Yashica On Ice

June 7, 2019June 7, 2019Chris and Carol Leave a comment

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Yashica Rookie TLR from 1956. Also known as a Yashicaflex Model R.

Warranty or service guarantee card that was issued with the Yashica Rookie verifying that it was known as the Model R in Japan.

The Rookie was only available for sale in Japan and was released in 1956.

Thanks 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.

Timeless Tuesday – Yashica 8 U-matic

May 21, 2019May 21, 2019Chris and Carol 2 Comments

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Yashica 8mm film movie camera from 1961. Fast f1.8 Yashinon zoom lens. The camera sold for around $140. in the early 1960s.

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Complete kit. BTW, the little hang tag from LIFE depicts a cover from 1947.

Thanks 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.

Yashica’s History as reported by Yashica – 1975

May 19, 2019May 19, 2019Chris and Carol Leave a comment

The Yashica marketing team that put this document together back in early 1975 appear to have summarized the history of the company – or were blatantly unaware of the actual dates of important milestones.

But with that said it’s important to “take it all in ” from all sources and to glean whatever good bits that it does offer. Yashica wasn’t a company that seemed to be all that interested in dates anyway. Some of the dates were more than likely dates that were recorded in Japan and may have marked the actual, formal date that the event was finalized. There’s also the possibility that if this brochure was put together in the US there may simply be some instances where meanings were lost in translation.

This excerpt is taken from the Yashica publication ‘Yashica A New Horizon’

It does use the term “highlights” when summarizing the events.

Yashica’s new (1974) headquarters building in Shibuya-ku, Tokyo.

Published in early 1975, this brochure was primarily focused on camera dealers located in the United States.

I’ll be sharing additional bits from this interesting brochure over the coming weeks. Previous posts can be found here and here.

Many thanks 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.

Yashica – A New Horizon 1975

May 18, 2019May 19, 2019Chris and Carol 1 Comment

From the rarely seen sales brochure ‘Yashica A New Horizon’ published in early 1975.

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This booklet was sent to all US camera dealers with a cover letter addressing Yashica’s future plans for distributing their line of cameras and photo equipment directly to dealers in the United States. In all of my years of collecting Yashica related items, this is the first time I’ve seen this publication. It’s a perfect 8.5 x 11 inches, in full color, printed on heavy stock glossy paper with 14-pages filled with photographs never used outside of this book.

Here is the cover letter that accompanied the brochure. It provides some insight into the heart of Yashica and at this point in time, brings to light their attempts to turn the company around and emerge from bankruptcy in a much better place.

The letter is typed on bond paper (with watermark) and was signed by Mr. Kenji Sakuma so I don’t believe it is simply a photocopy casually dashed off to dealers. It shows how important this new program was to Yashica.

My good friend Paul Sokk (https://www.yashicatlr.com) pointed out the gender-specific remark “In the very near future, one of our salesmen, under the direction…”. When read using today’s optics it would appear as though it was out of place and implied that there would be no women calling on you Mr. Camera Dealer. Considering that this is from Japan and written in 1975 I believe it was simply stating the obvious – there probably weren’t females in these positions at this point in time and it would be many decades before the glass ceiling would be broken (struggles exist even to this day). Of course, the term salesmen could also be interpreted as a generic term for the position as the term sales person had not yet come into use.

A view of the back cover which was released without the usual printing data or date.

The Yashica Line as represented in early 1975. Noticeably missing is the TL Electro X ITS model with its distinctive gold electron logo on the pentaprism.

The Yashica line as presented in the brochure. The TL Electro X and TL-E are represented in the SLR category but no TL Electro X ITS which I find very odd.

As always, thanks for stopping by! Please feel free to share anything that may enhance this post or correct any inaccuracies. – 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.

In the grips of bankruptcy, Yashica is forced to swallow a bitter pill – 1975

May 17, 2019May 17, 2019Chris and Carol 1 Comment

The early 1970s were not kind to Yashica. Accusations of embezzlement, mismanagement, inflated assets, and then the fuel crisis and economic downturn led Yashica to financial peril. By early 1975 Yashica was bankrupt and with the urging of the Japanese government (and creditor banks) Yashica fell into the reluctant lap of Kyocera.

Kyocera Corporation which was previously the Kyoto Ceramic Company was not a camera maker – the founder and president Mr. Kazuo Inamori was a brilliant engineer but again, not a camera manufacturer. In early 1975, Yashica made a desperate attempt to reach out directly to the market in the US.

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Mr. Shiro Kaneko was installed as the president of the Yashica Company (formerly of the trading company Nissho-Iwai) and decided to market Yashica products directly to camera dealers across the United States. He put Mr. Kenji Sakuma in charge of the US endeavor.

