Yashica D (6x6cm) Twin Lens Reflex Camera
Photo courtesy of Fred Sherfy - [email protected]
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Yashica TLR Models Pages
This is the nice 120 roll film 2 1/4 square format Yashica D twin lens reflex (SN D 0030166). This is a great TLR for the amateur because it has a great lens (80mm f/3.5 Yashikor, SN 975376), full range of shutter speeds (B, 1 sec to 1/500), a standard flash sync with accessory flash shoe, self timer, MXV Copal shutter, exposure counter, sport type finder in hood, flip up fine focus, magnifier, a nice fitted Yashica case with strap.
rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
From: Jim or Deb Thomas [email protected]
[1] Re: Yashica D
Date: Sat Mar 14 1998
Bay II filters WON'T fit the Yashica D. You need Bay I size filters.
The same as the ones that fit all the other Yashica-Mats, Rolleicord
III, IV, V, etc. and the Rolleiflex Automats.
Rollei brand filters are easier to find than the Yashica, believe it or
not. Better yet, the third party filters that work just fine. I use a
Telesar close up attachment with great results, looking just as good to
me as the results from my Rolleinar 2 and Rolleinar 3.
Jim
From Medium Format Digest:
From: Jim Thomas [email protected]
Subject: Response to Yashica D or mat 124G?
Date: 1998-08-15
The Yashica D was manufactured for many years, from the late 1950's until at least the late 1970's (possibly into the 1980's). The Yashica Mat-124G was produced between 1972 and around 1988? I've owned two Ds, and a 124G and while the 124-G I own is the best quality medium format optic I have ever used, the D with 3 element Yashikor is no slouch either, and takes pictures on the par of the Rolleicord III I formerly owned (Xenar lens). Very sharp and contrasty. I actually find the D easier to use, but the 124-G is clearly the Cadillac here.
Wouldn't give up either one for the world though. And I wouldn't hesitate
to use the D for a critical job. Great cameras, both of them!
Date: Sat, 10 Oct 1998
From: Lee Hunt [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Yashica D
What? nothing on the famous Yahica D?
I saved and bought one when I was 15 ($65) and shortly shot my
first wedding with it.
I still have it and I am 44. Never been in the shop but does have
a few dings, it was well used in high school covering football
games and along with the operator got hit a few times on the
sidelines.
The next time I have some left over color shots I will photo it
for you and send you the .gif's for your page.
thanks for your helpful page.. it is great.
--
Lee
From: "Tony Zoccolillo" [email protected]
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: yashica D
Date: Tue, 4 May 1999
$80 for a Yashica D is about the going price, not really a deal. Also, the
"D" (along with A,B,C,E and 635) has a poor 3-element Yashikor lens. You
would be much better off with a Yashinon 4-element lens which is similar to
a Zeiss Tessar in performance (soft edges wide open improving to quite
sharp, corner to corner, by f/11). Models with Yashinon lenses include the
Yashicamat, LM, EM, 12, 24, 124, and 124G. Also, the "12" models
(12,24,124,124G) all have built in meters. The LM and EM have selenium
photocells (which are usually weak or dead). I would pass on a "D" and try
to find a 124. It's the same camera as the 124G and usually available for
under $175.
TZ
From: [email protected] (Joshua Fujiwara)
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: yashica D
Date: Wed, 05 May 1999
....
I have a Yashica-D WITH Yashinon (4-element Tessar eqiv.). Yes, there is
a model with not only Yoshikor but Yashinon in YASHICA-D (and Yashica
635).
No one knows all the answes. :-0
Date: Wed, 05 May 1999
From: [email protected]
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: yashica D
Tony Zoccolillo wrote:
> $80 for a Yashica D is about the going price, not really a deal. Also, the > "D" (along with A,B,C,E and 635) has a poor 3-element Yashikor lens.
Not always true! My Yashica D had a 4-element Yashinon lens ( same as
the 124 ) and also had a f2.8 viewing lens. There were quite a few made,
you just have to look for them. The "D" was made in several flavors.
