Zeiss Ikon IIIa with Box – 1951

June 11, 2020June 11, 2020Chris and Carol Leave a comment

We were lucky enough to collect this wonderful Contax with an original box (we love old cameras and their boxes)!

The Contax IIIa (and IIa) are interchangable lens 35mm rangefinder cameras.

The Contax IIIa was made by Zeiss Ikon AG. Stuttgart, West Germany.

We haven’t run a roll of film through it yet but we hope to soon. The lens is a Carl Zeiss 50mm f/ 1.5 and the exposure meter (top) appears to be working after all these years.

Exposure meter flap in the open position. The meter has selenium cells that are powered by light – no batteries necessary. The only downside is that over time they do give out and they can be a bit fragile after nearly 70-years-old.

The Carl Zeiss f/ 1.5 lens is considered to be fast even by today’s standards.

Here’s the Contax IIa – same features but without the built-in exposure meter.

Here’s another camera in our collection that’s available to purchase. From 1955, the Minolta A2 (or A-2) 35mm non-interchangeable lens rangefinder camera.

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The Minolta is available in our Etsy camera shop at http://www.ccstudio2380.com

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful day! – 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.

Kyocera (Yashica) T from 1986

May 17, 2020May 17, 2020Chris and Carol Leave a comment

Another ‘Modern Classic’ as we like to call them. For Kyocera, this was the first fully branded Kyocera camera in the famous T* Series of point and shoot autofocus 35mm film cameras. The Yashica T which was made by Kyocera in 1985 was technically the first.

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For the domestic market in Japan, this was what you got for your ¥50,700 ($301 USD) plus an extra 2,000 JPY for the case. No zoom lens and no true user inputs except for the flash. What you did get was a sophisticated Carl Zeiss Tessar f/ 3.5 35mm lens with the famous T* coated optics. This is a true point and shoot camera designed to take the highest quality images just short of owning an SLR.

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The T-D (date) model weighs about 356 grams without film but with the heavy 2CR5 lithium 6v battery installed. The date function is powered by a CR2025 battery but at this point, I haven’t installed one as the date function only goes to 2019. The camera automatically sets the ISO for DX coded films from 50 to 1,600. There’s a cover over the lens that opens when the shutter is pressed and then slowly closes over the lens again. It looks to be semi-transparent from what I can tell. Not sure how you would keep the cover open to clean the lens.

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Not much in the way of user input except to kill the flash. There’s an analog film indicator, simple on-off slide switch and a self-timer switch. No LCD screen to fail over time (which is a good thing).

I’m pretty excited to give the camera a go on a walkabout and to eventually compare its performance to my Yashica L AF with similar features. See my review and test of the Yashica L AF here.

Thanks for stopping by and be sure to check out my camera shop on Etsy at http://www.ccstudio2380.com and on eBay at https://www.ebay.com/str/auntfotosphotography

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.

Macro Monday – blossom

May 11, 2020May 11, 2020Chris and Carol 3 Comments

Playing amongst the blossoms from Mother’s Day.

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A beautiful bouquet of flowers from our daughter Lindsay for Mother’s Day.

My Fujifilm FinePix S9900W handled the contrasty lighting well. Little or no post-production necessary. Thanks for stopping by! – Chris

Our camera shop is always open 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.

Minolta SR-T 201 35mm SLR

May 4, 2020May 4, 2020Chris and Carol Leave a comment

One of the workhorses of the mid to late 1970s – the Minolta SR-T 201 is built like a tank (and weighs just slightly less) and its design shouts basic but functional. A perfect camera for a beginning film photographer.

Natural light from a north-facing window softened the look of the vintage chrome.

The Minolta SRT 201 was in production between 1975 and 1981 which is a pretty long run for such a basic camera. The competition at that time was fierce between Canon, Nikon, Olympus, and even Yashica for solid SLRs that wouldn’t break the bank. Minolta had a good reputation for delivering value and its Rokkor lenses (this one takes the MD mount) in a wide range of focal lengths. maximum apertures, and budgets. Excellent quality used Rokkor lenses that would fit this camera are plentiful in online auction sites.

It comes in a black and white version too!

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A simple top plate with easy to adjust controls.

