Quite rare, quite good.
... (plus, a short introduction to Yashica)
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| © tedguuphoto 2013 all rights reserved |
Before the 1960s, Japanese camera manufactures are producing much the same things; imitating the Leica's, Rollei's and other German camera brands. But by the year 1960, Japanese brands became more and more independent. So today, we will be taking a look at one of the most unique brands, proclaimed to be Japan's finest camera manufacturer - Yashica.
Yashica started it's TLR-making tradition since it was established in the early 50s. Back then, it's TLRs was still a Pigeon, literally a Pigeon...flex. It was a basic design comprising of a three elemental glass lens and a simple shutter mechanism found in the later Yashimaflex.
In 1965, Yashica introduced the 24, which in the later years became the basis for the 12, the 124, and the 124G. As the name suggests, the 24 is made to cater only 220 film which is hardly available fresh today. Yashica's advertisements and user manuals also doesn't seem to indicate whether 120 film can be used with the 24 or not, but many owners including me can get around this problem and here's a mini step-by-step guide on how to do so:
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- Open the back door as usual by turning the knob to the 'O' direction.
- After you've lifted the back door you'll find the film chamber in which the left over spool from the last roll of film will reside just under the taking lens.
- Take the empty spool off by pulling the exterior knob next to where the spool is and gently lift it out. After doing so, place the empty spool into the top part of the chamber.
- Insert the 120 film and lead it across the to the empty spool. Make sure the both the film and the paper backing slides between the two silvery metal bumps, not over it.
- After you're done loading, 'Go out and take some photos™'
- Just don't forget that the film counter will go on and on until it reaches 24 exposures, so make sure to stop at 12 so that you won't waste your time shooting nothing.
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| © tedguuphoto 2013 all rights reserved |
The Yashica 24 has a Yashinon branded four-element, 80mm f/3,5 taking lens with a Copal shutter, featuring speeds from 1 second up to 1/500th second with an addition of Bulb mode. As it is a leaf shutter, it is extremely quite and unobtrusive; no excuses for blurry shots!
The lens, as said before, is a four-elemental lens that performs quite brilliantly in most situations. Although not up to the standards of the Rolleiflexes/cords, the Yashinon 80mm f/3.5 does simply impress in terms of sharpness, especially at smaller apertures. At wide open, there are some noticeable vignetting and a tiny loss of sharpness.
The CdS meter on this camera is pretty impressive. For a start, getting the right exposure is much easier to do than other light meters I've seen on most film cameras; just line up the needle and the 'follow-pointer' and your good to go. The catch is, unlike it's predecessor, the Yashica 24 does not have a selenium cell and therefore needed a battery to operate. The battery used here is the typical 1.3V mercury cell which as explained before had already been outlawed by most countries, but alkaline/zinc-air replacements and adapters can be easily obtained at any camera stores.
Since Rollei TLRs are the top-dog in the industry and subsequently copied by Yashica, operating this camera is much the same as operating any other TLRs. You've got your focusing knob with distance scales on your left, the film advance crank on your right and the thumbwheels to adjust shutter speeds and aperture in front.
Both the taking lens and the viewing lens will mount all Bay I accessories including those from it's respective counterparts; Rollei and Minolta.
The Yashica 24 nowadays is already a rare find. Although not quite as rare as the Auto and the grey version 'B', the 24 is in for a lot of great demand. So if you're interested in owning one, be quick and don't wait for too long because in recent years, the Yashica 24 had skyrocketed in price, turning it into a ghastly deal.
Well, if TLRs are your thing and you want to try it out, the Yashica 24 is a great alternative to the Rolleiflexes and the Rolleicords at a fraction of the price. If you look hard enough you could squeeze $200 for a reasonably conditioned 24, and yes, with that deal, it is impossible to get close to the Rollei's and what will you get? A collector's item that would last for another century.
The lens, as said before, is a four-elemental lens that performs quite brilliantly in most situations. Although not up to the standards of the Rolleiflexes/cords, the Yashinon 80mm f/3.5 does simply impress in terms of sharpness, especially at smaller apertures. At wide open, there are some noticeable vignetting and a tiny loss of sharpness.
The CdS meter on this camera is pretty impressive. For a start, getting the right exposure is much easier to do than other light meters I've seen on most film cameras; just line up the needle and the 'follow-pointer' and your good to go. The catch is, unlike it's predecessor, the Yashica 24 does not have a selenium cell and therefore needed a battery to operate. The battery used here is the typical 1.3V mercury cell which as explained before had already been outlawed by most countries, but alkaline/zinc-air replacements and adapters can be easily obtained at any camera stores.
Since Rollei TLRs are the top-dog in the industry and subsequently copied by Yashica, operating this camera is much the same as operating any other TLRs. You've got your focusing knob with distance scales on your left, the film advance crank on your right and the thumbwheels to adjust shutter speeds and aperture in front.
Both the taking lens and the viewing lens will mount all Bay I accessories including those from it's respective counterparts; Rollei and Minolta.
The Yashica 24 nowadays is already a rare find. Although not quite as rare as the Auto and the grey version 'B', the 24 is in for a lot of great demand. So if you're interested in owning one, be quick and don't wait for too long because in recent years, the Yashica 24 had skyrocketed in price, turning it into a ghastly deal.
Well, if TLRs are your thing and you want to try it out, the Yashica 24 is a great alternative to the Rolleiflexes and the Rolleicords at a fraction of the price. If you look hard enough you could squeeze $200 for a reasonably conditioned 24, and yes, with that deal, it is impossible to get close to the Rollei's and what will you get? A collector's item that would last for another century.
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