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Join date: April 2014
Status: Long, long time Contax and Yashica user; glad to be here and hope to contribute.
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on Aug 24, 2014 11:55:40 GMT
Posted: Aug 24, 2014 11:55:40 GMT
Imagine my joy when, for the princely sum of £100, I picked up a working Yashica FX-A, Contax Preview and a mint Tamron 70-350 f4.5.
I've taken a piccie of the weird mirror on the FX-A - those markings are invisible when you look through the viewfinder; all you see is 3 'bracketing' symbols which denote the critical point of focus. I have never been able to find a User Manual or technical details that would explain the hybrid focusing system employed by this very rare camera; under 900 were made and most went to US law enforcement agencies.
The Contax Preview deserves to be on the Yashica Forum as it uses the FX-3's shutter, unlike its later cousin the Preview II which uses the much more sophisticated shutter found in the S2.
The Tamron lens is a stunner - a SP in all but name! It is a massive beast, with an all-metal body and mount construction and it uses glass with a high refractive index for its variator and compensating groups, leading to a remarkable absence of CA even with modern DSLRs. It is reputedly as sharp as the legendary SP 70-210 f3.5 one-touch and my early impressions confirm this; strangely, for such a rare lens, this is the second I've bought here in the UK in the last months - now I have to decide which one to keep...
 
Right - time to load some Fuji Velvia and go and play! |
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on Aug 25, 2014 4:17:15 GMT
Posted: Aug 25, 2014 4:17:15 GMT
A wonderful haul there, biggles. Did the Preview come with the right angle finder?
PF
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Group: Moderator
Post: 2,040 (563 liked)
Join date: April 2014
Status: Long, long time Contax and Yashica user; glad to be here and hope to contribute.
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on Aug 25, 2014 12:57:19 GMT
Posted: Aug 25, 2014 12:57:19 GMT
A wonderful haul there, biggles. Did the Preview come with the right angle finder? PF I'm pleased to confirm that it did - though the rubber ring on the eyepiece was a bit deformed, probably due to the way it was stored. It was evidently original as it had the Preview label on it; quite often if you buy a Preview with a R/A Finder, it is a standard one without the extra label. Thank goodness Fuji still makes instant film at affordable prices for these old cameras.
I suppose we could realistically include the Contax Preview in the Yashica SLR line-up because of its FX-3 shutter...
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on Aug 26, 2014 16:17:34 GMT
Last Edit: Aug 26, 2014 16:18:03 GMT by ridgeblue99
Yes, the Premier is fine here. The Contax G on the other hand...too bad it never had a Yashica version.
PF
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Group: Moderator
Post: 2,040 (563 liked)
Join date: April 2014
Status: Long, long time Contax and Yashica user; glad to be here and hope to contribute.
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on Aug 26, 2014 21:25:52 GMT
Posted: Aug 26, 2014 21:25:52 GMT
Yes, the Premier is fine here. The Contax G on the other hand...too bad it never had a Yashica version. PF Too true - a modern Yashica rangefinder which shared the G-mount would have found many devotees, especially if the usual price differential with Contax was maintained.
Thinking again about the Preview, how many members of this Forum recall the only other way to use conventional Polaroid film (I use the term conventional as I used to use their lovely 35mm instant films too) on a Contax (sadly not Yashica) camera - the NPC Forscher Proback... I have the 3 types they produced: 1 for the RTS, an enhanced version for the RTSII, and finally the one made for the RTSIII. They still work superbly today using Fuji instant film. The great advantage of them - their had to be some justification for spending a small fortune on them - was that unlike the Preview, you had the full range of metering (none on the Preview) and faster shutter speeds as well as the ability to use remote control functions via the electronic shutters.
I've added a rather poor photo of the Preview and an RTS Fundus with the NPC back for those with long memories and hankering for 'the good old days'.
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on Aug 27, 2014 2:50:44 GMT
Posted: Aug 27, 2014 2:50:44 GMT
I never got far enough in my short "pro" career to justify buying one of those. I did shoot Polaroid in 4x5 though.
PF
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Group: Moderator
Post: 2,040 (563 liked)
Join date: April 2014
Status: Long, long time Contax and Yashica user; glad to be here and hope to contribute.
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on Aug 27, 2014 13:19:16 GMT
Posted: Aug 27, 2014 13:19:16 GMT
4x5 - now that's where Polaroid film came into its own - such a super format.
I needed the Preview/NPC backs because I used a multi-flash set up for creative and advertising work and getting the balance of light and colour filters was tricky just by eye. I used 3 or 4 Contax RTF540 units, often with a range of their colour filters, and for creative work shooting at a 5fps strobe mode to capture movement against a black backdrop. My books featured conventional gymnastics shots taken in training or at competitions but the studio photos were my favourites and I deeply regret having sold them with copyright about 20 years ago.
As I still have the RTF540s, perhaps one day I'll hire a studio and re-shoot some of those images. I also fancy seeing if the Yashica FR1 will work with the Contax PMD - not at the High speed setting but at 3fps; it shares the Sugaya shutter with the RTS, it's just a question of the strength of the film transport mechanisms...
Do you still have some 4x5 gear?
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on Aug 30, 2014 1:40:04 GMT
Posted: Aug 30, 2014 1:40:04 GMT
No, sadly that went ten years ago when I auctioned off all my gear but my Dad's Argus CC, a Nikon N90s outfit, and my first Yashica (GTN). Have stuck to 35 and 120 since then, with one digicam.
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