Timeless Tuesday – My 1982 Toyota Pickup

May 18, 2021May 18, 2021Chris and Carol 4 Comments

Back in 1982 it was known as just a Toyota Pickup Truck – no longer a Hilux and not yet a Tacoma and this beauty was as basic as they came. The famous 22R 4-cylinder engine, 4-speed (I think) manual transmission, painted bumpers, steel wheels, and vinyl everything inside. Bench seat, radio (I think) and I opted for AC to deal with the relentless Florida heat and humidity.

In 1982 the truck was the third generation (N30) still with no name other than Pickup. “I drove through the desert in a truck with no name, it felt good…”

I choose a beige model to match the dirt road I lived on. I think Toyota called it “tan”. Unloaded the rear end was prone to skidding around 180 degrees or more on slightly wet roads if you hit the brakes too hard. I once did a complete 360 at a traffic light to my shock and the surprise of bystanders.

2.4 L (2,366 cc) 22R SOHC I4, 98 PS; 97 hp (72 kW) at 4,800 rpm.

Photographed with a Canon F-1.

My original owner’s manual. Yes, I still have it but not the truck.

Who keeps a nearly 40-year-old owner’s manual for a vehicle you no longer own?

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.

Monday’s Camera – Asahi Pentax 6×7 – Beauty IS the Beast!

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

A beautiful monster. That’s how I described this camera to a friend. A beautiful heavy monster is what it felt like in your hands and no way was I going to use the neck strap. It’s also a camera that I wish I still owned because I really didn’t get to shoot with it as much as I’d liked to.

The true beauty of this camera was the 6×7 cm negatives or color slides that it produced. It was advertised as an SLR albeit a giant SLR with through the lens metering, easy and quick focusing, interchangeable lenses, backs, viewfinders, and more but I couldn’t get over its bulkiness and weight. So it was passed on to another collector and to this day I wish I still owned it.

Chase Factor. CF7 considering that there’s a bunch of them out there online but it’s a hard camera to find that checks all of the necessary boxes – condition, appearance, functionality, and price. In my case I was lucky to find mine still in it’s original box and in nearly mint condition (and fully working) but I was afraid to take it in the field or on a photoshoot because the collector in me was worried it would get scratched or damaged and eventually hurt its resale or collector value. It’s hard to have a collector grade camera also be your shooter.

believe me, that large wooden handle was worth its weight in gold. It provided a solid grip on the beast.

a decade ago – random image surfing

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

Occasionally I like to surf my image files and revisit what was a pretty standard (boring) picture and see if I can make it into something well, interesting. Let me be totally upfront – I am one of those rare (odd) photographers that doesn’t have sophisticated post production software. No Photoshop, no (I don’t even know what else is out there). I do use the program? that came with my pc and I’m no even sure what it is.

April 2011 – NY Mets against the hated Nats – LGM! Modified tonight (May 2021).

The original picture unretouched. I used this picture to prove to Sony that their TV failed – I got a new TV from Sony because the color block on this one went crazy and turned everything too green.

Real rocks and a real fire perfect for some quality time with the family.

You’re tired? I’m tired!

May 16, 2021May 16, 2021Chris and Carol 2 Comments

Starbuck’s man and his pal.

Better get off the decaf and back on the good stuff! Have a Happy SUNday!

Chasing fun collectibles

May 15, 2021May 16, 2021Chris and Carol Leave a comment

A fun part of chasing collectible cameras is finding unexpected gems amongst the more common stuff. Here’s a few examples.

I love finding new and unused film cameras no matter how sophisticated. Here’s a new Fuji DL-7 complete with the original batteries and film. It’s like Christmas any time of year.

I found this beautiful Nikkormat FT3 while appraising a collection here locally in my town. It hadn’t been used in decades and was put away having been hardly used.

Disney cameras. No matter what, if I see an unused Mickey & Minnie camera or any Disney branded camera I’m interested. This one was sold originally at Tokyo Disneyland for a limited time.

Cute packaging gets me every time!

I’m not normally interested in later model Minoltas but this one was pretty nice and the seller had a bunch of other
cool cameras too.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day!

Pokemon Cards in the shop!

May 14, 2021May 14, 2021Chris and Carol Leave a comment

How about a few hard to find Pokemon cards for your collection? I just may have what you need. I’m selling off a rather large collection of cards – here’s a sample of some of the first cards I’ve listed.

