Ricoh Auto Half SL Review
The Ricoh Auto Half SL is a half-frame film camera with a glorious 35mm f/1.7 lens. Its performance is as quirky as its looks, which will appeal to the more experimental photographer.
Context
Since January I’ve been working on a 365-day photo journaling project using a half-frame camera. Feeling a bit limited by the camera I initially decided to use for the project (the Kodak Ektar H35N), I did research and stumbled upon the Ricoh Auto Half series. The “SL” model caught my attention. I had to have one.
I found a black Ricoh Auto Half SL on flea-bay from a seller who noted a “dirty” lens in the description. I asked for more images of the lens, but the seller couldn’t take more for some reason. While that should have been a red flag, his item description also noted that returns were accepted. After having bought and repaired a Yashica Mat 124G, including removing and cleaning its “dirty” lens element, I felt confident enough to try my hand at restoring the Auto Half’s lens. I figured I could return the camera if I couldn’t fix it.
During my initial inspection I learned that the “dirty” lens was actually a hideous fungus. What’s worse, someone had tried to remove the lens and stripped the slots so badly that my lens wrench/spanner had nothing to work with.
Deflated after the flea-bay debacle, and discouraged because other sellers were selling the cameras at exorbitant premiums (between $350 and $550!), I wondered if I could send the camera off for repair. I searched online. That’s how I learned about a certain Mr. Ryu Itsuki from Tom Box’s blog.
Ryu lives in Japan and repairs the Ricoh Auto Half cameras (UPDATE September 2024 - Mr. Itsuki deleted his website and no longer repairs/sells cameras). He even wrote a book about the beloved half-frame camera series. I emailed him and asked if he could repair the flea-bay purchase. He asked for photos. I sent them. No way he’d touch it, he said. It needs a new lens. But he did say he had a few recently-repaired SLs for sale.
He emailed me a photo of his stock of repaired SL cameras:
I returned the fungus-ridden black SL on the seller’s dime (he said he “felt bad there were unmentioned problems”) and bought a repaired silver SL from Ryu for a steal thanks to the weak Japanese yen and the relatively strong US dollar. The camera was shipped from Japan and delivered to my home in Florida in short order.
Tech Specs
- Introduced: 1970
- Image Size: 18mm x 24mm
- Shutter Range: 1/30s to 1/250s, automatically selected
- Aperture Range: f/1.7 to f/16, automatically selected (1/30 for flash with manual aperture selection)
- Zone Focusing: 3 focus stops: .8 m, 1.5 m, and 5 m to ∞
- Meter Battery: LR44
- Camera Dimensions: 75 x 90 x 54 mm
- Camera Weight: 395 g
- ISO Selection: 25 to 400
- Self Timer
- Shutter Lock
- Cable Release Thread
- Tripod Mount
Handling & Shooting
This little camera is a joy to hold and it is fun to shoot. Some may not like the look of it, but I do. It has some heft to it due to its sturdy, metal construction. You could bludgeon somebody with it.
The camera relies on a spring-loaded film advance mechanism. You wind the dial, and the film automatically advances after you press the shutter. A wind is good for several shots before you need to rewind the spring. I’ve heard anecdotes that some Ricoh Auto Half cameras have faulty spring mechanisms, but mine works great.
I think the size of the Ricoh Auto Half SL is the ideal size for a half-frame camera.
As a side note, I am particularly excited for the upcoming Rollei 35af, which will be about the same size as the Ricoh Auto Half but it will shoot in “full frame” as opposed to “half frame.”
Sample Images
The first three color diptychs below were shot using Fuji 200 film on the black Ricoh Auto Half SL with the fungus growth, which explains the haze in the photos. The black-and-white images were shot on the silver SL I got from Ryu using Ilford XP2 400.
Conclusions
As you can see from the sample images above, it’s somewhat difficult to get tack-sharp photos. This is especially true when shooting in lighting conditions that aren’t sunny. Using a slow film also forces the camera to use a slower shutter speed and a larger aperture, which makes nailing the focus/getting the depth of field right particularly tricky with this camera.
When things go right, as they sometimes do, the camera produces magical images. Though, it’s common for things to go wrong.
To be honest, I like the interesting, dreamy images the camera produces using Ilford XP2 400. I do realize, however, that the camera’s special “look” is almost certainly a result of its issues.
If you’re looking for a half-frame camera that is fun to use, easy to pocket, and produces images with an artsy vibe (i.e.: unreliable, soft/out-of-focus images), the Ricoh Auto Half SL might be for you. Pair it with Ilford XP2 and an art-student’s cool nonchalance and you’re good to go. I’m not sure I agree with Tom that XP2 is the best black-and-white film, but it is up there.
If you’re looking for 72 exposures of tack sharp images, you’d be better off with the new Pentax 17 or even the Kodak Ektar H35N (yes, yes, I know).
I’ll leave you with two more diptychs, shot on my silver Ricoh Auto Half SL and Fuji 200 film.
