Steve'sDigicams

lesmore49 · Oct 14, 2009, 4:59 PM

I have a Yashicamat 124G that I bought new from a camera store that was going out of business. Back then it cost me $ 249. I bought the lens hood and some filter like deals that are supposed to act as wide angle and telephoto additions to the twin lens reflex camera.

How many people out there, have a Yashica TLR...or even are aware of this unusual beast. It's been out of production since the mid-80's and as this is when I bought one i wonder if I have one of the last.

Works great, probably put less than 10 rolls through it. But I love the little TLR...it's a companion to my Mamiya 220 Pro f TLR...an altogether different TLR...more of a basic commercial camera with interchangeable lenses.

Heres some pix of Yashicamat TLR's.

http://http://images.google.ca/images?hl=en&q=yashica+124g+pictures&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=KkjWSpraOYHVlAex26ydCQ&sa=X&oi=image_result_g roup&ct=title&resnum=1&ved=0CBYQsAQwAA

mtclimber · Oct 16, 2009, 10:43 AM

Good Morning Les-

I saw a Yashicamat 124G just about two months ago in a Greek camera store, while doing a contract in the Med. The owner had taken the camera in as a trade, because he had some Rollei experience, and had a soft spot in his heart for TLR camera. He has had no interested in the camera, which he has now marked down to the equivalent of $(US)103.00.

Have a great day.

Sarah Joyce

lesmore49 · Oct 16, 2009, 1:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mtclimber

Good Morning Les-

I saw a Yashicamat 124G just about two months ago in a Greek camera store, while doing a contract in the Med. The owner had taken the camera in as a trade, because he had some Rollei experience, and had a soft spot in his heart for TLR camera. He has had no interested in the camera, which he has now marked down to the equivalent of $(US)103.00.

Have a great day.

Sarah Joyce

Morning Sarah,

I think that although the old Yashicamat 124G was a fine old camera it would have little appeal now...120 film, a bit awkward to use and absolutely ancient in the eyes of many.

Like the photo shop owner I too have a soft spot for the TLR...I also have a Mamiya 220F professional TLR.

Les

neilcrichton · Oct 19, 2009, 8:03 AM

I used many TLR's over the years, including the YashicaMat, and it's miniature sibling, the Yashica 44, a tiny TLR using 127 film. Others I owned included a couple of Rolleiflexes, Mamiya 220, and Mamiya 330 (with a full complement of lenses).

dwig · Oct 19, 2009, 6:07 PM

I never owned a Yashicamat 124G, or the earlier plain 124. When I was into 120 I owned a Mamyia C33. I do know the 124G very well, though. After nearly a quarter century running camera stores I dealt with many.

Its a rather decent Rolleiflex clone. Very good, but not excellent, lens and rather reliable. Not as solidly built as a Rollei, but still rather good. Much better than the later Chinese imports.

Yashica made a number of TLRs over the years. The 124 was the first to support 220 (12 exposure 120, 24 exposure 220, hence 124). The later "G" version added gold switch contacts to the finder hood's meter switch, but over the years also introduced some cost cutting changes (plastic battery cap, ...). The tele and wide attachments generally aren't great, but work well enough for snapshot sized prints.

Ordo · Dec 8, 2009, 4:13 PM

My first medium format camera was a Yashica Mat 124. I jumped from a cheap Kodak 35mm. straight to MF. The 80mm. 1:3,5 lens rendered great negatives, with nice contrast and excellent sharpness. I shot lots of picks, family portraits, landscapes, etc. When sometimes I go back and look at the negatives, I can see what a great entry camera it was. It forced you to compose the photo and precisely measure settings, which was excellent to learn the fundamentals.
This is crop from a scanned plus 30 years old print. Originaly sepia, I turned B&W.

Ancientritual · Mar 11, 2010, 2:43 PM

I had one back in the day. It was a great learning tool. Sometimes I have to laugh out loud when some of the new popular photographers (stuck in customs) make comments like great landscapes are done by wide angle. Not true, some great landscape shots have been taken with what is considered a normal lens. The majority of the popular TLR's came with a fixed lens. In fact, medium format and 35mm SLR's usually came with the standard lens. You had to walk around and study the image before clicking the shutter release button. A lot harder then standing in one position and zooming....