I have hundreds more available so if you’re looking for something specific message me and I’ll check around for it. These cards belong to my son Tim – I’m the “lister”.

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chasingacoffee

Rare State of the Union images of Reagan by Eastman Kodak – 1987

May 14, 2021May 14, 2021Chris and Carol Leave a comment

Until I was asked to sell these framed images by a client I never realized just how uncommon (rare?) pictures of the State of the Union were. Google it and you’ll find virtually nothing. They’ll be some screen grabs from C-Span and a stray shot here and there but these types of images (seen below) are just not there.

From a historical point of view, President Reagan addressing the 100th Joint Session of Congress was pretty significant as it marked a major milestone in our country’s history and the history of our style of government.

Vice-President George Bush (left) and Speaker of the House Jim Wright sit behind Reagan.

Some background as it was passed on to me by my client. These images were photographed by professional Kodak photographers who were given exclusive access to document the address to Congress on that historic night. The Kodak photogs worked out of the Georgetown offices of Kodak during the 1980s. Only a few of these special edition images were ever produced (I believe only six) and none were released to the public or press. This special set was presented to and owned by a now-retired Kodak executive that worked at the White House during the Reagan and Bush administrations. These are original color prints made from the negatives as I understand it, the negatives were given to the White House historian.

If you’d like to own this framed 26 x 22 inch pop on over to my Etsy camera shop and I’ll put something together for you.

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chasingacoffee

Like a Leica, or better? Nicca

May 14, 2021May 14, 2021Chris and Carol Leave a comment

My good friend Paul Sokk has authored one of the most comprehensive sites dedicated to all things (I mean all things) related to and about Yashica twin-lens reflex cameras you’ll ever see. As if cracking Yashica’s history wasn’t enough, Paul then went on to research pretty much everything there is to know about Nicca and the cameras they made and their contribution to Yashica and their development of the Yashica Pentamatic.

All decked-out with its 28mm W-Nikkor lens and matching viewfinder.

I could go on and on about Paul’s site or just give you the link – it will be well worth a visit and your time. http://www.yashicatlr.com/Nicca.html

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chasingacoffee

Zeiss Ikon Contax IIIa

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

Carl Zeiss Sonnar f/ 1.5 50mm lens shown here with a Zeiss Ikon slip-on lens hood (shade).

This lovely camera is from 1951 and features a built-in exposure meter.

Shown with the meter flap open for business. This image was taken with my Nikon D800 in my studio as a test shot – no post processing.

I haven’t had a chance to run a roll of film through this beauty yet. All levers, knobs, buttons, and dials are working as is the meter. My list of film test cameras is quite extensive so the likelihood that this one will see film anytime soon is slim, very slim.

A quick search on eBay shows a nice selection of these available in all sorts of condition and states of operation. A recent set with body, lens, and box went for $450 (similar to mine) in working condition. I would think around $350 to $400 is reasonable for a clean example and having the box is always nice and in this case worth the $50. I’d give the Contax IIIa a chase factor of 6 – they’re out there so finding one isn’t a problem but finding a 70-year-old camera in full functioning condition is the hard part. Expect some issues that may need to be addressed and of course without service (CLA) little guarantee of continued function. It does make an awesome display camera amongst my other 35mm rangefinders so it’s got that going for it.

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chasingacoffee

The Unremarkable Yashica FFT

May 12, 2021May 12, 2021Chris and Carol 1 Comment

The rather hard to chase down Yashica FFT – the last of its kind. I give this bugger a high chase factor of CF 9 not because it’s a sophisticated 35mm SLR with tons of features, it earns a CF 9 because Yashica just didn’t make a bunch of these things and when they were for sale I believe most of them stayed in Japan.

The serial number on this one is 41001738 (1974, October, and number 1,738 for that month up to that point).

HTF instruction booklet for a HTF camera.

No auto exposure or auto focus, no built-in power winder, and little to no style.

So what’s this gem’s claim to fame? It was the last m42 screw mount lens body in the Yashica family. Big deal. Something’s got to be last and this guy was it.

Yashica m42 lens mount bodies began in the Spring of 1961 and ended (maybe with this one) in the Autumn of 1974. Along the way such classics as the TL Electro X was made which was one of the first SLR’s with an IC “brain”.

I’ll test and review this camera soon (I know, you’ve heard that before!). BTW, I have no earthly idea what ‘FFT’ stands for if anything. Any ideas?