Yashica’s J-Series of 35mm SLR Cameras from the 1960s

January 22, 2022January 22, 2022Chris and Carol 1 Comment

Regular readers know that the main focus of my collection has been centered around cameras made by Yashica. I have collected quite a few examples going back to their 1953 origins. This particular series caught my fancy a few years back when I was lucky enough to find a pristine Yashica J-3 in a pro-black finish with a matching lens. When it comes to chasing classic cameras, the J-3 in black and in pristine condition is no easy task. Here are a few images of what I’ve put together so far.

Chasing these guys has been fun, to say the least. It’s not that any one of these is rare in the true sense of the word but finding pristine examples has been the tough part.

As best as I can tell, the J-7 wasn’t the last one produced in the series as the J-4 came out just a bit later.

The black J-3 was never mentioned in any brochure which was odd considering it was Yashica’s first all-black SLR and was produced in limited numbers.

Since the cameras from Yashica were never meant to be of interest to collectors very few survive to this day in mint and better condition. The little circle on the camera’s left side front is the CdS exposure meter. These cameras did not feature TTL (thru-the-lens metering).

If you decide to collect this series you’ll find a very nice assortment of lenses to choose from as Yashica produced thousands over the years. The body accepts m42 screw-in lenses which for a time was one of the most widespread lenses made.

Here is what a complete in-the-box set looks like for the silver J-3 from around 1962.

As always thanks for stopping by – I hope I’ve shed sufficient light on this often overlooked series from Yashica. Maybe a few of you would enjoy the chase in pursuit of these mid-1960s gems. – Chris

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, is this blog’s property and its owner, Yashica Pentamatic Fanatic, Yashica Sailor Boy, Yashica Chris, Chasing Classic Cameras with Chris.

Fuji K-28

December 9, 2021December 9, 2021Chris and Carol Leave a comment

Fujifilm Fuji “Construction” camera.

Sealed against moisture and dirt and features a sharp 28mm Fujinon lens.

Part of the heavy-duty series of 35mm cameras from Fujifilm.

If you can find one of these unique cameras from Fujifilm by all means get it. It’s a fun little camera to “explore” with its bank vault-like construction. Thanks for stopping by and have an awesome day! – Chris

Revisiting a classic – Yashica Flex model S

December 2, 2021December 2, 2021Chris and Carol 1 Comment

Yashica Flex Model S. Maybe from 1955 or early 1956. First Yashica TLR with built-in exposure meter. Made by Yashima Kogaku Seiki Co., Ltd. Tokyo, Japan, which later became Yashica. The leather case is in excellent condition given its age. The camera is a gem and is a joy to play with.

A close cousin, the Yashicaflex AS-II (below).

This lovely camera dates from around 1954.

Yashima Flex twin-lens reflex camera from the talented craftspeople of Yashima Kogaku Seiki Co., Ltd.

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

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

Canon EOS 500N – lightweight 35mm SLR that’s perfect today.

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

When looking for a simple and lightweight 35mm single-lens reflex film camera look no further than this hard-working Canon. Released in 1996 and is still a very capable camera to this day. Mine has the Canon Zoom EF 35-80mm f4-5.6 III attached and everything is in top working condition.

One of the advantages of this camera is its ease of use and as the title suggests is light in weight. With two CR123 batteries installed and with the lens attached (lens cap too) it weighs just 546 grams with is super easy to carry around as the primary or secondary camera while on a photo walk.

The camera is capable of full manual shooting as the lens can be taken off autofocus and exposures both aperture and shutter speed set by the user. It also features 10 creative and programmed exposure modes including macro.

I’ve added it to my online camera shop at http://www.ccstudio2380.com if you’re interested in purchasing it.

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.

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.

The Minolta 35, a Leica re-imagined

September 9, 2021September 9, 2021Chris and Carol Leave a comment

I know that the camera brand Minolta conjures up many different images depending on which decade you experienced your first encounter with this popular brand. My good friend and fellow Yashica collector (sorry, we’re researchers) Paul Sokk from Australia has written one of the most comprehensive articles you’ll ever read about the early days of Minolta. I highly recommend you pop on over and give his latest post a good read. While you’re at it, be sure to check out his articles about Yashica, Nicca, and Leotax. Paul’s latest can be enjoyed at http://www.yashicatlr.com/Minolta35.html

Just a small sample from Paul’s site. Thanks for stopping by and have a great evening!

Yashica’s First 35mm Cameras – 1958-59

October 18, 2018October 18, 2018Chris and Carol 2 Comments

From a rather hard to find (OK, kinda rare) sales brochure (above) from late 1960 or early 1961.

IMG_20181017_0009 logo

The Yashica 35 YK (identified here simply as the “K type”) is the least expensive of the cameras and was produced in large numbers starting in June 1959. The camera is marked with the “YK” on the front right of the body in gold while the top has Yashica engraved in it next to the serial number (pictured below).

Yashica 35 K type – aka the YK

The Yashica 35 (above) was the first 35mm rangefinder camera from Yashica. In this brochure, the marketing department has added an “S” as part of the description of the camera (f2.8 lens). It appears from my translation that the “S” may have to do with something about the lens – either a new coating or some other design feature(s) which makes it new. Of course, it may be simple marketing hype as the 35 was getting on in years by this time.

