Japan Archives - Page 15 of 19 - Facts, notes and thoughts about vintage cameras and other trifle matters

December 26, 2021

Pentax ES II

Pentax ES II Pentax ES II current value Pentax ES II user manual In the early 1970s the (Japanese) camera industry came to a level field, where save for the name most cameras offered similar specs. Some manufacturers such as Petri, Miranda, Topcon, and so just gave up, will not know if it was quality or marketing. Others were looking...

35 mm/Japan/Pentax/SLR Comments: 0

November 28, 2021

Olympus XA family

Olympus XA family model list About four years ago, I drove to Peterborough to pick up two Olympus Pen F. The seller suggested he has a few other cameras, which I always love seeing. It ended with an apple crate full of odds and ends, with which I happily drove home. A week later, the seller called, suggesting even more...

35 mm/Compact/Japan/Olympus Comments: 0

September 12, 2021

Rich-Ray Richlet

Rich-Ray Richlet Current Richlet value An online search for a camera returns loads upon loads of entries. It is rare that only a few entries are found. Such is the case with the Richlet, made by Rich-Ray. I saw this camera while searching on Buyee, which is the online equivalent of a slot machine. The camera was odd, unlike any...

Bolta/Japan/Mini camera/Obscure Comments: 0

January 26, 2021

Topcon IC-1 Auto

Topcon IC-1 Topcon IC-1 Auto current value Topcon IC-1 user manual There are phenomena that science is yet to address. Some items regenerate themselves once you are sure that there is no more. For example, we have a robotic vacuum that roams the house like a drunken goat, till it docks into its port. After each run, the canister there...

35 mm/Japan/SLR/Topcon Comments: 2

January 21, 2021

Topcon Uni

Topcon Uni Topcon Uni current value Topcon Uni user manual About two weeks ago I had looked into A Topcon Unirex, and reminisced about the encounters I had with the equipment made by Topcon. Little did I know, but yesterday I paid a visit to the eye doctor, to find that all the mighty optical instruments he uses are Topcon....

35 mm/Japan/SLR/Topcon Comments: 3

January 16, 2021

Yashica MG-1

Yashica MG-1 Yashica MG-1 current value Yashica MG-1 user manual The Yashica Electro 35 camera line and its variants had gone strong for over ten years, till the novelty wore out and automatic cameras became a common feature. In 1975, Yashica introduced the two last cameras with the continuous shutter and over / under exposure light alerts. The Electro 35...

35 mm/Japan/Rangefinder/Yashica Comments: 0

January 1, 2021

Topcon Unirex

Topcon Unirex I first learned about the Topcon name in the early ’70s. Topcon and Nikon’s optical comparators were used in the tool shop to follow complex shapes. Nikon had been a well-known brand, Topcon not so. Fast forward twenty years, fate brought theodolites my way, Topcon again. It took another twenty years for me to realize that Topcon also...

35 mm/Japan/SLR/Topcon Comments: 0

December 26, 2020

Yashica TL-Electro

Yashica TL-Electro Yashica TL-Electro current value Yashica TL-Electro user manual After looking into the Yashica Electro camera line, I pulled out a Yashica TL-Electro that has been humbly sitting on the shelf for several years. The camera has al the good reasons to be humble, being one of a large group of almost indistinguishable compact SLRs that were churned out...

Japan/SLR/Yashica Comments: 6

December 3, 2020

Yashica Electro 35

Yashica Electro 35 Preamble I was looking for a camera among the rangefinders and realized that there are Yashica Electro cameras everywhere. Six of them. I remember where I got two of the lot, where one was the first in my collection. Till now I had not looked closely at them, and it seems that although they carry different model...

35 mm/Japan/Rangefinder/Yashica Comments: 3

November 23, 2020

Walz / Lafayette Electrick

Walz / Lafayette Electrick Walz camera family list Walz Electrick current value Lafayette Electrick current value Walz / Lafayette Electrick user manual The Walz camera brand shows little in an online search. It is mentioned on the fly as both a manufacturer and distributor, with no hard evidence to support either fact. With Japanese camera brands, it is either...

Japan/Rangefinder/Walz Comments: 0

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