Twin Lens Reflex- Yashica?

Glycerol Sound · Nov 10, 2010

Alright so I recently bought a Holga and my uncle is a pro photographer who has crates of 120mm sitting around his studio that he isnt using anymore and is sending to me. Of course I love shooting with the holga and I might buy another in the future to mod out, but I'd also like a nice non-toy camera to shoot this film with. I was looking around and it looks like a TLR is probably the best bet I can get without blowing thousands on a medium format camera, and I was wondering if these are at all enjoyable to shoot with with. They kind of look like a pain but I'd like to hear from you guys first. It looks like I can get a Yashica fairly cheap on ebay, are these good cameras overall? Thanks

compur · Nov 10, 2010

Yes, the Yashica TLRs are fine picture takers. Make sure it is in good working
condition before buying with clean lens and shutter working well at all
speeds. Those with the Yashinon lenses are generally preferred for image
quality.

Note that TLRs have waist level finders which may take some getting used to
if you haven't used them before. The image on the focusing screen is upright
but reversed from left to right.

Glycerol Sound · Nov 10, 2010

Alright thanks. I've heard its hard to focus in the daylight with waist level finders? Any info on this? And anything else I wanna know about these cameras?

Christie Photo · Nov 10, 2010

Glycerol Sound said:
I've heard its hard to focus in the daylight with waist level finders? Any info on this?

There's a collapsible (folding) hood to block light from hitting the ground glass and a flip-up magnifier. It all works out OK.

You'll have a bunch of fun with these cameras. It's the first camera I ever used that wasn't a point-and-shoot.

-Pete

compur · Nov 10, 2010

Glycerol Sound said:
Alright thanks. I've heard its hard to focus in the daylight with waist level finders? Any info on this? And anything else I wanna know about these cameras?

Can't say if you'll find it hard to focus but zillions of photographers happily
used waist level finders for many years.

And, if you understand the idea of "hyperfocal distance" you can set these
cameras up to be basically point-and-shoot with no focusing required for
most outdoor daylight shooting. Well, wind-and-point-and-shoot, anyway.

Christie Photo · Nov 10, 2010

compur said:
...you can set these cameras up to be basically point-and-shoot with no focusing required for most outdoor daylight shooting. Well, wind-and-point-and-shoot, anyway.

Oh yeah... I forgot about the "sports" finder.

-Pete

Paul Ron · Nov 10, 2010

I've restored hundreds of these Yashicas and love every one of em. They are great shooters adn lots of fun when people come up to ya and tell you stories about having one in the family as kids.

I found all the lenses are nice n sharp, although there are some better than others but not by much.

Make sure your shutter is working, most of em are gunked up. Carefully check the lens for fungus as this is the major killer of these camera. Most have been stored in someone's basement or in a trunk for many years, not taken care of very well.

Many still have the original leather cases but most are rotted.

There are meters in some models, but most are not working or very inaccurrate due to aging of the sensor.

You should be able to get fully restored cameras for about $100 - $150 in good working condition and depending on the model as well, leg: 124G vs a plain 124, no gold contacts in the meter's wiring.

The mirrors in most are dirty n some are flaking silver. You can put in a new mirror very easily and while you are at it, clean the ground glass to give you a brighter view.

The nice thing I enjoy is the DOF scale on the focus knob. They are fairly accurate n fun to play with as it gets you to think about your image alot more n slow down.

Also the fun poart of em is how quiet they are when fired. That little zitttt is so uncertain compared to shooting your 35mm SLRs that flap a mirror or a barn door in most medium format cameras that make you feel like you've really burned an image in stone.

djacobox372 · Nov 13, 2010

Focusing a TLR is simple, the viewfinder is HUGE.

I have a Yashica-Mat and it's easy to use and takes amazing photos. A huge upgrade from a holga.

Mike_E · Nov 13, 2010

I had a 124 and a 124G. The winding mechanism in the 124 always felt more solid and they both had the Yashinon lens.

The meters were both OK [who cares about gold contacts for an extra $50-$150] but for the full retro effect a pocket meter is worth every penny (you can pick one up for $20 all day

)

djacobox372 · Nov 13, 2010

Mike_E said:
I had a 124 and a 124G. The winding mechanism in the 124 always felt more solid and they both had the Yashinon lens.

The meters were both OK [who cares about gold contacts for an extra $50-$150] but for the full retro effect a pocket meter is worth every penny (you can pick one up for $20 all day )

Or just go without a meter. It's not a very hard skill to master.

Paul Ron · Nov 13, 2010

BTW do you know there are 2 for sale in the classifieds here?

grandad66 · Feb 14, 2011

I have a Yashica with the Yashinon lens it the second one I've owned I could not understand why I could not get the prints as sharp as I would have liked, I was talking to a newspaper professional he told me that the lens is a little on the soft side. This explained my problem of sharpness. As I said this is will 2 different Yashica TLR's. I also have a Rollei and a Mamiya TLR.

Alex_Holland · Feb 15, 2011

Yeah man, Yashica's are nice cameras. I've got two MAT-124G's, and "A", a "C", and a "D". They're all very nice and if you asked me, I say they take just as good a picture as a Rollei.

Here's a zip file with some of my favorite shots taken with a Yashica Mat-124G
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16154810/MAT-124G Sample.zip