Tanaka

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See also the wartime Tanaka, maker of the Mulix, and Tanaka Shōkai, an unrelated distributor.

Tanaka Kōgaku (田中光学, meaning Tanaka Optical) was a Japanese camera and lens maker.

History

Tanaka Kōgaku was perhaps already active in the early 1950s, making screw lenses and camera accessories.[1] It was founded by a former employee of Kōgaku Seiki (predecessor of Nicca), who worked under Kumagai Genji on the Nippon Leica copy.[2] The company announced a Leica copy called Tanack 35 in late 1952, improved in 1954 as the Tanack IIIS and in 1955 as the Tanack IV-S. The latter model met some success and was produced until 1958. At the same time, Tanaka was making a series of Tanar lenses in Leica mount, to go on the Tanack cameras.

In 1957, Tanaka released an ambitious rangefinder camera called Tanack SD, inspired by the Nikon S2 but taking Leica mount lenses. The camera was produced until 1959 but met very limited success.

In early 1959, the company made an attempt to give a successor to the Tanack IV-S, releasing the Tanack V3 with a specific bayonet mount. Tanaka finally produced the Tanack VP, an evolution of the V3 turning back to the Leica screw mount, but it lacked the resource to develop it further, and disappeared in 1959 or 1960.

Camera list

Lens list

Other

  • accessory finders for the Tanar lenses
  • Universal zoom finder for 35mm cameras (announced in mid 1953)[4]

Notes

  1. Awano, p.52 of Kurashikku Kamera Senka no.37.
  2. Shirai, pp.25–6 of Maboroshi no kamera o otte: 熊谷氏の会社の職人だった人々が作ったカメラに、やはりライカそっくりの「タナック」、「チヨタックス」、「メルコン」があるという.
  3. Advertisement in Ars Camera May 1953, reproduced in Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p.145.
  4. Advertisement in Ars Camera May 1953, reproduced in Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p.145.

Bibliography