Reading this page you realize how much clout these two companies had in Japan and you can guess that they had a ton of money invested in Yashica.

Yashica had been on a building spree in Japan opening a new, ultra-modern factory in Okaya, Nagano Prefecture in 1972 and building a new 6-story headquarters office complex in Shibuya-ku, Tokyo and moving in by the summer of 1974. Money was flowing out of Yashica like water through a cracked dam by this point.

The new factory in Okaya in the summer of 1974. By the way, this location is still in operation and owned by Kyocera.

Yashica’s new headquarters located at 6-27-8 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo as it looked in mid-1974. Check out the modern furniture (colorful too) and those displays with the new Contax line and a nice display rack loaded with brochures of the day.

The picture above is taken from a recently discovered booklet published by Yashica in early 1975. I don’t see Yashica’s name anywhere on the building (they did crop the picture quite a bit) but I see Honda’s name and logo on one of the doors.

Below is the Yashica building as it appears today (2018). It’s known as the Kyocera Harajuku Building and is located in Shibuya-ku on Meiji-dori Avenue in Tokyo.

Current view of the original Yashica HQ building. Kyocera still has a presence in the building with mixed use shops occupying the ground floor. (Google Map Image)

Although Yashica continued to make cameras throughout the remainder of the decade they failed to truly innovate new designs and missed the boat on so many fronts while others (Canon, Nikon) forged ahead with large investments in exciting new cameras (Canon F-1, Canon AE-1, A-1) and new technologies. In my opinion, the build quality also suffered during this period and I personally do not collect the SLRs from this period.

The end is near. By October 1983, Yashica was fully merged with Kyocera. The once proud and independent company founded by Mr. Yoshimasa Ushiyama and his brother in 1949 was gone. I’m not 100% sure if this picture (below) is from April 1983 or from October 1983. It’s either the formal announcement by Yashica and Kyocera of the future merger or the actual merger “ceremony”.

Mr. Ryozo Endo (left) president of Yashica and the president and founder of Kyocera Mr. Kazuo Inamori. A dark day but inevitable.

Yashica-Kyocera managed to occasionally market a few hits during the late 1980s and 1990s but by the mid-2000s Kyocera stopped making cameras and soon thereafter sold the name Yashica.

Kyocera has done quite well for itself under Mr. Inamori and today they still operate out of many of the former Yashica properties. The Yashica you hear about today is not associated with the original company and the recent Yashica DigiFilm camera was an interesting attempt to do something with the Yashica name.

Thanks so much for stopping by and if you made it to this point of the post give yourself a big pat on the back! – 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.

Time Capsule – 1960

October 12, 2018October 11, 2019Chris and Carol 1 Comment

The original Pentamatic.

A nice example of Yashica’s first 35mm SLR – the Pentamatic. Also known as the Pentamatic ’35’ in its earliest advertisements and sales brochures. This particular camera is from August 1960 – the same month that Yashica started production of the Pentamatic II – a model that was destined for the Japanese home market and not for world export. The Pentamatic II stayed in production only until January 1961 when it was replaced a few months later with the Pentamatic S. The original Pentamatic was first produced in December 1959 but widescale production didn’t begin until January 1960. As of this update (Oct 11, 2018), I still haven’t found evidence of an instruction booklet printed in Japanese – only English booklets so far. I would think that there must be booklets in Japanese and at least 2 or 3 other languages but none found. The Pentamatic II booklet is in Japanese and no English editions have been found.

As always, thanks for stopping by and please check out 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.

Yashica Super Yashinon-R f/3.5 13.5cm Telephoto Lens

November 9, 2016February 5, 2020Chris and Carol 25 Comments

Nice little addition to our Pentamatic family of lenses. Purchased in Japan and was with an early model Pentamatic’35’ set in “well used” but stable working condition. It came with the original Yashica brown leather case, unbranded plastic rear lens cap, Yashica front metal 52mm push-on lens cap, unbranded lens hood, and a very nice looking Walz chrome metal and glass Skylight C. (cloudy) 52mm filter.

Pentamatic bayonet mount 13.5cm short telephoto lens… f/3.5 with rather low serial number. Early Yashica lenses were often given a serial number that starts with the focal length of the lens. In this example, ‘135 0722’ shows it to be a 135mm lens with a sequential production number of 722. Best guess is that this lens was made in early to mid-1960. We have another Super Yashinon-R 13.5cm lens with a serial number of ‘135 0927’.

The above image shows the lens partially disassembled for cleaning and inspection. No fungus or mold, but I’ve found some funky streaks on the face of the first removable lens element (large lens element to the right).

The chrome nose removed.

The main lens group removed. If you look closely, you may see the funky streaks across the face of the lens.

Aperture blades set at f/ 22. No oil and no problems (looking into the lens barrel from the front of the lens). Note the 12 aperture blades.

