xwhatsit
Well-known
Over the past year or so since I discovered cameras, I've become sort of a minor "collector" of Yashica gear. While I love my Voigtländers and my Rolleicords, the cameras that always jump out at me have been the Yashicas.
My first camera was the Minister D. I now have the entire Minister and Lynx series. 90% of my shooting is from my trusty Lynx 1000 -- a very smooth example with a beautiful wind and shutter release.
So when one of only two Yashica LTM models popped up on a local auction for a decent price I jumped at it. It's a Yashica YF, a redesign of the Nicca IIIL (and still bearing the Nicca badge). Only a few were made in 1959 and early 1960 before Yashica gave into the Nikon F which had just been released. The YF, unlike the YE (a dead ringer for a IIIF, except with a lever wind), is an intriguing half-way model; combined M3-style finder with projected framelines (50mm and 100mm), yet a 39mm thread mount, and the old-style LTM shutter, with a pick-up-and-drop 30-1000 shutter speed dial on top and the slow speeds on the front.
Mine has been in the wars somewhat. The crappy aluminium trim around the top (which rather spoils the lines of an otherwise handsome camera) has been scratched and gouged by something. I have half a mind to smooth it out with a file and some wet and dry...
The famous wind lever. It's not anywhere near as nice as that on my Lynx 1000. I think most of the reason is cocking the focal plane shutter, which requires a bit more effort than an exquisite little leaf shutter.
The shutter release is marvelous. There's no "click" or stiffness, you can just squeeze the wide button and it lets go whenever. The frame counter needs manually resetting, and reading can be a little bit of an effort.
The Yashinon 50/1.8 was the original included lens. This one is in absolute perfect condition, not a "cleaning" mark on it anywhere. A naïve inspection suggests that it's the same formula as the 50/1.8 in the Lynx 1000 and Lynx 5000 and (I think) the 50/1.9 in the Minister I (seems to be the leaf shutter size restricting the aperture in the Minister I). However, because there's no leaf shutter to wrap around it, it's a tiny jewel-like thing, quite a gorgeous thing to look at and hold. The aperture ring is beautifully damped and clicks at each stop. However, the focus throw is rather long (as was the fashion at the time -- the Minister I is the same), and feels awkward after the super-fast Lynx 1000 helicoid. Also, the infinity lock is causing me no end of grief!
It takes 43mm filters. Now I have to wait for a 43-46mm step-up ring so I can use all of my filters and lenshoods!
Love the lens cap. Will actually come in handy as I don't have an ever-ready case for the YF, and as it's Leica III-based, it fits none of my other Yashica ever-ready cases. So getting it home from work meant wrapping it in a sweater before chucking it on the back of my bike
I think I'm going to enjoy this! For the price I got it, I can sell it on eBay for more than I paid for it if I don't bond with it. But so far the inconvenience of this type of camera over my fixed-lens RFs hasn't swayed me away from its charm. The bottom-loading is easy (with the M3-style back door), although somewhat longer to do so far. And the dual shutter-speed dials haven't annoyed me too much yet. The re-wind knob is hardly slower than a lever. And sunny-16 is about as good as the selenium meter in the Lynx 1000 anyway.
Now I just need to find a 90mm lens! Any cheap LTM suggestions? A 35 might be interesting too... the outside of the (not 1:1! More like 0.72x) finder is apparently 35mm.
My first camera was the Minister D. I now have the entire Minister and Lynx series. 90% of my shooting is from my trusty Lynx 1000 -- a very smooth example with a beautiful wind and shutter release.
So when one of only two Yashica LTM models popped up on a local auction for a decent price I jumped at it. It's a Yashica YF, a redesign of the Nicca IIIL (and still bearing the Nicca badge). Only a few were made in 1959 and early 1960 before Yashica gave into the Nikon F which had just been released. The YF, unlike the YE (a dead ringer for a IIIF, except with a lever wind), is an intriguing half-way model; combined M3-style finder with projected framelines (50mm and 100mm), yet a 39mm thread mount, and the old-style LTM shutter, with a pick-up-and-drop 30-1000 shutter speed dial on top and the slow speeds on the front.
Mine has been in the wars somewhat. The crappy aluminium trim around the top (which rather spoils the lines of an otherwise handsome camera) has been scratched and gouged by something. I have half a mind to smooth it out with a file and some wet and dry...
The famous wind lever. It's not anywhere near as nice as that on my Lynx 1000. I think most of the reason is cocking the focal plane shutter, which requires a bit more effort than an exquisite little leaf shutter.
The shutter release is marvelous. There's no "click" or stiffness, you can just squeeze the wide button and it lets go whenever. The frame counter needs manually resetting, and reading can be a little bit of an effort.
