I can't remember for sure when I first
became aware of Yashica cameras. It was probably as a kid when a
second-cousin showed up and my grandparents house for Christmas and was
shooting with a Yashica SLR. I recall being impressed by it.
That was probably in the early 1960's when I was in elementary school.
Later, when I was in my Senior year of
high school, the yearbook company issued to me a Yashica D to shoot the
pictures with. A classmate claimed it and after he lost interest
and stopped showing up for Yearbook meetings, I took it back and
proceeded to get it stolen from my car.
Fast forward to this year when I saw this
camera on sale. What struck me was the incredible condition of it,
and the fact that there isn't much about a black version of this camera.
For the low asking price I could not resist. Here are the pictures
that were in the auction:
I find it to be a substantial machine -
it reminds me some of my
mamiya/sekors
though it is a bit more elegant, even with the grafted-on CdS meter
notwithstanding.
The action is very smooth; the sound of
the mechanisms very precise. Overall it seems a very good piece of
gear. The standard lens, a Yashinon 5 cm f/2.0 is semi-automatic -
the aperture is cocked with a lever and stops down when the shutter
button is partly depressed. Continue to press the shutter button
all the way down and the shutter fires. If you change your mind
and do not fire the shutter, you must cock the lever on the lens again.
I spent several hours making the PDF for
the owners manual, and was impressed by the detail it covered. I
was a little disappointed to see that there were not very many accessory
lenses available for it when it was new, but my Pentax lenses fit just
fine.
