Last Updated on 04/27/2019 by Mark Beckenbach
Not only is YASHICA making 35mm film, they’re also still bent on making, rebuilding. and reissuing film cameras this year. Unbelievable.
Just in time for the 70th anniversary of its Japanese provenance, the now Hong Kong-based YASHICA is at it again with a new film camera project. Dubbed “YASHICA Absolute”, the company is seemingly unfazed by the digiFilm Y35 fiasco and has already launched the first phase — or “episode” as they decided to call it — with a Kickstarter campaign for the MF-1 “Snapshot Art Camera” and the Yashica 400 35mm negative film to go along with it. All in the name of “The forgotten journey of a timeless art.”
The MF-1, they said, is suitable for “novice photographers transitioning from the world of digital to that of film photography.” To complement this simple point and shoot camera, they also released two 35mm films; the Yashica 400 film we’ve already heard about earlier this month, and the limited edition “YASHICA Golden 80s” which they said “was exclusively made for the 70th anniversary.” The MF-1 has a shutter speed of 1/120 second, 31mm f11 plastic lens, and built-in flash powered by one AA-sized battery. It looks like one of those simple Kodak single-use and point and shoot film cameras.
The YASHICA 400 35mm film is an ISO 400 film with 24 exposures, and produces a warm tone with moderate grain, saturation, and contrast. The YASHICA Golden 80s film is also an ISO 400 film with 24 exposures, with increased saturation and contrast but less grain.
With a pledge of HK $190 or about US$ 24, you can grab the YASHICA MF-1 bundled with a roll of YASHICA 400 35mm negative film. For those who are interested in the films only, four rolls of the YASHICA 400 is available for a pledge of HK$ 176 or about US$ 22. There’s also a Duo package of 2 rolls of YASHICA 400 and 2 rolls of YASHICA Golden 80s for a pledge of HK$ 192 or about US $24. “In order to realize our [Premiere] of YASHICA Absolute and bring out the best version of YASHICA’s cameras, your support and contribution are crucial and will be highly valued, as well as your constructive comments and feedback for constant improvement,” the company wrote on their Kickstarter campaign.
Yashica 400 Film
Yashica Golden 80s Film
But wait, there’s more! By around August 2019, they’re also set to reissue the Yashica MF-2, and rebuild the Yashica-44 TLR into a brand-new YASHICA 44 that will be 35mm film compatible around December 2019. As expected, backers of the previous campaign aren’t excited about this, and have taken to the latest update to express their dismay over this new campaign as well. While it’s likely that this new “episode” won’t fly, let’s see how it unfolds in the next 34 days.
Photos from the Yashica absolute – [Premiere] on Kickstarter