Ansco Anscomark M (1960–After 1960)

Name: Ansco Anscomark M
Brand: Ansco

A rangefinder camera with interchangeable lenses, built in Japan by Ricoh for Ansco, featuring a selenium light meter and a color-coded triple-frame viewfinder.

Overview

The Ansco Anscomark M is a rangefinder camera with interchangeable lenses, designed and built by Ricoh in Japan from 1960 onward for the American brand Ansco. It was marketed in Japan under the name Ricoh 999. The camera has a distinctive American 1960s aesthetic, differing from contemporary Ricoh models, and is noted for its comfortable handling despite being heavier than it appears. It uses a selenium light meter with no in-viewfinder exposure reminder, and exposure settings are matched manually to a galvanometer needle visible on the top plate.

Specifications

Weight	Almost one kilogram with the 1,9/50mm lens
Light meter	Selenium lightmeter
Viewfinder	Viewfinder frames collimated displays three frames of the three focal simultaneously, each with a different color: green for the 35mm, white for the 50mm and red for the 100mm. The finder's frames move according to the focusing to correct the parallax.
Rangefinder	The round rangefinder's image is quite bright
Film advance	Shutter cocking and film advance is done by a lever under the camera.
Frame counter	Placed on the back

Design

The Anscomark M uses a specific lens mount developed for this system. Four lenses were made available: two standard 50mm options shipped with the body—either a Xytar f/2.8 or a Xyton f/1.9—while a 35mm f/3.5 wide-angle and a 100mm f/4 telephoto were offered separately. The selenium light meter’s sensing element is located behind a small panel bearing the camera’s name, which opens via a lever on the right side to act as a sunshade. Exposure settings (shutter speed, aperture, and film sensitivity) are adjusted to align an index with the meter’s needle in a top-mounted window.

Context

In the early 1960s, Ricoh supplied several camera models to Ansco under an agreement involving GAF, which included licensing for dry photocopying processes in exchange for still camera provision. This collaboration led to Ricoh manufacturing cameras like the Anscomark M for the Ansco brand. The same model was sold in Japan as the Ricoh 999, reflecting its dual-market identity.