Fujifilm Instax Wide 300 Review

September 8, 2016June 28, 2017Chris and Carol 1 Comment

I wish Yashica was still around… the ‘real’ Yashica from Japan not H.K.

But they’re not so what’s a Yashica freak to do if you want to review new gear and new film formats? Well you turn to my go to camera makers (for the record; Yashica, Canon, Fujifilm)… Fuji Photo Company as they used to be known. Now just Fujifilm. I do appreciate the Fujica line of cameras and would love to own a Fujicaflex and a Fujicarex! But I wander as I often do.

I’ve had my eye on the line of Instax film cameras from Fujifilm ever since they introduced the Instax film (I might have been a little behind the times here). Anyway, since I’ve almost always have had an instant film camera… Polaroids and the Kodak EK4, I decided to splurge and get the Fujifilm Instax Wide 300. Why? The format. I like wide shots and the Wide 300 gives a nearly 62 x 99mm image in bright color.

The Instax Wide 300… a simple camera… clean lines and has a nice feel to it.

Plenty of places to get a good grip on this camera… the large handle on the camera’s right side is just the right size (for me) to get a grip. With the camera in off, the built in lens shield slides into place. The shutter release button is in a good spot… my only complaint is that it lacks feedback when you push it. Only the actual sound of the shutter firing inside (if you can hear it) lets you know it’s tripped. Of course the picture does pop out immediately on top with the typical motor noise of an instant camera which confirms the shutter was fired. Minor detail.

Lens extended in its fully open position (close-up photography).

Once you get the feel of where the viewfinder is in relationship to your right eye it’s actually very bright and gives a good view of the actual lens image.

The access to the film compartment couldn’t be easier… it opens a full 90 degrees to make loading film quick and easy. The LCD shows basic info… flash on, image number and the plus or minus exposure compensation.

Open back with empty film pack.

Pictures pop out via this slot on top of the camera.

A small sample of the images taken today with the Fuji. Shot at around early afternoon in bright Florida sunlight. The colors are vivid and because the film speed is 800 the sharpness and detail are nice.

Back inside for a studio shot.

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It’s a big camera (really big) and has some heft to it. I had more than a few looks as the picture ejects from the top with that familiar instant camera sound. That’s not the standard strap… it’s a little thing and I like to have something wider around my neck.

Bold colors under bright sunlight. An excellent daylight film.

Back to the future with instant film. The Fujifilm Instax Wide 300 is a hit with me.

The camera is a point and shoot… well OK it does have two settings on the lens… 3 meters to infinity and 3 meters to 0.9. It does have an auxiliary close-up lens that I’ll try out next pack of film. It has a built in flash that worked great for daytime fill ins and you can adjust the exposure plus 1 or minus 1. Takes 4 AA batteries (which I love).

It would be cooler if it sported this logo!

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So would I recommend the Fujifilm Instax Wide 300 camera? Yes and Yes! Mine was purchased online for around $86 from B&H and another $10 for two 10 exposure film packs. It was a great deal and it included free shipping. At fifty cents per image you can’t go wrong!

Enjoy!

Thanks for the visit!

Chris and Carol ^.^

New Pentamatic Brochure

September 3, 2016December 23, 2016Chris and Carol Leave a comment

Recently we’ve come across a nice Yashica Pentamatic sales brochure from Germany. It looks to have been printed around early 1961 as another brochure that was with it (same style) is for the Yashica Rapide camera and it was introduced in 1961.

Yashica sales brochure for the Pentamatic. Nothing new about the Pentamatic is noted… probably came out in early 1961.

What is surprising to me is that only two other lenses are shown in this brochure besides the standard 5.5 cm f/1.8 normal lens. Surprising because by early 1961 Yashica had at least three other lenses for the Pentamatic that we are aware of. The 35 mm f/2.8 and the 100 mm f/2.8 pictured are fantastic lenses designed and built for Yashica by Tomioka Optical of Tokyo. It is possible that in Germany the other lenses were not available in 1961. Just a guess.

Full front and back cover scan of the brochure. The back cover shows various accessories available for the Pentamatic.

The Yashica Rapide brochure pictures two different flashes for the Rapide. The one on the right of the camera is identified as the Yashica Quick Lite 11 (or is it II)? Not sure on these as we’ve yet to find them in another brochure.

Scan of the back cover of the Rapide brochure showing two flash units for the Yashica Rapide camera. One identified as the Yashica Quick Lite 11 (???).

Prior to seeing this brochure, we were not aware of Yashica branded flashbulbs. We would love to find those and add them to our collection. Hint hint!

Thanks for the visit!

