Yashica GSN 1st roll

[olroy2044]

I finally got around to shooting a roll through my GSN, thanks to Didon's inspiration. The camera is pleasant to use, after you figure out that it is not an SLR! Managed to take a couple of shots of the inside of the lens cap! I think my meter is about 1 to 1 1/2 stops underexposing, possibly due to the alkaline replacement battery that was in it when I got it. The issue surfaces in lower light levels. As shot:



Attempts to correct the shot caused it to "grain up" immediately.

Moving into bright light greatly improved the IQ. Again, as shot:



Bright, full sun brought about more improvement. As shot, other than some cropping to get rid of excessive foreground:



With a max shutter speed of 1/500, and a minimum aperture of f16, the camera fell right in line with "sunny 16."

The lens seems to be very sharp, and capable of very good resolving power. As shot:



Substantial crop of the same image:



Over-all, I am pleased with the camera. I will expose the next roll of Fuji 400 at ISO 320, and see if that helps.

Roy

[daveh]

Roy, lens caps, fingers, camera straps......I think I've had the complete set over the years.

Batteries can be a problem as you say. Some modern batteries fit okay into the older cameras, but are often the wrong voltage.

[Randy]

Looks just fine to me Roy, Yashica made some great rangefinders.

[Th1nk3r]

Roy

bravo, Sir.... those are a great example for GSN lens. Even if I try to shot the sun in the frame, it still can work for me....

what kind of battery do you use , and what is the total voltage ?

cant be patient to see the fuji 400 result...


Dave,

if I am not wrong, the GSN / GTN need 5.6 volt mercury battery to work. Usually I use 4 hearing aid battrey , 1.4 volt each , as substitute ... and it work for me.




is there any other substitute that only use single alkaline battery in your area?


didon.-

[daveh]

Didon, I don't really know the battery (or batteries) Roy's GSN uses. The problem is usually that different battery types out put differing voltages when fresh. Then there is the ability to hold the voltage at a working level, rather than have a slow decline. I suppose results must depend also on how well the designer has made the circuit i.e. how well it can cope with voltage variations or fluctuations.

The PX 625 shape can be 1.35v (mercury or zinc-air), 1.5v (alkaline) or 1.55v (silver oxide). Some cameras will be happy with any, others won't.

[olroy2044]

Thanks to all for taking a look. Didon is correct in saying that the
Electro series of Yashica rangefinders is designed to take a 5.6 volt mercury battery. Mine came with a long-discontinued Duracell PC164 alkaline in it. It tests like a brand new battery, so I will run it out. The "new" replacement is a PX28, both of which are 6V batteries. With there not really being an exposure read-out on the GSN, or GTN, one is forced to trial and error. I think mine will be pretty close if I back the ASA (ISO) off to 320 for the next roll. These pix were shot on Fuji 400 Superia shot at the rated speed. I had to do the same thing with my XA2, but had to drop all the way to 160 for it to work right. When this battery dies, I will most likely fashion an adapter to do as Didon does, and use 4 hearing aid batteries.

Roy