The Yashinon 50/1.8 was the original included lens. This one is in absolute perfect condition, not a "cleaning" mark on it anywhere. A naïve inspection suggests that it's the same formula as the 50/1.8 in the Lynx 1000 and Lynx 5000 and (I think) the 50/1.9 in the Minister I (seems to be the leaf shutter size restricting the aperture in the Minister I). However, because there's no leaf shutter to wrap around it, it's a tiny jewel-like thing, quite a gorgeous thing to look at and hold. The aperture ring is beautifully damped and clicks at each stop. However, the focus throw is rather long (as was the fashion at the time -- the Minister I is the same), and feels awkward after the super-fast Lynx 1000 helicoid. Also, the infinity lock is causing me no end of grief!
It takes 43mm filters. Now I have to wait for a 43-46mm step-up ring so I can use all of my filters and lenshoods!
Love the lens cap. Will actually come in handy as I don't have an ever-ready case for the YF, and as it's Leica III-based, it fits none of my other Yashica ever-ready cases. So getting it home from work meant wrapping it in a sweater before chucking it on the back of my bike
I think I'm going to enjoy this! For the price I got it, I can sell it on eBay for more than I paid for it if I don't bond with it. But so far the inconvenience of this type of camera over my fixed-lens RFs hasn't swayed me away from its charm. The bottom-loading is easy (with the M3-style back door), although somewhat longer to do so far. And the dual shutter-speed dials haven't annoyed me too much yet. The re-wind knob is hardly slower than a lever. And sunny-16 is about as good as the selenium meter in the Lynx 1000 anyway.
Now I just need to find a 90mm lens! Any cheap LTM suggestions? A 35 might be interesting too... the outside of the (not 1:1! More like 0.72x) finder is apparently 35mm.
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hipsterdufus
Photographer?
Very cool. I've always been fascinated by Yashica products; thanks for showing yours, though it is a bit GAS-inducing.
As for a 90mm lens, you'll have a hard time going wrong with a late LTM 90mm Elmar in good shape. It takes absolutely stunning portraits wide-open.
As for a 90mm lens, you'll have a hard time going wrong with a late LTM 90mm Elmar in good shape. It takes absolutely stunning portraits wide-open.
Roger Hicks
Mentor
In the late 70s or early 80s, I bought one of these at the London Camera Exchange in Bristol. It didn't work, so I took it back and they replaced it with another one. Those are the only two I've ever seen (someone must have brought in two). Nice camera.
Cheers,
R.
Cheers,
R.
xwhatsit
Well-known
Yikes! Yes, I'd love a Nicca IIIL too. It's a very cool looking camera for the time, it's held up better in looks than the poor old YF with it's ugly window surrounds. Pretty beaten up for that price, though!
I'm intrigued about the IIIL, because everybody refers to its finder as 1:1. Most people refer to the YF's finder as "life-sized", whatever that means. The YF is certainly not 1:1, it's roughly the same magnification as the Lynxes and Ministers, which feels like about x0.72 to me (just guessing, I'm basing that on looking through an M4 finder). The odd thing is that the YF and IIIL look to have an identical finder and rangefinder system, apart from the round windows on the IIIL, and the 100mm framelines on the YF. Would love to handle a IIIL to really see!
I'm intrigued about the IIIL, because everybody refers to its finder as 1:1. Most people refer to the YF's finder as "life-sized", whatever that means. The YF is certainly not 1:1, it's roughly the same magnification as the Lynxes and Ministers, which feels like about x0.72 to me (just guessing, I'm basing that on looking through an M4 finder). The odd thing is that the YF and IIIL look to have an identical finder and rangefinder system, apart from the round windows on the IIIL, and the 100mm framelines on the YF. Would love to handle a IIIL to really see!
hipsterdufus
Photographer?
Here's an example from the Elmar 90mm LTM shot wide open, if you're interested:
xwhatsit
Well-known
Wow, nice rendering. Is this the uncoated version I read about or the coated one?
I have a couple of Elmar 90mm saved to my eBay watchlist now They seem to sell for pretty cheap!
I'm also looking at the Canon 135mm (f4 and f3.5) LTM lenses. Also affordable, but maybe a little too long... beyond the YF's shorter RF baselength ability? A bit more baselength than a Leica III, but no 1.5x magnification of course.
I have a couple of Elmar 90mm saved to my eBay watchlist now
They seem to sell for pretty cheap!I'm also looking at the Canon 135mm (f4 and f3.5) LTM lenses. Also affordable, but maybe a little too long... beyond the YF's shorter RF baselength ability? A bit more baselength than a Leica III, but no 1.5x magnification of course.
hipsterdufus
Photographer?
This is the coated one (this particular example is from 1952). I generally do more environmental portraiture utilizing a 35 or 50, but I've started to play around with this lens, since the rendering is so nice on it. I think this is one of the best values of any LTM (Leica or non-Leica) lenses.
