Yashica TLR Thread

[Q.G.]

Yashica equipment is nothing to sneer at, and it still sparks nostalgia among many Japanese here. They are great TLRs when you can't afford $2000+ for a Rolleiflex.

I'd agree that Yashicas are quite decent cameras.
But mind that a "good for the money"-type defence will only (and correctly) increase the sneer-factor.
A camera is good or not, no matter how expensive or cheap it is, or how expensive or cheap other cameras are.

 

[tac]

I love love love my Yashica TLR's , I have published with my Kodak 104, then waved my M6 under the sneer-guys noses. Smell this, and weep, fools!

 

[cooltouch]

My first MF camera was a Yashica Mat 124G I bought in 1984. I had always been very impressed with the images it produced, and even came to rely on its meter. Sold it in about 1990 or so when I bought a clean old Rolleiflex Automat with Schneider Xenar 3.5 lens. Honestly, I don't think the Rollei was any better. Maybe not even as good. Sold the Rollei a few years ago and was TLR-less for a while, then bought a 124 (not a G) earlier this year. Wow, it was really nice stepping back into Yashica Mat ownership again. The images this camera delivers are simply superb.

 

[Anscojohn]

I have an absolutely pristine Yashica 12. It has tremendous sentimental value. My Dad bought it from my best friend who bought it in Okinawa. I found it among my Dad's things after he died. I don't think he ever used it. The battery had corroded the terminal in the camera, but Mark Hama fixed it and did a complete CLA on it. Because I have a Blad and a Ukrainian "Bladski" I rarely use the Yashica.
Oh, and my first modern TLR (after the Argoflex my Dad gave me) was a Yashica D, bought new in 1961, with a Honeywell Tilta-Mite flash gun and a roll of Plux-X for $54.40.

 

[brian d]

As I understand it at least some of the later Yashica's offer the choice of 120 or 220 film. could somebody tell which models have this option?

Glad to see your still here Anscojohn

 

[Rocky]

I still have a pristine Yashica Mat 124G. You set the pressure plate for 120 or 220 film. I sold my first one because of my wife....exwife now, and when I could afford it, bought a new one again...one of the last ones because Yashica had stopped production by then. No one could ever tell the pics weren't from a Hassie unless I told them....a solid performer.

 

[filmamigo]

Brian D: the Yashica 12 was 120-only, the Yashica 24 was 220-only, and the Yashica 124 was a contraction of the two names, meaning you could choose between 120 and 220!

My first medium format cameras were a pair of Yashicas -- a rough LM and a slightly less rough 12. I bought them because I was disappointed at the results I was getting from 35mm film and when I looked into the photographs that I loved, I learned they were shot on medium format. Well, coming from a Spotmatic F and a Nikon F80, these Yashicas were quite a puzzle. Especially since these Yashicas were in sad shape, probably unused for 20 years, and had stiff/seized parts. I decided to sell the LM and keep the 12, because it was newer and had modern shutter speeds. I should have kept the LM, because the lens was better. Even after a CLA I ended up selling the 12.

Fast forward a few years, and my dad found another LM at a flea market. It was covered in grime -- and I didn't think it was very promising. Well, the grime seemed to actually protect the camera. After a thorough cleaning this LM looks like new. I shot a test roll, and the Yashinon lens is delivering the amazing quality I remember from my first LM. Most of the shutter speeds were good, but the slow speeds are sticky so I have sent the camera for a CLA.

Since I started with those first Yashicas, my arsenal has expanded (including a Bronica kit and a Rollei 2.8f) but I am looking forward to keeping and using this second-chance Yashica for a long time.

 

[Ian Grant]

The first MF camera I used at school was as 124G, grain like golf balls as the camera shop sold me D163 (Universal developer) to process the film. I did a swap over a long weekend with a friend my 35mm Zenit E for his TLR.

I bought a 124 3 years ago here on APUG and it gets used and abused on my travels, while it's a good camera it's just not quite up to the quality of my Rolleiflex 3.5F & Xenotar at wider apertures, but it's not as precios either

Ian

 

[brian d]

Brian D: the Yashica 12 was 120-only, the Yashica 24 was 220-only, and the Yashica 124 was a contraction of the two names, meaning you could choose between 120 and 220!

Thanks!

 

[djhopscotch]

Just picked up a Yashica 635. Probably going to be my medium format of choice for an upcoming trip to France. Its a spiffy camera.

 

[guitstik]

filmamigo, I beg to differ on the Yashica 24 only using 220 as I have covered this in another post. I seem to end up with camera stuff that is off the radar so to speak like the Rolleiflex film door that takes cut film and has a removable pressure plate for 120 film as well. My 24 falls into that category because it is set up from the factory to take both 220 and 120 film. Check out the pics I posted in this thread.
(there was a url link here which no longer exists)

 

[Ian Grant]

filmamigo, I beg to differ on the Yashica 24 only using 220 as I have covered this in another post. I seem to end up with camera stuff that is off the radar so to speak like the Rolleiflex film door that takes cut film and has a removable pressure plate for 120 film as well. My 24 falls into that category because it is set up from the factory to take both 220 and 120 film. Check out the pics I posted in this thread.
(there was a url link here which no longer exists)

I wonder if your 24 was deliberately factory modified to the dual format capability to get remaining 24 camera's out in the market place. The 12 would be harder to modify. In addition 220 only cameras would be quite impractical when few films were available in that size, so Yashica may have had quite a stock unsold.

