A perfect Christmas

the camera wasn't cheap was it? I wonder why it didn't gain popularity like the leica M's did. I'd love to have one none the less.
 
The $345 price for the Nikon with the f1.4 in 1952 is equivalent to $2997.00 in todays money.

Thanks for that, it certainly puts things in perspective. Getting into the Nikon system or into a comparable system of another manufacturer back in the 1950s meant a considerable amount of one's income / savings.

Not much different than today.
 
That's a really nice collection you have there. Merry Christmas!

Thanks Vics. It all started here, looking at these vintage ads made me curious about the Nikon rangefinders. Bob Rotoloni's book did the rest, as well as a little "help" from fellow RFF members. :D

Merry Christmas.
 
That sure was a young looking Peter Gowland!

Thanks for the link. It was an interesting link. I love the demonstration of the "Kiev" grip.

gb hill wondered why they didn't catch on. They were Japanese at a time when the Japanese still had a reputation of cheap immitations; that might be part of it. The price certainly didn't help. But I have read that the Nikon and Canon RF gained a lot of popularity with war correspondents as useful and tough without exposing their Leica or Contax cameras to the regors of combat in Korea.
 
I've added a new SP ad here :

http://www.treefrog.be/photography/RF_ads.php

You couldn't travel incognito with your SP back in 1958, or at least that is what the ad wants us to believe, and I don't think you'll travel incognito today either.

Haha, I have an original copy of that Cristoforo Colombo's Nikon SP "Che bella !" ad (still have to frame it, though).

I do confirm that travelling with a Nikon SP nowadays still gathers other people's attention. ;)
 
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