twosday 2 fer – Random Yashica

October 11, 2022October 11, 2022Chris and Carol 2 Comments

A couple of images were recently “discovered” in my image files.

The Yashica Pentamatic ’35’ was Yashica’s first 35mm SLR. Designed with the assistance of Nicca camera which Yashica acquired in 1958.

The Yashica Flex S was the first TLR (twin-lens reflex) to have an attached but uncoupled exposure meter attached. The Minicam flash was a very popular flash unit in the mid-1950s.

Thanks for stopping by! – Chris

Follow me on Instagram at @ccphotographyai

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.

A Yashica A III and its ‘hat’…

September 14, 2022September 14, 2022Chris and Carol Leave a comment

I’m a sucker for a classic camera that looks like it was in a museum its whole life and still works like new (who wouldn’t?). I especially love vintage cameras that have some if not all of their original marketing bits and pieces. Here is a perfect example of why I collect and chase classic cameras.

This terrific little eye-catcher is affectionately known as a ‘hat’. That piece of paperboard that’s sitting on top of my Yashica A III. When you went into a camera shop back in the day, there were dozens of shiney new cameras wanting to catch your eye. One way to do so was to plop a hat on your camera to make it stand out and communicate something in the briefest of glances.

Nothing Earth-shaking but enough to tell you something without asking the salesperson anything. The price, some shutter specs, and of course, the type of lens. A nice leather case for another 800 yen. I’ve had a few of these hats from Yashica in my collection and they never fail to put a smile on my face (I know, I’m easily entertained). Thanks for stopping by. Have you seen a similar thing on another brand’s TLR? If so, let me know, or better yet share a pic. Chris

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wordless wednesday (almost wordless)

May 11, 2022May 11, 2022Chris and Carol Leave a comment

Mamiya C33 twin-lens reflex (TLR) camera from 1965.

Studio Camera – Fujifilm X-A10 with Fujinon Super EBC XC 16-50mm Lens

Thanks for stopping by! – Chris

Yashima YashicaMat – 1957

May 6, 2022May 6, 2022Chris and Carol Leave a comment

Yashicamat, Yashica-Mat, YashicaMat – they’re all the same camera, and as was typical for Yashima (later Yashica) they had a difficult time staying consistent when it came to the way they named their cameras. At this point in time, Yashima had only been around since 1953 so I’ll cut them some slack. By 1958, Yashima became Yashica as the company adopted the name of its cameras.

So here is a super early sales brochure (Spring 1957) for the new YashicaMat 120 roll film twin-lens reflex (TLR) camera, the YashicaMat.

High-res scans are posted below from my own brochure.

Front cover.

What I find interesting is that the camera that’s depicted is the very first version of the model with a 75mm Lumaxar f3.5 taking lens (bottom lens) that were only available for a very short time before being replaced by the lens described in the brochure – 80mm Lumaxar f3.5 lens. There’s no written history to definitively know why the change was made so quickly or why they switched at all. It’s possible Tomioka Optical had difficulty providing enough 75mm lenses to meet the production demands of Yashima.

Inside centerspread. Look closely and you can just barely see 75mm on the bottom portion of the lens retaining ring (bottom lens). Both lenses say Lumaxar with the viewing lens (top lens) the clearest of the two.

Back cover scan below.

Back cover. Yashima’s camera line-up as of early 1957 (newest models).

If you look closely at this back cover you can see Yashima’s full corporate name – Yashima Optical Industries, Company, Limited, and their headquarters were located in Shibuya in Tokyo. The factory was in Suwa, Nagano Prefecture, and later Shimosuwa.

Thanks for stopping by and if you chase down a nice Yashica-Mat that you like be sure to check out my good friend Paul Sokk’s excellent TLR site at http://www.yashicatlr.com to learn more about the camera that you’re about to purchase. – Chris

Yashima Flex – 1954

February 5, 2022February 5, 2022Chris and Carol Leave a comment

Before they were known as Yashica they were Yashima and this is one of the first cameras to feature their original name. This is one of the nicest TLRs in my collection and I was thrilled to find it many years ago on an auction site in Japan. The original lenses were marked Tomioka Tri-Lausar and later just Yashinon. Tomioka Optical eventually became part of the Yashica Company.

