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on Mar 1, 2019 3:11:10 GMT
Posted: Mar 1, 2019 3:11:10 GMT
I have recently started to get into Yashica half-frame cameras – well, film being expensive, it makes sense to get as many piccies out of a roll as is reasonable! This is the Yashica Sequelle and one of my favourites. Yashica went deliciously quirky with this camera and the Rapide as they don’t look like any of their other film cameras. It was great to find one in its original box. Sequelle kit
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Group: Moderator
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Status: Long, long time Contax and Yashica user; glad to be here and hope to contribute.
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on Mar 1, 2019 3:18:10 GMT
Posted: Mar 1, 2019 3:18:10 GMT
This is another of the strange-looking Yashica half-frame film cameras from the 1960s - the Rapide. Sadly, the selenium cell in this one is dead but everything else works beautifully. The strap you see at the base is not a carrying strap but is actually the equivalent of the wind-on lever; you pull it out to reset the shutter and move onto the next frame!
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on Mar 1, 2019 11:05:19 GMT
Posted: Mar 1, 2019 11:05:19 GMT
The sequelle looks like a very early predecessor of the SAMURAI (or the other way round )
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on Mar 1, 2019 11:31:15 GMT
Posted: Mar 1, 2019 11:31:15 GMT
The sequelle looks like a very early predecessor of the SAMURAI (or the other way round ) Yes, it's amazing to think that there's exactly 25 years between the Sequelle and the Samurai 3...but it's great that the quirkiness was maintained by Yashica/Kyocera...
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on Mar 2, 2019 14:32:56 GMT
Posted: Mar 2, 2019 14:32:56 GMT
This is another of my favourites - Yashica's Half 17 Rapid. This is an altogether more conventional camera than the oddball Sequelle and Rapide; once you get used to the thumbwheel wind-on, it's a breeze to operate thanks in no small part to its bright and easy to use viewfinder.
This shot was taken today as I wanted to compare the meters of the camera and YEM-15 which arrived only a day ago. They tallied exactly and were less than a quarter of a stop away from my Sekonic L-408's readings, not bad for selenium cells after 50 or more years!
Half 17 Rapid w YEM-15
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on Mar 2, 2019 22:05:01 GMT
Posted: Mar 2, 2019 22:05:01 GMT
At first glance I would have assumed that the Sequelle was an 8mm movie camera, given the attached handle. At second glance I would see the body width and wonder why an 8mm movie camera was so wide! :)
The Yashica clip-on meter looks very similar to the Metraphot II (ala' Leica rangefinders), or maybe a Walz copy of one. Could this be from another maker and re-branded, or is it 100% Yashica?
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on Mar 3, 2019 4:23:42 GMT
Posted: Mar 3, 2019 4:23:42 GMT
I present to you the Yashica 72E, a half-frame 35mm with a Yashinon 28mm 1:2.8 lens focusing from 0.8 meters to Infinity, and a Copal-X shutter with speeds of B, and 1/8 to 1/250 of a second. Film loads from right to left (as you look at the back), and is advanced by a thumb wheel on the lower back of the camera. Rewind lever and frame counter are on the bottom, while the cable socket-ed shutter release is on the top right. The selenium cell meter still works on mine, though it over exposes a bit in bright light, and sometimes under exposes in low light.
Size comparison.
A couple of examples.
Bad frame lines in the viewfinder.
Good exposure on this one.
PF
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on Mar 4, 2019 0:08:29 GMT
Posted: Mar 4, 2019 0:08:29 GMT
At first glance I would have assumed that the Sequelle was an 8mm movie camera, given the attached handle. At second glance I would see the body width and wonder why an 8mm movie camera was so wide! The Yashica clip-on meter looks very similar to the Metraphot II (ala' Leica rangefinders), or maybe a Walz copy of one. Could this be from another maker and re-branded, or is it 100% Yashica? Yes - it's an odd beast. Sadly, the very few Sequelles that come up for sale rarely have the handle which was part of the original kit; it was fortunate to find one in its original box with all accessories and papers.
Concerning the meter, it's very difficult to know the provenance of Yashica's many light-meters and is even more problematic given that in its early guise, Yashica made meters and other accessories for other camera makers. So, they certainly had the in-house expertise and equipment to make their own in the beginning, but whether that would have been cost-effective once they decided to go into serious camera and lens production, I have no idea. it's a good question.
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on Mar 4, 2019 1:56:18 GMT
Posted: Mar 4, 2019 1:56:18 GMT
Out of all the selenium powered metered cameras I have, I can expect the Yashica's to work. Accuracy now is another matter, but they are usually within a stop.
PF
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on Apr 13, 2019 14:03:44 GMT
Posted: Apr 13, 2019 14:03:44 GMT
I had the 72E for a while, and the selenium meter worked, but over-exposed by a stop or so throughout the range. However, I have it in the back of my mind that in the sixties or perhaps early seventies, there was a 're-definition' of ASA (ISO) values that resulted in a faster film speed rating without any change in film sensitivity, so I wondered if that over-exposure was actually an accurate reading for the specification of the time.
I have to confess that I never found the image quality of the 72E appealing in any way, even allowing for the more grainy nature of a half-frame camera. Along with the T3, probably the only two Yashica cameras that have ever disappointed me.
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on Apr 20, 2019 10:22:59 GMT
Posted: Apr 20, 2019 10:22:59 GMT
My only one experience with half-frame cameras was with a Yashica Samurai X3.0 (Black and Red), it was very nice and easy to handle, but the results on film were not good, I think there was an issue with the focusing system and/or lens calibration. And took ages to finish up a 36 exp roll, but that was the idea of these cameras.
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on May 28, 2019 18:22:38 GMT
Posted: May 28, 2019 18:22:38 GMT
Yashica certainly made a lot of half-frame film cameras over the years -- about 40! Here are all the ones I know of. If anyone knows of others, or can add details to these, I'd sure appreciate the info. www.subclub.org/shop/yashica.htm
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on Aug 28, 2020 11:53:07 GMT
Posted: Aug 28, 2020 11:53:07 GMT
Here's another of those lovely little half-frame cameras - the Yashica mimy. It's in effect an auto version of the 72-E...
Yashica Mimy
I'm pleased to report that everything is working, even the selenium-powered meter.
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on Aug 28, 2020 12:14:44 GMT
Posted: Aug 28, 2020 12:14:44 GMT
Have you had a chance to put a roll of film through it? I'd be interested to know if my experience with the 72e stablemate was unusual. It was an easy camera to operate and the selenium cell still functioned, but images were generally washed out, even when metered externally and allowances made for shutter error (I have a shutter speed tester).
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Group: Moderator
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on Aug 28, 2020 14:25:53 GMT
Posted: Aug 28, 2020 14:25:53 GMT
Have you had a chance to put a roll of film through it? I'd be interested to know if my experience with the 72e stablemate was unusual. It was an easy camera to operate and the selenium cell still functioned, but images were generally washed out, even when metered externally and allowances made for shutter error (I have a shutter speed tester). Hello Alex,
It's a pleasure to hear from you again. The camera only arrived this morning so I have yet to run a film through it; I've merely checked the shutter, meter, wind-on and flash-sync. The weather forecast is at least dry for most of the weekend so I hope to run a film through it then.
I'll report when it's done.
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