Ian

 

[fmajor]

The 1st MF camera i ever shot was a Yashica Mat124. It belongs to a friend and is in like new condition. I was amazed at the huge ground glass and how bright it was. I've since bought a Minolta Autocord and am assembling a Mamiya RB kit, but i'll always remember that Yashica Mat124.

 

[brian d]

The 1st MF camera i ever shot was a Yashica Mat124. It belongs to a friend and is in like new condition. I was amazed at the huge ground glass and how bright it was. I've since bought a Minolta Autocord and am assembling a Mamiya RB kit, but i'll always remember that Yashica Mat124.

Not trying to take the thread in a different direction, but just wait till you look at a 4x5 (or larger) ground glass:w00t:

 

[Richard Kelham]

I had a YashicaMat in the late '60s. Good camera – used it a lot until I broke it! The Yashinon lens was as good as the Rollei Tessar, but the build quality lagged behind.

Then I tried a Hasselblad....

 

[guitstik]

I wonder if your 24 was deliberately factory modified to the dual format capability to get remaining 24 camera's out in the market place. The 12 would be harder to modify. In addition 220 only cameras would be quite impractical when few films were available in that size, so Yashica may have had quite a stock unsold.

Ian

If you think about it, when the last 24 came off of the assembly line 220 film was still prevalent. Mine may have been among the last before Yashica tooled up for the 124 and so was a precursor to it.

 

[Ian Grant]

If you think about it, when the last 24 came off of the assembly line 220 film was still prevalent. Mine may have been among the last before Yashica tooled up for the 124 and so was a precursor to it.

My point is more that back in the early to mid 1960's 220 was not actually "prevalent", sure it was about but not widespread and certainly not the same full range of films that were available in 120.

Ian

 

[Q.G.]

My point is more that back in the early to mid 1960's 220 was not actually "prevalent", sure it was about but not widespread and certainly not the same full range of films that were available in 120.

In the early 1960s, 220 film was still in the process of being invented. By the mid-1960s, the first ones were beginning to become available.
So, yes indeed.

 

[2F/2F]

I am looking forward to getting my Yashica D fixed. I have not used it yet. I want to see what the pix look like so I can see if it is something I can use, already having a Rollei 3.5F. The Rollei is pretty beat, so I don't have to worry about keeping it pristine, but it can get quite heavy on a strap while hiking, so I tend to pack it, which means that it gets used less in the interest of time and keeping momentum up during a hike. I got it for dirt when I worked for an estate sales company. I paid $100 for a nice Nikkormat with case and three lenses, an Omega B22 with lens and carriers, the Yashica, and a bunch of Zeiss 3-1/4x4-1/4 dual purpose film/plate holders.

 

[Galah]

...just cant see the point in using 35 film in a MF camera...

I read, somewhere, that it was intended to be used as a potrait-taking feature (only), in which case it would use the centre of the lens and may be seen to give a better head and shoulders "format"?

 

[Galah]

Looking over a Yashica 635 tomorrow

Hi, I'm looking over a Yashica 635 TLR tomorrow (on Friday), with the intention of buying it, should things work out.

If it works out, this will be my first foray into MF

Where I live, I'm fortunate in that I already have available a reliable supply of film and a professional lab to process and print it for me. (I have already been using them for 35mm stuff for years.)

 

[J V McLure]

I have finally collected the entire like of Yashica TLR's and have them in working order. As for the one to use, my first one is still the best. The Yashica Mat without a meter. A joy to use and it produces fine results. My grandfather gave me that camera a little over 4o years ago. It is now a treasure for many reasons.

 

[BoxBrownie]

I too have the 635 which I got on EBay from Pakistan for about GBP38. The build quality is excellent. It feels more solid than either the Rolleicord Va or the Minolta Autocord I have and when I took a few pics out in a field of flowering plants (stopped down to F11) I was quite blown away by the detail. The lens has a few scratches so I wasn't expecting too much. Also the little metal rollers that help transport the film smoothly had ceased up and were scratching my first few reels, but once i figured out what it was a few drops of IPA got them moving. The camera looked like it had been used forever with various service workshop fixes (odd different screws etc) but it works perfectly. It made me realise that a camera doesn't have to be in great cosmetic condition (optics included) to still turn out good images. Never used the 35mm kit though. Has anyone got any examples of portraits taken with the 35mm adaptor?

 

[Galah]

Well, I've gone and done it!

I have purchased a Yashica 635 TLR (as cheap as they come ) with a set of #2 close-up lenses, in order to check out if MF is for me or not.

So far, I have run a roll of Fuji 120 400 H through it (with the help of a Gossen Lunasix-3) and it's with the processors as we speak (back Friday: I can't wait to see it )

So far, the experience has been quite pleasant: easy to load, all the controls are handy and intuitive. The shutter button is easy to access and release (easy to hand-hold) and the shutter is very quiet and quick (no long train of mirror lift, first shutter, second shutter, mirror down etc): just a barely audible click, and that's it!

Now waiting to see if it all worked

 

[Wade D]

Yashica TLR's are a very fun bunch of cameras. Easy to load. Hand holdable. Very quiet. The 'D' I have has served me well for 30 years.