ring. Just above the Contax name is the selenium cells for the exposure meter shown with the flap open.

The camera features interchangeable lenses in a simple but sturdy bayonet mount. Exposure meter flap in the closed position.

The lens is a Carl Zeiss Sonnar f/1.5 50mm.

A camera shop provided cleaning cloth featuring the Contax IIIa.

contax iia clip 1

contax lenses

It may be a bit hard to tell from this scan but here’s a view of the camera from the instruction manual. The camera’s serial number is T 36017 and mine is T 36625. Pretty close so I’m thinking that mine is an early production model.

Thanks for stopping by! I’ll have much more about this camera soon. – Chris

http://www.ccstudio2380.com

Contax / Yashica Brochure

April 11, 2020Chris and Carol Leave a comment

From around 1975 or so when Yashica first rolled out the Contax RTS.

IMG_20200410_0004

IMG_20200410_0002

IMG_20200410_0003

IMG_20190627_0006

Eye candy to be sure! Yashica along with Contax and then later Kyocera continued the RTS well into the 1990s.

Thanks for stopping by and have a beautiful day! – Chris

http://www.ccstudio2380.com

Camera Manuals & Brochures – excellent reference sources

April 1, 2020April 1, 2020Chris and Carol Leave a comment

Hi all! Carol and I enjoy collecting classic camera instruction books and sales brochures as it’s a great way to connect with photo gear that has captured our interest over the years. We especially enjoy collecting booklets that are still in mint and like-new condition… but we find ourselves with enough books to open a library so we’ll be offering some of these in our camera shop at http://www.ccstudio2380.com over the next few days (and weeks). If you’re looking to add one of these hard to find items (in new condition) for your collection, now’s the time.

DSCF8098

DSCF8096

DSCF8124

DSCF8079

DSCF8100

DSCF8105

DSCF7595

DSCF6879 DSCF6888

Thanks for stopping by! These books and brochures are available in our camera shop at http://www.ccstudio2380.com. If they’re something you need and you don’t see it be sure to ask us – we might have just have it! – Chris & Carol

In the Shop – New this Week!

March 30, 2020Chris and Carol Leave a comment

It’s Monday and it’s time to post some new items in my camera shop at http://www.ccstudio2380.com

snip 3-20

Everything is on sale for the remainder of March and the first week of April – take 15% off my already value-priced items.

Lots of other great items in the shop too – pop on over to http://www.ccstudio2380.com and see if there’s something you like.

Thanks, Chris

random post – expo 67 Montréal

March 28, 2020Chris and Carol Leave a comment

One of my first cameras – Kodak Instamatic

Poster: Rendez-vous à Montréal—Bring your camera! / Affiche : Rendez-vous à Montréal – Apportez votre appareil!

So 1960s!

Hostess uniforms of Expo 67 / Uniformes des hôtesses d’Expo 67

I still have the camera and somewhere I have my Expo 67 Passport. I was 13 years old when me and my mom went. We stayed in an apartment in Montreal for two weeks – lots of fond memories.

Technically my first camera. I got it for Christmas 1963 and I’ve taken hundreds of images with this thing over the early years. It still works!

Thanks for stopping by! – Chris

http://www.ccstudio2380.com

Rare Nicca lens cap – 1958

March 27, 2020March 27, 2020Chris and Carol Leave a comment

Nicca’s one-off lens cap for their last 35mm rangefinder camera mid-1958. The cap fits the Nikkor-H 5cm f/2 lens that was pretty much the standard lens for Nicca. The Nicca in the background with the traditional cap is my 3-S.

BTW, the black cap is made from brass and weighs 12 grams whereas the silver cap is aluminum and weighs 10 grams.

The distinctive all caps block lettering style of this black cap was a major departure from Nicca’s traditional silver script style which was presented in the spirit of Leica. You can see in the ad below that it matches the style of the name on the top plate of the camera.

III-L(large) 1

This ad (above) is from Mikio Awano’s article in the September 1978 edition of Japanese magazine, Camera Collectors’ News. The magazine’s text at the bottom translates as “Nicca III L, 1958 September, Asahi Camera”. For more about this interesting camera, please visit my good friend Paul Sokk’s excellent site on Nicca.

DSCF8058

The Nicca III-L was the last camera made by Nicca before their acquisition by Yashica in early 1958. Below is an example of the style of the last box.

nicca III-L box set

Carol and I do not have an example of the Nicca III-L in our collection. They are super hard to find, extremely rare actually so very few show up on auction sites. If you know of someone who has one please have them contact us as we would be interested in obtaining one.

Thanks for stopping by and be sure to visit our camera shop at http://www.ccstudio2380.com

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

Yashica cameras and so much more!

Category Classic Film Cameras

In the Shop – New Arrivals for May

Hi all! I hope you are doing well and staying safe. Here are some items that I’ve listed in my camera shop recently which can be visited by popping over to http://www.ccstudio2380.com

Friday Fotos! – Classic Rangefinders

Happy SUNday! – bluejeans and cameras

1951 Classics – Contax & Tower (Nicca)

Contax IIIa – 1951

Contax / Yashica Brochure

From around 1975 or so when Yashica first rolled out the Contax RTS.

Camera Manuals & Brochures – excellent reference sources

In the Shop – New this Week!

It’s Monday and it’s time to post some new items in my camera shop at http://www.ccstudio2380.com

random post – expo 67 Montréal

Rare Nicca lens cap – 1958

Nicca’s one-off lens cap for their last 35mm rangefinder camera mid-1958. The cap fits the Nikkor-H 5cm f/2 lens that was pretty much the standard lens for Nicca. The Nicca in the background with the traditional cap is my 3-S.