C&C

Hello and Welcome! Update 2.2.2017

August 10, 2016February 2, 2017Chris and Carol 1 Comment

Welcome to our blog about a very simple camera made by a company in Japan. We (Carol and Chris) are “Yashica Fanatics”, so it was a natural for us to start this blog dedicated to one of Yashica’s least known cameras. Most film camera aficionados might have some basic knowledge of the Pentamatic. They may have seen it in passing… usually fuzzy images on the web with often misleading info to boot. It’s a rather odd looking SLR with just enough quirks to make it interesting (to us at least). It was never a big time seller for Yashica but its true value was as a platform for innovation and invention for the designers at Yashica.

We fell in love with the Pentamatic’s clean lines and “modern” design. The presentation box was as unique as the camera itself.

Our “goal” here at the ‘Yashica Pentamatic Fanatic’ is to expose as many people as we can to the Pentamatic and to the company that conceived it. Please feel free to add to our knowledge base… if something is incorrect please let us know. If you know something about it or any of the topics we blog about… once again, please share it! We would love to here from you!

Another goal is to share our passion for photography. It’s been a part of our daily lives since we were born. I can’t remember the first picture that I ever shot – it probably was a mess – but I can remember one of the most special pictures I ever took – a picture of my parents.

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My mom Mary and me in of all places, Vegas. We were on a big family vacation from New York to California – Christmas 1960. My dad Paul took this picture. Yep, my first camera – a Kodak for Christmas (notice that I was holding it up to show it off). My mom was holding a freshly taken Polaroid from my dad’s Pathfinder 110 Polaroid. Pictures – cameras – family.

Many many thanks for your visit… Chris and Carol ^.^

Pigeon 35 by Shinano Camera Co., Ltd.

August 1, 2016April 30, 2019Chris and Carol 9 Comments

Why show a 35mm viewfinder camera on a blog about the Yashica Pentamatic? Well, Shinano and Yashima-Yashica share a common history. The first camera that carried the Yashima name was the Pigeonflex… a twin-lens reflex (TLR) camera!

Anyway here’s a nice example of a gorgeous 35 mm viewfinder camera that we acquired recently. The lens is made by Tomioka… a sharp (we hope) Tri-Lausar f/ 3.5 4.5 cm lens. NKS shutter B – 1/200.

It’s a nice heavyweight camera that has a good feel to it. In our opinion, it’s far from being a cheaply built camera as some would say. In fact, it still functions as intended after 6 decades of use. Most leather cases would be a complete mess after this amount of time but the leather is nice and the stitching is intact.

1952 Pigeon 35 by Shinano.

Nice view of the Tomioka lens.

Beautiful logo on this metal cap.

Classic style. The top plate of the Pigeon 35.

After 6 decades of use, the case has held up nicely.

Interesting bottom plate

More to come! By the way, everything works just fine! Can’t wait to run a roll of film through it. Images of the leather case to follow too!

Thanks for stopping by! – Chris

My camera shop is always open at http://www.ccstudio2380.com

A Couple of ‘New’ Yashicas

April 28, 2016December 30, 2016Chris and Carol 3 Comments

ヤシカ… A couple of new Yashicas have caught our fancy. From 1986 and during Yashica’s ‘dark period’ when they were taken over by Kyocera, this super nice (and truly new) Yashica MF-2 Super DX. To be sure it’s a very plastic camera but it’s filled with some nice high tech features… DX coding of the film speed, automatic exposure and built in flash. No focus needed as the lens can focus from about 3 feet to infinity (and beyond!!!).

The other member of the Yashica family is this nice almost 100% mint Yashica-A with gray leather and silky black metalwork. It’s from 1959 and works perfectly… shutter speeds are spot on and the aperture blades are snappy. No self timer on these basic models from Yashica, but they hit a great price point with buyers and had a long production run.

Yashica-A in gray with the original gray leather case. From 1959.

Yashica-A in gray leather and black metal. The Kodak film is close to the correct era (late 1950s).

Low key effect photograph. It gives the camera a bit of an edgy look.

Interesting lens serial numbers on this camera. The taking lens SN (pictured) is only 19 numbers less than the viewing lens. Almost spot on (haven’t seen that yet). Of course these lenses were made by Tomioka Optical of Tokyo for Yashica.

Brand new and never used (isn’t that the same?) Yashica MF-2 Super DX 35mm rangefinder camera from 1986. Parts made in Japan and assembled in Hong Kong.

Low key photograph gives this pretty but humble camera a nice look.