Oct 14, 2009, 4:59 PM	#1
lesmore49 Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Western Canada Posts: 1,471	Yashicamat 124G TLR- who has ? I have a Yashicamat 124G that I bought new from a camera store that was going out of business. Back then it cost me $ 249. I bought the lens hood and some filter like deals that are supposed to act as wide angle and telephoto additions to the twin lens reflex camera. How many people out there, have a Yashica TLR...or even are aware of this unusual beast. It's been out of production since the mid-80's and as this is when I bought one i wonder if I have one of the last. Works great, probably put less than 10 rolls through it. But I love the little TLR...it's a companion to my Mamiya 220 Pro f TLR...an altogether different TLR...more of a basic commercial camera with interchangeable lenses. Heres some pix of Yashicamat TLR's. http://http://images.google.ca/images?hl=en&q=yashica+124g+pictures&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=KkjWSpraOYHVlAex26ydCQ&sa=X&oi=image_result_g roup&ct=title&resnum=1&ved=0CBYQsAQwAA

Oct 19, 2009, 6:07 PM	#5
dwig Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 133	I never owned a Yashicamat 124G, or the earlier plain 124. When I was into 120 I owned a Mamyia C33. I do know the 124G very well, though. After nearly a quarter century running camera stores I dealt with many. Its a rather decent Rolleiflex clone. Very good, but not excellent, lens and rather reliable. Not as solidly built as a Rollei, but still rather good. Much better than the later Chinese imports. Yashica made a number of TLRs over the years. The 124 was the first to support 220 (12 exposure 120, 24 exposure 220, hence 124). The later "G" version added gold switch contacts to the finder hood's meter switch, but over the years also introduced some cost cutting changes (plastic battery cap, ...). The tele and wide attachments generally aren't great, but work well enough for snapshot sized prints. __________________ ---- Dwig

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Oct 16, 2009, 10:43 AM	#2
mtclimber Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Oregon, USA Posts: 12,782	Good Morning Les- I saw a Yashicamat 124G just about two months ago in a Greek camera store, while doing a contract in the Med. The owner had taken the camera in as a trade, because he had some Rollei experience, and had a soft spot in his heart for TLR camera. He has had no interested in the camera, which he has now marked down to the equivalent of $(US)103.00. Have a great day. Sarah Joyce

Oct 19, 2009, 8:03 AM	#4
neilcrichton Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Claresholm, AB, Canada Posts: 76	I used many TLR's over the years, including the YashicaMat, and it's miniature sibling, the Yashica 44, a tiny TLR using 127 film. Others I owned included a couple of Rolleiflexes, Mamiya 220, and Mamiya 330 (with a full complement of lenses).

Dec 8, 2009, 4:13 PM	#6
Ordo Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Argentina Posts: 1,234	My first medium format camera was a Yashica Mat 124. I jumped from a cheap Kodak 35mm. straight to MF. The 80mm. 1:3,5 lens rendered great negatives, with nice contrast and excellent sharpness. I shot lots of picks, family portraits, landscapes, etc. When sometimes I go back and look at the negatives, I can see what a great entry camera it was. It forced you to compose the photo and precisely measure settings, which was excellent to learn the fundamentals. This is crop from a scanned plus 30 years old print. Originaly sepia, I turned B&W.

Mar 11, 2010, 2:43 PM	#7
Ancientritual Member Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Columbia, IL Posts: 72	I had one back in the day. It was a great learning tool. Sometimes I have to laugh out loud when some of the new popular photographers (stuck in customs) make comments like great landscapes are done by wide angle. Not true, some great landscape shots have been taken with what is considered a normal lens. The majority of the popular TLR's came with a fixed lens. In fact, medium format and 35mm SLR's usually came with the standard lens. You had to walk around and study the image before clicking the shutter release button. A lot harder then standing in one position and zooming....