Okada and Daiichi

Daiichi Kōgaku K.K. (第一光学株式会社) is a Japanese camera maker that was active from 1952 and perhaps earlier. It is probably unrelated to the wartime Daiichi Kikō. (Daiichi is Japanese for "first" and is used in many company names.)

Daiichi Kōgaku made the Zenobia series of 4.5×6 folders and the Zenobiaflex 6×6 TLR. The Zenobia folder is a continuation of the Waltax by Okada Kōgaku, with different lens and shutter names. For some reason, the brand names of the camera, lens and shutter were changed almost simultaneously, with almost no change in the features. It is possible either that Okada renamed itself as or was bought by Daiichi. Both Kokusan kamera no rekishi and McKeown attribute the postwar Waltax models to Daiichi, but all the Waltax cameras are marked "Okako" (from Okada Kōgaku), only the very last examples having D.O.C.–Rapid shutters indicating a connection with Daiichi.

Daiichi Kōgaku changed its name to Zenobia Kōgaku K.K. (ゼノビア光学株式会社) between 1956 and 1957, adopting the brand name of its cameras. It developed the Zenobia 35 fixed-lens rangefinder, and remained in existence at least until 1958.

At some time, the company also made a preseries of Leica copies, called Ichicon-35. According to a page by Nekosan, the Ichicon-35 is related to the Honor and only a preseries was made. The same source indicates that the company went bankrupt soon after; according to HPR, "production of the camera was sold" in 1954 to Mejiro Kōgaku, which sold it as the Honor and referred to itself on the camera itself as "Honor Opt."

Daiichi made its own D.O.C.-Rapid leaf shutter with B, 1–500 speeds, later called Daiichi-Rapid. It also made its own Hesper, later Neo-Hesper lens, as well as an enlarging E. Hesper 50mm f:3.5 four-element lens.

120 film

4.5×6 folders

• Zenobia P I, P II, C I, C II, H I, H II, M with no rangefinder
• Zenobia R, R I, R II with uncoupled rangefinder
• Super Zenobia SR I and Zenobia SR or Super Zenobia SR, with coupled rangefinder

6×6 TLR

• Zenobiaflex

35mm film

• Zenobia 35
• Ichicon-35

Links

In English:

• A page about the Honor, somewhat explaining the Ichicon and Zenobia 35 story, at Nekosan's website
• A page about the Honor at Pacific Rim Photographica Pages, says something about the Ichicon that differs slightly from Nekosan's version of the story
• Page about various Japanese TLRs at tlr-cameras.com, including the Zenobiaflex

In French:

• Daiichi page at Mario Groleau's site

In Japanese:

• Zenobiaflex I at Japan Family Camera
• Extract of the Labour Year Book of Japan 1956, saying that Daiichi was producing 3,000 cameras per month around 1954, reduced its workforce in 1954 and 1955, a move that caused conflicts with trade unions, and closed the factory in March 1955. This source was published in November 1955 and maybe it is not aware of a future rebirth of the company.