As always we appreciate your visit to our blog… feel free to comment. Many thanks and big smiles… C&C

Yashica ヤシカ J-3 in Pro-Black

April 4, 2016December 24, 2016Chris and Carol 1 Comment

Another of our favorites in the Yashica family. This limited edition J-3 is rather rare to find in nearly new condition these days. We haven’t found evidence from Yashica of the when and why they chose this model to be their first SLR in black (with matching lens). In all the brochures and pamphlets we’ve been able to read, nothing has ever been written about it and no pictures from Yashica either. We’ve checked Japanese home market sales brochures and of course those available in English. Not one word! The serial numbers (both the bodies and lenses) run within a small time period of mid 1962 (we believe).

***Please if a reader has more information about this elusive J let us know!

J-3 finished a roll of Sakura film.

Not quite the heavyweight the Pentamatic is but still a beast at just over 900 grams!

Same family but very distant cousins! Yashica made countless changes in its SLR line-up in just under three years.

As always… thanks for the visit!

Chris & Carol

Yashica Flex Model S… 1954 to 1957

February 16, 2016February 12, 2017Chris and Carol 3 Comments

The Yashica Flex model S (aka Yashicaflex) is one of Yashima’s most important early cameras… well maybe the second most important behind the first. Obviously Yashima’s first camera, the oddly named Pigeonflex one could argue, was the most important. The model S though was the first twin-lens reflex (TLR) camera (in the world!!!) that had a “built-in” exposure meter.

The Yashica ‘Sailor Boys’ gather around the Yashica Flex model S. The boys are from 1962 and this TLR is from late 1956.

The Sekonic CB-1 exposure meter was attached to the camera’s left side and the light gathering cells were located under the nameplate flap. They were connected to one another but the meter was non-coupled to the camera settings. The user would lift the flap to expose the cells to light and then read the exposure index in the window on top of the meter. Then simply set the camera to the proper f-stop and shutter speed and snap away. No batteries required. But with the passage of time most of these meters failed in some way or another. If you find one with a working meter so much the better.

Yashica-Mat EM from 1964. The exposure meter and light gathering cells were moved to the front and top… no more flaps to raise and we were a bit closer to being coupled. This EM has a working exposure meter which is pretty amazing after 50 plus years!

Close-up of the Sekonic CB-1 exposure meter on the Yashica Flex S.

Exposure meter scale for setting the f-stop and shutter speed.

Exposure meter light gathering cells located under the Yashica Flex nameplate.

Exposure meter on the Yashica-Mat EM.

Close-up view of the aperture and shutter speed settings on the EM.

Yashica-Mat EM exposure meter and exposure scale. Film speed is set at ASA 400.

So there you have it… a short (very short) history of some groundbreaking cameras from Yashima/Yashica. For more on Yashica’s awesome array of TLRs visit my friend Paul’s site at http://www.yashicatlr.com

Paul’s site is a labor of love and if you want to know anything about Yashima/Yashica that’s the place. We hope to bring some more Pentamatic blogs your way soon. We are of course, The Yashica Pentamatic Fanatic!

Thanks, Chris & Carol

Pentamatic II Brochure

December 18, 2015February 28, 2017Chris and Carol 1 Comment

We finally have our proof that the original Pentamatic ’35’ and the Pentamatic II were advertised and sold in the Japanese domestic market. This brochure is dated February 1961 which validates the general release date of the model II. We have proof (via advertisements and brochures) that the Pentamatic S was also available for sale in Japan towards late 1961 (September?). By the way, included is this photo stream is a nice aerial view of Yashica’s factory complex in Suwa, Nagano Prefecture.

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Yashica TL Electro-X ‘ITS’

December 2, 2015January 30, 2017Chris and Carol 5 Comments

After nearly five years of research and thousands of “searches” on auction sites, I finally have my answer! ‘ITS‘ as it relates to the famous and groundbreaking Yashica TL Electro-X stands for… are you ready? Nothing!

That’s right… nothing. I’ve just finished reading what appears to be the most comprehensive guidebook on the TL Electro-X (from Yashica no less) and not one word as to why the marketing guys and gals at the office in Shibuya picked ‘ITS‘ to appear on the lower left front of the camera. Not one hint… no clues… nothing!

Okay so more than likely it was meant to mean exactly that… nothing. I can live with that. Marketing people don’t have to explain anything they do. ‘ITS‘ simply looks good. So fast forward from 1968 to the present day. Hear I am stressed out about what may have been a whim… an afterthought… or maybe something one of the designers casually mentioned in a meeting while you know, designing the thing. ‘ITS’… sounds good.

