JeremyR
Photography Geek
Greetings,
I showed up on this forum a few months back--since then I've mostly been lurking, shooting with the Yashica here and there and deciding what to do about this rangefinder bug that has bitten me!
Among the shots I've taken with the GL is one that I feel to be one of the best candid pictures I've made to date:
(Yashica Electro 35 GL, Kodak T-Max 400, shot at [I think] EI 1600, f/1.7 at ??? sec)
Here's been my experience with my particular copy of the GL thus far:
All in all, I do enjoy using this camera. I shoot in available light (which means "low light") much of the time, and the GL--already a very rare model--is the only classic rangefinder I know of with AE (I love aperture priority) that understands ISO 1600. If it's possible to restore my camera to a more satisfactory user condition, I'm sure I would enjoy it even more. Would anyone care to hazard a guess as to whether a CLA might address most or all of these issues? Or how much could I expect to pay for such a service? I did e-mail Mark Hama with these questions five or so weeks ago but never saw a response (I'm guessing he's a very busy man). Are there other repair services I should consider?
By the way, I've recently plunged even deeper into this "rangefinder thing" and ordered a Zeiss Ikon. 😀 Right now I'm planning to keep shooting the Yashica alongside the Ikon (as well as a DSLR that I use for some work), but if someone makes an offer I can't refuse on this rare beast (as well as the possibly even more rare Yashica lens hood), I may start myself a 50mm Sonnar fund. 😉
Anyway, hope everyone else is enjoying their Yashicas as much as I am mine!
Cheers,
Jeremy
I showed up on this forum a few months back--since then I've mostly been lurking, shooting with the Yashica here and there and deciding what to do about this rangefinder bug that has bitten me!
Among the shots I've taken with the GL is one that I feel to be one of the best candid pictures I've made to date:
(Yashica Electro 35 GL, Kodak T-Max 400, shot at [I think] EI 1600, f/1.7 at ??? sec)
Here's been my experience with my particular copy of the GL thus far:
- Mechanically the camera seems to operate smoothly (but see later comments about film advance).
- The exposure is generally spot-on (I've tested with film at 125 and 1600 speeds at a variety of apertures and shutter speeds), suggesting that the metering system and shutter are working properly.
- Overall, photos are not nearly as sharp as some examples I've seen produced by other Electro 35 models. Obviously I don't expect ultimate sharpness when pushing film to EI 1600 and shooting at f/1.7, but I also shot a roll of Plus-X at ISO 125 at apertures between f/5.6 and f/11 and found sharpness to be less than expected. This is likely due to the next few points (as well as, no doubt, just plain user error).
- The rangefinder seems a bit dim and hazy. But then again, I don't have any similar-era cameras to compare to, and I've been using a Leica M6 alongside the Yashica, so perhaps I've been a bit spoiled. Still, I'm thinking a cleaning would help.
- The rangefinder could very well be out of adjustment. I have no idea of this camera's history, and it's quite possible--likely, even--that it hasn't been adjusted since it was built some 30 years ago.
- There's a bit of (what appears to be) fungus on one of the inner lens elements. There's not a lot, and it's very near the edge, so I wouldn't expect it to impact image quality much. Maybe it can be cleaned and maybe not.
- The film advance mostly works, but is somewhat inconsistent. More often than not, the camera produces a rather wide (and varying) gap between frames, and on one or two occasions the film didn't advance an entire frame, resulting in partially-overlapping double exposures.
All in all, I do enjoy using this camera. I shoot in available light (which means "low light") much of the time, and the GL--already a very rare model--is the only classic rangefinder I know of with AE (I love aperture priority) that understands ISO 1600. If it's possible to restore my camera to a more satisfactory user condition, I'm sure I would enjoy it even more. Would anyone care to hazard a guess as to whether a CLA might address most or all of these issues? Or how much could I expect to pay for such a service? I did e-mail Mark Hama with these questions five or so weeks ago but never saw a response (I'm guessing he's a very busy man). Are there other repair services I should consider?
By the way, I've recently plunged even deeper into this "rangefinder thing" and ordered a Zeiss Ikon. 😀 Right now I'm planning to keep shooting the Yashica alongside the Ikon (as well as a DSLR that I use for some work), but if someone makes an offer I can't refuse on this rare beast (as well as the possibly even more rare Yashica lens hood), I may start myself a 50mm Sonnar fund. 😉
Anyway, hope everyone else is enjoying their Yashicas as much as I am mine!
Cheers,
Jeremy
