Need help on Yashica-D.

[Lee__]

HI, i am planning to buy a vintage Yashica-D. Can anyone tell me where to get the film for such a camera and do they have film in black and white?

comparing the Yashica-D to a Polaroid One Step 600 Land Camera, which one would be a better choice and do they have black and white for polaroid films?

Thank you guys so much.

 

[Tetrode]

HI, i am planning to buy a vintage Yashica-D. Can anyone tell me where to get the film for such a camera and do they have film in black and white?

comparing the Yashica-D to a Polaroid One Step 600 Land Camera, which one would be a better choice and do they have black and white for polaroid films?

Thank you guys so much.

You should have posted this question in the Medium Format section of the Forum. You'd get more responses that way.

If you are referring to the TLR Yashica D (http://www.camerapedia.org/wiki/Yashica_D), it takes 120 film or Medium Format film. You can buy it at most Camera shops. e.g. Cathay, Ruby.

While Polariod 600 comes in B/W, 120 film is definately cheaper to buy than Polariod 600 film.
A roll of 120 B/W film costs only $3.50-$5 and processing with contact print costs $10-12.

An excellent camera to learn with btw. You'll need a handheld meter (get one that takes incident readings) and a lens hood for it. The lenshood is essential for the best pics as most TLR lenses tend to flare quite easily due to the shallow and chrome plated filter mounts.

 

[Lee__]

Thanks man. I have posted this in the Medium Format section. Hopefully i'll get more responses.

So 120mm films dont come in B/W? Where is Cathay and Ruby BTW? I am really a newbie. And is $150 reasonable for a Yashica-D?

 

[Tetrode]

Thanks man. I have posted this in the Medium Format section. Hopefully i'll get more responses.

So 120mm films dont come in B/W? Where is Cathay and Ruby BTW? I am really a newbie. And is $150 reasonable for a Yashica-D?

Yes 120 film does come in B/W.

Cathay is located in Peninsula Plaza and Ruby in Peninsula Shopping Centre.

$150 is OK if it is in mint condition. But a Rolleicord Vb is a much better option as it is easier to use and retains it resale value a lot better. It also takes a whole host of accessories which make it more useful. One thing you can do with a Rolleicord Vb is to upgrade the screen to a Beattie Intenscreen or Maxwell Brightscreen yourself. These Fresnel screens take the picture taking experience to another level, they provide a 3D like bright image (edge to edge). It is like viewing a camcorder LCD - only better. While the Yashica D screen will have dark edges and will be quite hard to focus in dim lighting.

The Rolleicord also has an EV (Exposure Value) scale which makes setting correct exposure a lot faster. But you will need a handheld meter with an EV scale - usually the older meters will have these - esp. ones from Gossen. An Analog meter is a lot faster to use than a digital one in this regard.

So instead of setting f-stop and shutter speed individually, all you need to do is set the camera to the correct EV number indicated by the meter.

Using EV also makes it easier to find the average of two readings. Say for example, you measure the highlights and it give you a reading of EV 14 and the shadows give you a reading of EV 10. Thus the average EV of that particular scene is (14 + 10)/2 = 12. For a more accurate reading, just average more areas of the scene.

To get the average using f-stops and shutter speeds requires a mathmatical formula that is too complex to calculate on the go -unless you are some sort of math whiz.

You will understand a lot about light and metering in a short time by taking incident readings.

Also because the TLR slows you down a lot and because the single focal length forces you to examine all possible angles for the best shot, you will find that your success rate (number of keepers) will increase - encouraging you to shoot more. Also the bigger negative helps in the quality of your shots.

So you have made the right choice in starting with a TLR.