The Yashica 35 Fair-Way (YF) is the only one in this series that was given a name that I’m aware of. It’s also the only one marked Yashica and Nicca. It was a transition camera as Yashica had just acquired Nicca in 1958. It’s one of the most expensive in this series to acquire as sellers recognize the relative rarity of the model especially in mint or excellent condition.

Yashica’s first interchangeable lens 35mm rangefinder camera – basically a Nicca in Yashica cladding.

The Yashica 35 E type (above) is also known as the Yashica YE which is engraved in the top plate. Here again, it’s a case of the marketing department manipulating the name of the camera – either to make it appear as a new model of it may be that the Japanese market tends to simplify the names of cameras. I believe that the unifying theme here is that Yashica wanted each of these cameras to feel connected to one another. By using the common name Yashica 35 “X” type the cameras couldn’t be mistaken for anything but a 35mm camera from a company known for TLRs and 8mm movie cameras.

My one and only Yashica YE

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Thanks for stopping by and be sure to visit my shop at http://www.ccstudio2380.com for some classic collectible cameras and photo gear. – 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 Pentamatic S Sales Brochure

March 27, 2018March 27, 2018Chris and Carol Leave a comment

As was typical with Yashica sales material, this brochure is undated. Our best guess would put it around late 1961. It’s fairly complete with all of the major accessories and lenses that were available for the Pentamatic line of cameras – the original Pentamatic ’35’, the Pentamatic II, and the final camera the Pentamatic S.

The Pentamatic S was available in the US but received only limited press – few advertisements and only 3 different brochures in English are known to exist.

The Pentamatic S was made starting in August 1961. By that time, the Pentamatic family of cameras were starting to show their age and lack of sophistication and were already having trouble in the world marketplace.

The Pentamatic is a well-made camera but was lacking in some important basics that were addressed with the S. Adding a coupled exposure meter and a self-timer were but a few steps Yashica took to make the camera more competitive. The original lens for the Pentamatic ’35’ was made by Tomioka Optical and the S went back to using it. The middle camera (Pentamatic II) was only released in Japan and was equipped with a Zunow made 5.8cm f1.7 lens.

The first known advertisement for the new Pentamatic – Spring 1960. Take notice that the lens serial number 59100581 is very close to the serial number on the lens in this late 1961 brochure (59100521). The Yashica marketing team must have held onto some of the first lenses made for them by Tomioka.

Thanks for stopping by! If you want to add a truly unique camera to your collection take a look at the Yashica Pentamatic S – if you can find a nice, clean working model go for it!

Please check out our online shop at https://www.ccstudio2380.com for some neat vintage cameras and some brand new modern classics!

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.

Fuji Panorama Cardia – 1991

December 25, 2017December 25, 2017Chris and Carol Leave a comment

From the ‘Plastic Fantastic’ period of Fuji Photo Film comes this awesome little 35mm compact camera.

Lots of good looking plastic.

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Released in Japan in December 1991 for ¥15,800. It features a fixed 28mm Fujinon f/8 lens and a shutter speed of 1/100. Manual winding but with auto exposure and automatic flash.

The set came with plenty of documentation and a nice padded camera case. We added the roll of Fujicolor for a bit of, you know, color!

We love collecting these “new old stock” cameras from the 1980s, 1990s and the 2000s. They were, for the most part, excellent cameras that provided a bridge from complicated SLR cameras to easier to use compact cameras capable of producing high-quality images. Of course, modern smartphones can do panorama photography so why use a film camera? A look that just looks “different” – so analog with all of its imperfections.

Thanks for your visit! Be sure to stop by our online store at https://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.

Nicca 3-S on location

October 29, 2017April 17, 2020Chris and Carol Leave a comment

1950s vintage Nicca rangefinder 35mm camera shot on location – c1911 post office.

Nicca at PO

After a day spent on a photo walk in our local historic district, our Nicca takes a break for a beauty shot. The mid-afternoon lighting is always just right in this 100-year-old post office – the table once held ink wells (the hole behind the camera) and the wood table top has such a wonderful patina and texture.

Our Nicca 3-S is fully operational – it’s considered to be one of the best Leica copy cameras produced in Japan in the early part of the 1950s. The 5cm f/ 2 lens is a Nikkor and is clear and sharp.

Of interest, the <E.P> mark on the rewind knob (extreme left) indicates that this camera was available for sale in Japan as an exempt purchase, meaning that it was for sale only to military personnel and their families, diplomatic personnel and their families and possibly available at duty-free shops. Photogear marked with the <E.P> symbol was not for sale to Japanese citizens as it was tax-exempt.

Thanks for your visit!

Chris

Shameless plug – stop by our e-commerce shop at https://www.ccstudio2380.com for more great and interesting stuff! ^.^

Please respect that all content, including photos and text are 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!

Tag Analog Cameras

Yashica’s J-Series of 35mm SLR Cameras from the 1960s

Fuji K-28

Revisiting a classic – Yashica Flex model S

Canon EOS 500N – lightweight 35mm SLR that’s perfect today.

Yashica 635 – Yashica’s dual format camera

The Minolta 35, a Leica re-imagined

Yashica’s First 35mm Cameras – 1958-59

Yashica Pentamatic S Sales Brochure

Fuji Panorama Cardia – 1991

From the ‘Plastic Fantastic’ period of Fuji Photo Film comes this awesome little 35mm compact camera.

Nicca 3-S on location