So why is this Minolta perfect for a first-time film shooter? It’s pretty much as manual as you can get – the button type battery powers the built-in TTL (thru-the-lens) exposure meter but the shutter is completely mechanical with speeds from ‘B’ (bulb) to 1/1000th of a second. If you choose to meter with a phone app or hand-held exposure meter then you don’t even need the battery. The viewfinder is bright and it displays the selected shutter speed across the bottom and a match needle indicator along the right side.

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Thanks for stopping by and be sure to pop on over to my camera shop to see what I’ve got in stock. Visit 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.

Happy SUNday! – Toy Trains

May 3, 2020May 3, 2020Chris and Carol 1 Comment

Lionel locomotives from the 1950s.

Have a beautiful day and be safe! – Chris

http://www.ccstudio2380.com for all of your photo needs including cameras, film, and other photographic collectibles.

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.

wordless wednesday

April 29, 2020Chris and Carol Leave a comment

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Thanks for stopping by – have a safe and peaceful day. Chris

As always, my camera shop is up and running at http://www.ccstudio2380.com (shameless plug)!

Macro Monday – yellow

April 20, 2020April 20, 2020Chris and Carol Leave a comment

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DSCF8753 This week’s Flickr theme for Macro Mondays – yellow.

Vintage Kodak Kodachrome color reversal (slide) film from the late 1950s with its original metal film can. ASA 25

Thanks for stopping by! – Chris

My shop can be found at http://www.ccstudio2380.com (shameless plug).

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.

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

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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.

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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

Fujica GW690 – A big shot from Fuji Photo Film Company

March 8, 2020March 8, 2020Chris and Carol Leave a comment

The Fujica GW690 6×9 Professional camera by Fuji Photo Film Company. Mine was made around 1978 and it’s still going strong today. It’s one of the most affordable (and plentiful) larger medium-format film cameras available.

The Fujica is a fixed-lens rangefinder that takes (6) D cell batteries – it could take 6 batteries as it’s big enough but there’s no built-in light meter and the shutter is mechanical so no need for batteries.

3 lbs 2 oz (1,1414 grams) without film.

This is a big, no crazy large camera with a super sharp EBC Fujinon 90mm f/3.5 lens. The lens is made up of 5 elements in 5 groups. The leaf-shutter is a Seiko #0 with B, 1-1/500.

Yashica TL Electro X ITS with a huge Tomioka 55mm f/1.2 and the ‘Beast’.

My TL Electro X ITS with its super-fast Tomioka 55mm f/1.2 lens is big and heavy but not Fujica heavy. The Yashica weighs in at 1,019 grams which is heavy enough. Size and weight do not make a camera great – the size of the negative and the quality of the optics are the foundation of true greatness and this camera delivers

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Direct scan of the 6x9cm negative. No post-production.

Direct scan of the 6x9cm negative. No post-production.

I’m very pleased with the camera and lens and I’m equally pleased with the Fujifilm Neopan 100 Acros black and white film. If you’re looking to get into the 6×9 format then I recommend you give the Fuji a try.

Thanks for stopping by! – Chris

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 Studio Fun

Zeiss Ikon IIIa with Box – 1951

Kyocera (Yashica) T from 1986

Another ‘Modern Classic’ as we like to call them. For Kyocera, this was the first fully branded Kyocera camera in the famous T* Series of point and shoot autofocus 35mm film cameras. The Yashica T which was made by Kyocera in 1985 was technically the first.

Macro Monday – blossom

Playing amongst the blossoms from Mother’s Day.

Minolta SR-T 201 35mm SLR

One of the workhorses of the mid to late 1970s – the Minolta SR-T 201 is built like a tank (and weighs just slightly less) and its design shouts basic but functional. A perfect camera for a beginning film photographer.

Happy SUNday! – Toy Trains

wordless wednesday

Macro Monday – yellow

1951 Classics – Contax & Tower (Nicca)

Contax IIIa – 1951

Fujica GW690 – A big shot from Fuji Photo Film Company

The Fujica GW690 6×9 Professional camera by Fuji Photo Film Company. Mine was made around 1978 and it’s still going strong today. It’s one of the most affordable (and plentiful) larger medium-format film cameras available.