Ansco Anscomark M (1960–After 1960)

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

Overview

The Ansco Anscomark M is a rangefinder camera with interchangeable lenses. Ricoh designed and built it in Japan from 1960 onward for the American brand Ansco. In Japan it was sold as the Ricoh 999. The look is American 1960s, and it differs from contemporary Ricoh models. It is noted for comfortable handling, though it is heavier than it appears. The selenium light meter has no exposure reminder in the viewfinder. You match exposure settings by hand 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 lens mount developed for this system. Four lenses were made. Two standard 50mm options shipped with the body, either a Xytar f/2.8 or a Xyton f/1.9. A 35mm f/3.5 wide-angle and a 100mm f/4 telephoto were offered separately. The meter's sensing element sits behind a small panel bearing the camera's name. A lever on the right side opens the panel 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. The agreement included licensing for dry photocopying processes in exchange for still camera provision. That is how Ricoh came to manufacture cameras like the Anscomark M for the Ansco brand. The same model was sold in Japan as the Ricoh 999.

Market Value

┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ ANSCO ANSCOMARK M                                               Nov 2026 │
├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ High      $134                                    Latest            $100 │
│ Median    $75                                     Trend                — │
│ Low       $60                                     Volume           ~1/mo │
├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│   $200 ┤                                                                 │
│        │                                                                 │
│        │                                                                 │
│   $136 ┤                                                                 │
│        │         .                                                       │
│        │                                                                .│
│        │                                          .   .                 .│
│    $50 ┤.                                     .                          │
│        ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────│
│    vol │▄        ▄                            ▄   ▄   ▄                 █│
│        └─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────│
│         2026-02                      2026-05                      2026-08│
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

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