Film camera, bellows type, WESTER N.K.K. SEMI SPORT

I am releasing items from my collection.

The exterior condition is good, but I have never taken a real photo with it, and it is not for photography.

The aperture ring and distance meter ring function normally.

The shutter does not function.

There appear to be no scratches on the lens, but there is some clouding. The viewfinder is clean.

There are no tears in the bellows.

Size: Height 12cm, Width 9cm, Depth 4cm (when closed), 9.5cm (when extended).

It is a folding type, and when not in use, the lens and bellows are stored within the body, making it easy to carry.

Unlike modern cameras, the process of "folding → unfolding → shooting → storing" offers a "classic camera experience."

Cameras of this type often use 6x6 cm format, the so-called "medium format film," and 75 mm (f/3.5 or f/4.5) lenses were often used as standard lenses.

You can expect the "rich tonal range," "soft image quality," and "large negatives" unique to medium format.

It's easy to get a taste that is not found in modern 35 mm film or digital cameras.

This camera was made by Nishida Optical Industries (NKK), a domestic optical manufacturer at the time.

The company manufactured cameras using its own lenses (Wester / Lucky brand) and shutters from the late 1930s to the 1950s.

It is a valuable item that allows you to experience "Japanese camera technology of the time" with "domestic lenses + medium format film."

Because it is a folding type, it was convenient as a "portable," "travel," and "casual snapshot" camera at the time.

These types of domestic bellows cameras are hardly produced anymore and are only available on the used/antique market.

Those in good condition are relatively rare and are popular among enthusiasts as a "piece that evokes the photographic history of the Showa era."

Manufacturer: Nishida Optical Industries (NKK)

At the time, it was a domestic manufacturer of photographic equipment/optical equipment, supplying lenses and shutters to other companies while creating bellows cameras under its own brand (such as Wester).

NKK released its first bellows camera (under the name Wester or Semi-Wester) in the early 1940s.

This series seems to have been the mainstay until the pre-war and immediate post-war periods.