Semi Gelto

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Japanese Semi (4.5×6)
Prewar and wartime models (edit)
folding
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The Semi Gelto is a series of Japanese 4.5×6 folders distributed by Hattori Tokei-ten from 1942 to 1944 and certainly made by Tōa Kōki, the maker of the Gelto.[1]

General description

The Semi Gelto is a vertical folder, with the finder situated to the right as seen by the photographer holding the camera vertically, the reverse of the usual arrangement. There is a body release actioned by the right hand finger, and a single red window in the back, at the top right, protected by a vertically sliding cover. The front leather is embossed GELTO.

Versions

The Semi Gelto is presented as a new product in an advertisement dated October 1942.[2] Three versions are listed:

  • Semi Gelto I: Grimmel 7.5cm f/4.5 lens, Gelto-I shutter giving T, B, 5–250 speeds ¥87)[3];
  • Semi Gelto II: same lens, Gelto shutter, speeds from 1s to 1/200 (¥104);
  • Semi Gelto S: automatic film advance, Grimmel 7.5cm f/3.5 lens, Gelto shutter, speeds from 1s to 1/200 (¥170)[4].

The Semi Gelto I and Semi Gelto II have a folding optical finder. In the advertising picture and in some observed examples, there is an advance knob at the left end of the top plate. However one example has been observed with a winding key instead.[5]

The Semi Gelto S has a top housing integrating the viewfinder, the automatic film advance device and the accessory shoe. The lens is a Grimmel Anastigmat 7.5cm f/3.5 with front cell focusing. One example has been observed with a Gelto II shutter providing T, B, 1–300 speeds,[6] and another with a NKS shutter engraved NKS-TOKYO, probably giving B, 1–200 speeds (top speed barely legible).[7]

Notes

  1. Dates: Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p. 336. No original document has yet been found to confirm the attribution to Tōa Kōki, but it is supported by the shared parts and brand names.
  2. Advertisement published in Shashin Bunka, reproduced in Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p. 70.
  3. An example is pictured in Omoide no supuringu-kamera-ten, p. 27, and another one has been observed in an eBay auction. It is certainly the model that is called "Semi Gelto (1939)" in McKeown, p. 922.
  4. It is certainly the model that is called "Semi Gelto (1940)" in McKeown, p. 922.
  5. Example observed in an eBay auction. This particular example has a Rieze-Anastigmat 7.5cm f/3.5 front-cell focusing lens mounted on a B, 1–300 shutter marked KRAFT-WORKS on the speed rim. This lens type normally equips the Semi Leotax and this shutter type is normally mounted on the Kraft. Despite the maximum aperture of the lens, the aperture scale only goes from 4.5 to 22 and this equipment is probably not original.
  6. Example pictured in this page at Japan Family Camera.
  7. Example observed at a Yahoo Japan auction.

Bibliography

  • Asahi Camera (アサヒカメラ) editorial staff. Shōwa 10–40nen kōkoku ni miru kokusan kamera no rekishi (昭和10–40年広告にみる国産カメラの歴史, Japanese camera history as seen in advertisements, 1935–1965). Tokyo: Asahi Shinbunsha, 1994. ISBN 4-02-330312-7. Item 99.
  • McKeown, James M. and Joan C. McKeown's Price Guide to Antique and Classic Cameras, 12th Edition, 2005-2006. USA, Centennial Photo Service, 2004. ISBN 0-931838-40-1 (hardcover). ISBN 0-931838-41-X (softcover). P. 922.
  • Omoide no supuringu-kamera-ten (思い出のスプリングカメラ展, Exhibition of beloved self-erecting cameras). Tokyo: JCII Camera Museum, 1992. (Exhibition catalogue, no ISBN number.) P. 27.

Links

In Japanese: