Shinkoh Rabbit
The Shinkoh Rabbit (シンコーラビット) is a Japanese 4.5×6 folding camera, made during the first half of the 1950s, presumably by Tougodo. It is a vertical folder, but the viewfinder is to the right when the camera is held vertically by the photographer, it is the reverse of the usual arrangement. The viewfinder is contained in a top housing, which also supports the advance knob, the bed opening button and the accessory on the left, the shutter release and a decorative round part on the right.
An example is pictured in McKeown[1] with straight folding struts. It is said to be stamped "Model 52" on the bottom. This is probably for the year 1952, and thus it would be an early model. The front leather is embossed Shinkoh and the front of the top housing is engraved Rabbit. The lens is a Bio-Congo 75/3.5 by Yamasaki and the shutter is a synchronized NKS with B, 1–200 speeds.
Advertisements in the January 1953 issue of Ars Camera[2] and in the April 1953 issue of Asahi Camera[3] show a version with differing folding struts, called the Shinkoh Rabbit Improved (シンコーラビット改良型). There is also a minor variation in the viewfinder trim, and the Rabbit marking in front of the top housing has been replaced by another marking above the viewfinder. The lens is a hard coated Giyoko[4] 75/3.5, and the shutter is a synchronized SRS (presumably for Shinkoh Rabbit Shutter) with B, 1–200 speeds and a self-timer. The company name that appears in the advertisement is Shinkō Shōji K.K. (伸幸商事株式会社), this looks like a distributor's name but its role is not precised. In the second advertisement, three authorized dealers are mentioned: Misuzu Shōkai, Chūō Shashin-yōhin (中央写真用品) and Kuwata Shōkai (桑田商会).
The advertisement in the May 1953 issue of Asahi Camera[5] call the camera Semi Rabbit Improved (セミラビット改良型). The lens is now a Shinkoh[6] 75/3.5 and the shutter is unchanged. In addition to the name of Shinkō Shōji and of the three authorized dealers, there is a mention of the maker Tōgo-dō Sangyō Yūgen Kaisha, better known in the West as Tougodo.
An advertisement in the July 1953 issue of Asahi Camera[7], by the seller Hayashi Shōkai, offers the camera for ¥10,500, calling it Shinkoh Rabbit again.
Notes
- ↑ McKeown, p. 891.
- ↑ Reproduced in Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p. 205.
- ↑ Reproduced in Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p. 200.
- ↑ The name is written in katakana: ギョコー or ギヨコー depending on the advertisement, but it is written GIYOKO in Roman letters on the lens rim.
- ↑ Reproduced in Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p. 205.
- ↑ Inferred from the katakana シンコー and from the markings of the early version pictured in McKeown, but the actual lens marking is unknown.
- ↑ Reproduced in Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p. 184.
Printed 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. Items 852, 951 and 991.
- 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. 891.
