Yashica 44A

I found this little treasure at the Kerrisdale Salvation Army for $5.99. Unfortunately those stickers are a pain to get off, so the glue will be there until I get my hands on some lighter fluid.

This TLR uses 127 film, which is all but obsolete! Apparently film is available from frugalphotographer.com, but as it is I haven't tested this camera at all. So purely on an aesthetic level, it appears to be in good shape. There's very little dust or gunk on it (except for the sticker glue, of course). The viewfinder is lovely and although it has no caps it came in a case which has protected the lenses pretty well, but the case itself is falling apart a bit. The inside of the camera has almost no dust at all and looks brand new. The shutter release is a bit sticky but it doesn't affect the camera's performance, except on B where you might get a longer exposure than you intend.

The 44A is a solid chunk of metal, originating from the late 50s and 60s. It is a more basic version of the Yashica 44, which is often compared to the Baby Rolleiflex. Apparently the 44 and the Baby Rolleiflex look quite similar and the 44 was an economical alternative to the fancier TLR.

Although this looks almost exactly like the Yashica 44, it's identified by the comb-like lines coming down from the nameplate. The 44A has fewer shutter speed settings and I believe the film advance is a bit more primitive.

You can use the 44A at your hip using the very cool viewfinder screen, or you can poke the metal flap thing down and use it at your face like you may be used to (I'm betraying my professionalism here). The shutter requires you to cock it first, and I believe someone with an experimental attitude might be able to get some cool double exposure effects with this baby.

Unfortunately, I don't have much to say about using this camera! Maybe one day I'll pick up some 127 film and see what the 44A can do. However, even just as a collector's piece or a decoration it is an incredibly beautiful piece of history. It's amazing what people are giving away to the Sally Anne, so it's always worth a look.

If you're interested in trying out a TLR I think there are readily available modern models that use 35mm and 120 film, from Blackbird and Holga.

When TLRS came out they were a big deal because you could see through the viewfinder exactly what your lens was seeing, since it had its own lens with the same focal length.

Back in the day this was a difficult thing to accomplish... Cheaper cameras had a viewfinder that was just a little window (as we're all familiar with, in the form of disposable cameras). This works most of the time but up close the perspective of your lens is way different from that of the viewfinder. I don't know the details of it but apparently before reflex mirrors focusing was a big pain the neck. Early SLRs were pretty clunky and the mirror mechanisms could cause camera shake, so TLRs were quite a blessing at that time.

Today, it still might be worthwhile to shoot with a TLR. SLRs have gotten exponentially better since their emergence but the TLR never had some of the problems that had to be solved in SLRs. They're just a bit simpler, which is always a nice break in this crazy world!

xoxo Caity Brown