Yashica's first Electro 35 — fixed-lens 35mm rangefinder, aperture-priority electronic shutter, 1966.
The Yashica Electro 35 was the first model in Yashica's long-running Electro 35 family of fixed-lens 35mm rangefinder cameras, introduced in 1966. It launched a line built around electronic automatic exposure at a time when most consumer rangefinders still relied on mechanical or match-needle metering, and it went on to sell in very large numbers over the following decade.
This is a 35mm coupled-rangefinder camera with a fixed Yashinon lens and an electronically-timed leaf shutter. It uses aperture-priority automatic exposure: the photographer sets the aperture and the meter selects a stepless shutter speed, with over- and under-exposure warning lamps in the finder. The lens is a fast 45mm design at around f/1.7. The camera needs a battery to fire correctly because the shutter timing is electronic, and the original design used a mercury cell.
In use the Electro 35 suits available-light and street shooting, where its fast lens and quiet leaf shutter are helpful. The stepless electronic exposure and bright rangefinder patch make it straightforward for casual and travel photography, though it is a relatively heavy camera and the automatic-only exposure gives limited manual control.
When buying, check the electronics: these bodies are prone to the so-called pad-of-death (POD), a small rubber pad that perishes and disrupts shutter timing and cocking. Test the meter and exposure lamps, inspect the lens for haze and fungus, and confirm rangefinder patch contrast and alignment. Replace perished light seals, and note the original mercury battery is obsolete, so a voltage-adapted or alternative cell is usually needed.