Yashica Dental-Eye II Camera 

1990 | Object # 2023.05.003

In 1985, Japanese camera maker Yashica released the first Dental-Eye. This specialized camera was produced primarily for the dental industry, but it was also used by eye doctors and in other specialized medical and scientific industries where an easy to use close-up camera was required.  

The Dental-Eye is a modified Yashica FX-3 with a fixed 55mm f/4 macro lens and a built-in electronic ring light. The shutter is fixed at 1/60 and instead of the ability to focus, a large “focus-like” ring sets the magnification ratio from 1:1 to 1:10.  The lens is optimized for macro photography only and cannot focus to infinity, making the Dental-Eye impractical for general use.