Soon after I sent my Yashica 44 off to Mark Hama for repairs, I purchased this Yashica 44 LM. This camera was the last of Yashica’s 44 line of TLR’s that used 127 film.
Manufactured from 1958 to 1962, the Yashica 44 LM is nearly identical to the 44 and 44A. The main difference being the LM has a selenium light meter. Both the viewing and taking lenses are multi-coated, 4-element, 60mm f/3.5 Yashinon. Like the 44, the 44 LM has a Copal SV leaf shutter with speeds from 1 to 1/500th of a second and bulb. Mounted above the viewing lens is a semi-coupled selenium-cell light meter.
Aside from the light meter and the upgraded Yashinon lens with bayonet mount for lens attachments, the LM isn’t as good looking in my opinion as the 44 with the film advance crank and the gray color scheme. The selenium meter on this camera works and was accurate. I had no problems with exposure. I did have some light piping on my cut roll of 127 film. A roll of 120 film is both longer and thicker than original 127 film. When 120 is cut and rolled on to a 127 spool, there’s always a chance to expose the edges to light when loading and unloading the film from the camera. I fat-fingered the film while trying to load it. You can see the results of those shots below. And like the original 44, the LM is a quality-built camera. While the LM has a light meter, and that’s a useful feature, I still think the original 44 is my favorite 127 camera.
Clinton Days Car Show 2019
Camera: Yashica 44 LM (1958 – 1962)
Film: Rera Pan 100
Process: FPP-110 (1+31) 7 Min @ 68°
Scanner: Epson V600 Photo
Clinton Days Car Show 2019
Camera: Yashica 44 LM (1958 – 1962)
Film: Ultrafine Extreme 100
Process: FPP-110 (1+31) 7 Min @ 68°
Scanner: Epson V600 Photo
Utah Film Photography 