I had a Canon 135 f4, but I ended up selling it because I didn't have a 135 viewfinder, plus the baselength on the Bessa R2 is way to short for such a lens. The nice thing about shooting a 90mm f4 is that it has enough depth of field wide open to cover slight errors from a short baselength. Best of luck in your search!
I had a Canon 135 f4, but I ended up selling it because I didn't have a 135 viewfinder, plus the baselength on the Bessa R2 is way to short for such a lens. The nice thing about shooting a 90mm f4 is that it has enough depth of field wide open to cover slight errors from a short baselength. Best of luck in your search!
kshapero
South Florida Man
I am being offered a Yashica YF Nicca with 50/1.8 lens in really gorgeous condition for $95 by a friend who works at a high end auction house. Sounds good? I am intrigued to say the least.
dexdog
Mentor
How can you tell it is ugly? There is only one photo and it is tiny.
Scroll down a little to the red, blinking PHOTO HERE, and you will find a lot of pics. Agree with P-Moof that it is way ugly.
$95 is a real good price on a YF in good condition.
dexdog
Mentor
I have kept the dog away from my YF- not pristine, but still pretty nice. The 50/1.8 Yashinon is in good shape, too.
Brian Levy
Established
Nice looking camera. I have the Canon 135/3.5 ltm (with a ltm to 135mm M adaptor) with accessory viewfinder and I use it on my Leica CL infrequently but even with the very short baseline it is not hard to focus, just time consuming. I really like the lense for female portrature as it is very slightly soft. Great to hide and soften blemishes. I've used it for a few other shots and no slouch. I've not followed pricing but, last time I looked these were possibly the bargain of the year.
stevebrot
Established
kshapero
South Florida Man
Just picked up the YF. The focus ring is frozen on the lens. Any ideas? Also how do you set ISO?
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xwhatsit
Well-known
If the focus ring has really frozen up, probably like the Agfa Isolettes you'll have to strip down the helicoid, get rid of all the old grease and regrease it.
However, I'm going to make a guess that you are making the same mistake that I did when I first got it! The Yashinon 50/1.8 has an infinity lock. Push in the centre of the focusing tab towards the camera, and then you can turn it. The infinity lock really bothered me at first but I've got used to it now.
As for the ISO, there's no meter, so no need to set any ISO. It would be nice to have the film reminder dial on the back door like the Nicca 5L had, though.
Good luck! Take a picture of it for us
kshapero
South Florida Man
tried this, the focus ring is stuck on 10 feet.If the focus ring has really frozen up, probably like the Agfa Isolettes you'll have to strip down the helicoid, get rid of all the old grease and regrease it.
However, I'm going to make a guess that you are making the same mistake that I did when I first got it! The Yashinon 50/1.8 has an infinity lock. Push in the centre of the focusing tab towards the camera, and then you can turn it. The infinity lock really bothered me at first but I've got used to it now.
As for the ISO, there's no meter, so no need to set any ISO. It would be nice to have the film reminder dial on the back door like the Nicca 5L had, though.
Good luck! Take a picture of it for us
Concerning ISO, back to using sunny-16.
furcafe
Mentor
Unfortunately, while most of the info in the article is correct, Stephen may be the source of the "life-size" RF/VF canard (see the 2nd bullet point towards the end of the article).
What has always intrigued me about the YF is that the RF/VF w/projected framelines appear to be of the same/similar design as that on the Nikon SP (which does have the "life-size" 1:1 RF/VF). Curious if there was any connection between Nikon & Yashica (or any subcontractor(s) who may have made the RF/VF) during that time period.
What has always intrigued me about the YF is that the RF/VF w/projected framelines appear to be of the same/similar design as that on the Nikon SP (which does have the "life-size" 1:1 RF/VF). Curious if there was any connection between Nikon & Yashica (or any subcontractor(s) who may have made the RF/VF) during that time period.
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btgc
Mentor
Frozen helicoid could be enhanced by gently applying warm air, ask your wife or GF for hair dryer. Just don't cook poor Yashica, too much action may make old grease migrating, I believe.
kshapero
South Florida Man
thanks, I'll give it a try.
xwhatsit
Well-known
Ah right. Yes I did see his article.
The projected framelines and projected RF system appears identical to almost every 35mm Yashica rangefinder made, even the cheapies like the Ministers and the J and Campus etc. Nearly all of the Japanese rangefinder (don't forget all the fixed-lens RFs) manufacturers eventually settled on it, Yashica seemed to be one of the early ones. It's basically a vastly simplified Leica M system. Far simpler, more reliable, more compact, but with one drawback; the rangefinder patch will not have sharply defined edges, so you can't use the coincidence as well as split-image type system of the M3.
Rick Oleson has a fantastic article about the development of viewfinders and RFs.
kshapero
South Florida Man
Can anyone tell me the filter size on the Yashica 50mm/1.8 that sits on the YF?