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Yashica T5

Those who have read already my review on the Yashica T4, then this review has nothing more to add. The Yashica T5 is pretty much a T4 with some aesthetic changes and the addition of a waist level viewfinder. Other than that, everything else remains the same. More importantly, the lens remains the same Carl Zeiss Tessar T* 35mm f/3.5.

Now, having had 8 cameras of Yashica's T-series ( two T3's, three T4's, one T5 and two T-Zoom's) I can write my overall impression of using these cameras. For me, the T3 cameras where not up there with the rest of the series. Picture quality-wise the T3's were in the same league with the T-zoom (high praise for the T-zoom really). The ones to go for are the T4/T5 ones.They feel like a real improvement over the T3. T-Zoom is a nice compact but you need to have fast films and sunshine to appreciate the lens' performance. With two of my T4 samples i had problems around inconsistent focusing which completely annihilated the advantage of having such a good optical unit. One of the T4 and this T5 produce excellent results.
One thing I constantly write about is my overall impression that the L35AF produces just as good results with the T4/T5 costing significantly less. But is this truth or just my "gut feeling"? I am lucky enough at the moment to have both cameras so on my next post, the T5 will be put on test against the Nikon L35AF to see which one is the sharpest. I will compare the results against the Super Takumar 35mm f/2 to see how do they perform against 35mm prime lenses.
Stay tuned...

Lasting Impressions
The Yashica T-series comes and goes in my collection. I buy them in car boot sales for a pound and sell them for £120. I buy films, I buy lenses, I buy other cameras. I am not a P&S person so I don't use them much. People liked them but i have experienced some inconsistencies with picture quality depending on the sample. Not my cup of tea....

Comments

  1. Alan Fisk10 May 2017 at 05:33

    I didn't think that I would use the SuperScope waist level viewfinder, but it is surprisingly useful for candid portraits. I have had my T5 for nearly 20 years, and although I have a Pentax Spotmatic and a Rolleiflex T, the T5 is the one that I turn to when I am in the mood for a point-and-shoot camera. My only complaint, which may be specific to my own camera, is that it always winds the film the whole way into the cassette. The processing labs must curse me.

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