This is an incredibly difficult camera to find for sale anywhere but a few do show up from time to time. Your best bet is to keep an eye out for one on Buyee (Yahoo Japan Auction) in Japan. Thanks for stopping by! – 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

More Yashica – Yashica Flex S – 1954

January 22, 2022January 22, 2022Chris and Carol 2 Comments

Also known as the Yashica Flex S. I’ve put together a nice complete set of this hard-to-find early TLR from Yashima-Yashica. As you can see on the box, at this point in time the company that would change its name in 1958 to Yashica was still Yashima Kogaku Seiki Company. The instruction book is in English as the camera was marketed by the Miura Trading Company and not directly marketed by Yashima. The Model S was the first TLR with a “built-in exposure meter”. The meter was simply a light meter made for Yashima by Sekonic and attached to the camera’s left side. The selenium cells for the meter are located under the nameplate which is a flap that swings upwards.

If you would like to know more about this landmark camera then I invite you to visit my good friend Paul Sokk’s Yashica TLR site at http://www.yashicatlr.com/66ModelsPage2.html

Paul’s work on the Yashica TLR family of cameras is second to none. He’s also included a wonderful addition to his pages with additional pages dedicated to Leica, Nicca, Leotax, Minolta, and others. Give his site a read and tell him Chris sent you!

Fujicaflex – Superman as a TLR!

November 8, 2021November 8, 2021Chris and Carol Leave a comment

Certainly a tough but worthy camera to chase. As of today, there are only two for sale on eBay and both are in Japan.

Heavy metal!

An example of a complete set. This wasn’t my camera but it was the same seller that sold me mine (from Thailand).

If Superman was disguised as a TLR he’d be the Fijicaflex by Fuji Photo Film Company. Thanks for stopping by! – 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

wordless wednesday

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

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 Heavyweights – 1960s glass & brass

June 2, 2021June 2, 2021Chris and Carol 2 Comments

Here is a fun visual comparison between three early Yashica cameras.

Yashica’s first 35mm SLR released in early 1960. The Pentamatic 35 with its fast f/1.8 lens was a neck breaker to be sure.

Yashica’s first modern 35mm SLR released shortly after the end of the Pentamatic series in 1962.

First released in 1964, the Yashica Mat EM (Exposure Meter) was and still is a very popular TLR (twin-lens reflex) 120 roll film camera. It features a built-in exposure meter powered by selenium cells. The meter on mine is still working and is accurate when shooting negative films.

What’s the heaviest camera in your collection? Not pictured here I’d say my fully decked out Canon F-1 with a motor drive and big f/1.2 lens is crazy heavy. I’ll have to dig it out and post the results here soon.

Yashica’s last TLR – Chasing a True Classic!

May 27, 2021May 27, 2021Chris and Carol 2 Comments

Yashica’s (Kyocera by this point) last TLR model. This one was part of the last run of the model before production shut down in 1986. Yashica (originally named Yashima) started off in 1953 with the obscure Pigeonflex TLR followed by the Yashima Flex and then continued to build TLRs way longer than the market could bear (or need). The good news is that the 124G can be found today in great quantities and cameras as “young” as 35 years-old.
It’s a very affordable way to get into medium format photography and in the case of this model, be able to use both 120 and 220 roll film giving you either 12 or 24 exposures.

After about 33 years of making TLRs, this was Yashica’s best.

A beauty – here’s what a modern TLR looked like back in 1985.

The design of the last box that held the 124G (1985-1986).

This gorgeous camera was the first to carry the company name – Yashica Flex made in 1954.

For contrast, compare the Yashima Flex to the Yashica Mat 124G. Their excellent build quality remained throughout the decades. If you’re chasing one of these for your collection you’re in luck because Yashica made a bunch of 124Gs and there’s a bunch still out there. Expect to pay a premium for mint examples but be careful, they’re still older cameras and a host of bad things can happen to them from lack of use and improper storage. Ask lots of questions of the seller if you’re buying online and look for sellers with excellent reputations for selling quality classic and vintage cameras. BTW, not too many of the original Yashima Flex cameras will look like my example pictured above. I was so very lucky to buy mine from the original owner in Japan who obviously kept it in pristine condition both physically and mechanically.

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Tag TLR Twin-lens Reflex