From: "NDW" [email protected]
Subject: Re: Yashica-D
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Date: Thu, 06 May 1999
TZ said:
> McKeown's list the Yashica D and 635 as having a Yashikor lens (but > McKeown's can be wrong sometimes). I have heard that the D was also > available (later in it's 16 yr life) with the Yashinon. I've never seen a > 635 with a Yashinon, but it's possible that it had both also. I'm not 100% > sure about the EM or LM either. There is also a Yashimar lens available > that I have seen on Yashicamats. I believe that this is a 4 element > variation, but I can't confirm this. I was told that all Yashicamats have > 4-element lenses.I think that is right, every YashicaMat I've ever seen has the 4-element unit. I have 2-"D"'s, and one has the Yashimar, the other the Yashinon. The difference between the 2 in print sharpness is vivid.
> Whatever Yashica TLR you go for, be sure it has a Yashinon.Can't agree with this. If your looking for tack sharp, stay with the 4-element (although the Minolta Autocord and Rollei Tessar are better in that regard) but for other shooting, landscapes, or candid portraits, the 3-element Yashica's (A, C, some D's, ect) are super.
Really sweet little camera's...especially the humble "A", which is not only a tough little son-of-a-gun, but a joy to hold and use.
NDW
From: "James W.\(Jim\) Simmons" [email protected]
Date: Tue, 25 Jan 2000
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: Yashica DYou get the little adapter cap that fits over the shutter release button, with it you use a standard cable release. Contact me at [email protected] direct for more information.
Jim
"David F. Stein" [email protected] wrote
> Is there a way to use a cable release with this camera, as it doesn't > have a cable release thread. And where found? Thanks.
[Ed. note: thanks to Newton Shrader for providing these notes and tips on yashica D TLRs!] Date: Sat, 14 Sep 2002 From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: Comment on Yashica D info There is some confussion about the Yashica D camera. Early models had the three element Yashikor, but the last year or so that they were manufactured, they shared the same lens pair with the Yashica 124G (Yashinon f3.5 taking lens , with f2.8 viewing lens). That is why there is conflicting info about filter sizes, lens quality, etc. The later lens was much better than the original three element design.
From: [email protected] (Greg Faris) Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format Subject: Re: Yashica D (was Re: Yaschimat 124G vs Rolleiflex-T ???) Date: Sat, 11 Jan 2003 And not just the Rolleiflex T Tessar!! Back in the 1970's, when I switched from a Yashica 'D' to a Rolleiflex 2.8D, with a Xenotar, I was blown away by the quality of construction of the Rollei. However if you look at my ektachromes from that period, you will not be able to tell for sure which ones were taken with which! There IS a difference in quality - but it is not necessarily greater than the differences between individual pictures taken with either camera, at different working apertures. G Faris
From: "Bob & Linda Flood" [email protected] Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format Subject: Re: General Question about Yashica-D and cleaning the viewfinder Date: Sun, 29 Jun 2003 Unless you have one of the last D's made, it has Yashikor lenses. They are good, but you'll get maximum sharpness at f8 or f11. The drop-off in sharpness at wide apertures can be useful for portraits. If it has Yashinon lenses, it's one of the last made and that lens series is a notch better than the Yashikors. Parallax: only important if you are shooting at the closest focus available, and then it 's about an inch difference. Don't use any solutions inside the camera - even if they don't hurt the viewscreen, they tend to travel into small spaces and can cause some pieces to deteriorate. The D has all the controls on the right side - focus, film advance, and shutter release. I prefer this to the Yashicamats that have the focus on the left and film advance on the right - the user is forced to keep changing hands during successive shots. (Being right-handed may have influenced my preferences here, but I can't be sure.) Have fun. Bob in Las Vegas ...
RE: looking for adapter for early yashica TLRs? see Generic Leica/Nikon/Yashica Shutter Release adapters $ 6.50 Ea. from http://www.goodwinphotoinc.com/nikon/nikon.html
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