I’ve imagined what it may mean hundreds of times (sad to admit that) and nothing really fits for the time period except that maybe the ‘I‘ stands for “integrated”. Like integrated circuit or I.C. as I’ve sometimes seen it mentioned in other Yashica sales brochures. That’s got to be it. After all, the NASA people were always using that term during the height of the space race. Okay so maybe we now know that the ‘I‘ stands for “integrated”. Simple. The ‘T‘ has always stood for “technology” to me. What else would the ‘T‘ stand for? Timed? As in timed shutter. Oh that’s a good guess. I like it. Maybe the ‘TS’ part is for “timed shutter”? That’s another good one. Integrated… Timed… Shutter!!! Or how about “Interval” timed shutter? That’s ‘ITS‘ isn’t it?

Solved! Finished! No more worries right? No… that isn’t it. It’s got to mean something else. Something catchy, something better than that. Well the book (sales brochure) I just finished reading never mentioned what the ‘ITS‘ stood for. Just like the hundred other brochures and ads I’ve read. But wait! Hold on! There on the cover is a clue! There it is right in front of me! “SYSTEM”. Yashica called everything connected with the TL Electro-X ITS (lenses, filters, bellows, angle finders, accessories, etc.) SYSTEM.

So there it is! That was simple. Right? Well we’ll see. I’m going to keep on looking for that definitive statement from Yashica. Somewhere in black and white they’ll say it. For now though I’m sticking with… “Integrated Technology System” or “ITS” for brevity.

ITS = Integrated Technology System

A 45 page book from Yashica that explains everything about this fantastic camera.

No denying it – it’s a sharp looking camera and the ‘ITS’ just makes it that much cooler. It’s one of our favorite Yashicas in our collection. This one came to us via Okinawa, Japan. Purchased in late 1973 – that makes it one of our newest Yashica SLRs too. We’ve kept all of the original paperwork and of course the box. If you come across a nice looking one for sale (or better still get it as a gift) it should be on your list of must haves. The battery is an easy find and most will have working meters since they were only electronic (no moving match needle affair).

Happy hunting!

Chris and Carol ^.^

Restoring a Yashima Yashicaflex A-II from 1955

October 7, 2015December 28, 2016Chris and Carol 3 Comments

After some light sanding and cleaning with lacquer thinner a cast on serial number was under the painted on one.

After some light sanding and cleaning with lacquer thinner, an etched or cast-in serial number was under the painted one

Finally found something that removes the 60 year old enamel from the nameplate

Yashicaflex A-II Box

Six decades of dirt and moisture = corrosion… Big Time!

Over the next few months (turns out 14 months) I hope to be able to document my attempt to “restore” my 1955 Yashima Yashicaflex A-II. I have years of experience in cleaning and adjusting TLRs and SLRs, but I’ve never attempted a complete restoration on this scale. So why the Yashicaflex? Well it’s relatively common (especially in Japan), not necessarily a historic camera in terms of Yashima’s history, and it was in really bad physical condition overall. So why not? It was purchased from a seller located in Hiroshima, Japan, and if you know anything about Japan, Hiroshima is in the very hot and humid southern part of Honshu. When it arrived, I had to pry the camera away from the leather case as the two had become welded to one another. It must have been trapped in that case for years. The leather case with the felt liner did a good job of holding the moisture against the aluminum body of the camera hence the super bad pitting and overall corrosion. The leatherette covering on the camera was so brittle it just fell away in some areas but has stayed super stuck in others. I’ve had little success so far in removing it. So sit back and enjoy my “interpretive restoration” of this vintage Yashica. The good news… even with all the corrosion the lenses appear to be fungus and mold free! The lenses were made by Tomioka Optical for Yashima and somehow managed to avoid the ravages of moisture. The shutter works well, the aperture blades are clean and snappy and the focus is sharp. The reflex mirror was original and it looks terrible. I ordered a new one custom cut to fit. This camera will be a “user” so I will appreciate a clear view and sharp focus.

July 2014… my first look at what I would be up against!

My first look at this disaster! Pretty nasty!

Yep… lots of dirt!

Nasty… nasty… nasty!

Slow progress being made. Some of the paint removers did nothing to the 60 year old paint!

‘Simple Green’ did nothing! A total of nearly 6 hours of soaking and a stiff scrubbing… not even a hint of paint removed.

More parts to clean. Keeping track of all the removed screws and what-nots will be critical.

The major assemblies removed from the body. Lower right (blue thingy) is the new custom cut mirror

Close-up view of the camera back showing the radical pitting of the aluminum body.

Serial number painted on and the original factory black enamel peeling off.

Chasing Classic Cameras with Chris

Yashica cameras and so much more!

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