Here is a similar lens with the 12 blades that was for sale recently. The seller identified the lens as having been made by Kyoei Optical Co., Ltd. using the brand name “Acall” Kyoei was also abbreviated as “KOC” which may be the reason for the red “K.C.”

New info as of Feb 5, 2020 – At first, I guessed that my lens was made by Tomioka Optical as they were responsible for most of Yashica’s lenses. A reader has pointed out the similarities between my lens and the design of the Acall lenses with both Pentamatic and M42 mounts. I must say that I agree with them upon further review. Thank you for your input!

Partially assembled body. Nice clear markings and solid-looking bayonet mount.

These first Pentamatic lenses were pre-set and not automatic and were the kings of the heavyweight division. Lots of metal and glass here! When properly stored they were not prone to fungus… but almost all classic lenses will have some sort of mold, dust or fungal issues when left in the dark and in their leather cases.

Thanks for the visit!

Chris and Carol

You’re invited to visit our online store at https://www.ccstudio2380.com for some great vintage and collectible cameras, lenses, and accessories.

Yashica’s YT-300… a neat little radio from 1959

January 14, 2016May 29, 2021Chris and Carol 3 Comments

Yashica produced more than just cameras during its boom years. As a leader in the field of electronic photography in the middle to late 1960s, Yashica’s early electronic devices ranged from such diverse items as transistor radios, record players, movie projectors, editing equipment and tape recorders to name but a few.

Most of the earliest electronic devices are rather rare now (as one would expect after 50 years) and only occasionally does something come up in auctions both on the web and in estate sales. I suspect that the more common electrical items such as projectors and editing equipment are still flooding eBay and other on-line auction sites.

Finding an early radio such as the YT-300 and YT-100 is a bit harder. Here we share some of what we’ve been able to collect over the years.

Nice complete set from around 1960.

Not a bad price for such a sophisticated radio.

Really really rare to find a working Yashica tape recorder!

Yes Yashica even branded their own magnetic tape for their recorders.

Yashica YT-300 portable transistor radio. Designed in late 1959 it was very popular in the early 1960s and was one of the many electronic devices that helped Yashica develop their hyper successful electronic cameras that followed.

Yashica YT-300 in its very elegant leather case. The case itself is a work of art and craftsmanship.

Thanks for your visit! If you come across a working Yashica radio or tape recorder snag it! They’re really rare and a fun little reminder of the first transistor radios and how cool they were.

Chris

First Look!

July 31, 2015July 10, 2021Chris and Carol 1 Comment

The exciting first look (in print) of the Pentamatic…

First official appearance of the Pentamatic occurs in the May 1960 issue of Modern Photography magazine. In the June 1960 issues of Modern Photography, U. S. Camera and Popular Photography, the first full-page ads appeared for the Pentamatic ’35’ reflex camera. The actual release date in the United States has almost always been considered by many to be March of 1960.

As of yet, I haven’t found evidence in print to support the March date. I do know that the Pentamatic was shown at the 36th annual ‘Master Photo DeaIers & Finishers Association’ trade show (MPDFA) held in St. Louis from March 21-25, 1960. I don’t know if the Pentamatic was released in Japan at an earlier date. From the progression of the serial numbers, by March 1960, about 1,500 cameras had been produced since production began in December 1959 at the Yashica Suwa factory. I doubt that there were enough cameras by March to support any widespread release in Japan or in Asia at that time. By June 1960, about 6,000 cameras had been built. There may have been enough to ship to the world markets starting in April and May. At their peak of production (summer 1960), it looks like Yashica was rolling out about 1,200 to 1,400 cameras each month.

Have a “Camera Holiday” in Japan. May 1960 magazine ad.

Part two of the “Camera Holiday” in Japan promotion. Very nice mention of Yashica’s factory in Suwa and the wonders of Japan!

Yashica provided this first ever look at their new Pentamatic SLR at the March 1960 MPDFA trade show in St. Louis.

First published look at the new Pentamatic from Yashica. May 1960

Chasing Classic Cameras with Chris

Yashica cameras and so much more!

Category The Yashica Company History

Yashica On Ice

Timeless Tuesday – Yashica 8 U-matic

Yashica’s History as reported by Yashica – 1975

The Yashica marketing team that put this document together back in early 1975 appear to have summarized the history of the company – or were blatantly unaware of the actual dates of important milestones.

Yashica – A New Horizon 1975

From the rarely seen sales brochure ‘Yashica A New Horizon’ published in early 1975.

In the grips of bankruptcy, Yashica is forced to swallow a bitter pill – 1975

Time Capsule – 1960

Yashica Super Yashinon-R f/3.5 13.5cm Telephoto Lens

Yashica’s YT-300… a neat little radio from 1959

First Look!