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I’ll be the first to admit that pinhole photography and I have not gotten along well in the past. It’s a bit hit or miss with me, and I don’t always associate photographic success with the gear I use. Sometimes having the right equipment will make you enjoy the format. Pinhole is one such format. My first attempts were bit misses, using a pinhole body cap adapter on my Pentax 645, and then again on various Nikon cameras. It wouldn’t be until I got my hands on a dedicated pinhole camera that I started to see results that I actually liked. So when I startedRead More →

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This was truly Minolta’s last hurrah; the age of the film SLR was starting to come to a close. Rather than let it go out with a whimper, Minolta took things by the reigns and rode out into the sunset with a sixth and final generation of film cameras before merging with Konica and leaving 35mm behind. Meet the Maxxum 70, elsewhere known as the Dynax 60 or α-70. While much of the final era of cameras from Minolta were continuations of their original three market segments, the Maxxum 9 (Professionals), Maxxum 7 (Advanced Amatures), and Maxxum 5 (Consumers). But this final subset of camerasRead More →

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If you’re a long time listener of the Film Photography Podcast, this camera would be one of the more familiar ones, especially the iconic sound bite by Dan Domme, “Agfa Clack.” The camera earns its name by the clack sound the shutter makes, compared to the Agfa Click, also named for its shutter sound. Despite having many amazing cameras that perform perfectly, I have a soft spot for box cameras, so I started looking for an Agfa Clack after getting the Click-II. I should also note that the Clack is known as the Agfa Weekender in US Markets. Camera Specifications Make: Agfa Model: Clack Alternatively:Read More →

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I’m not one for point-and-shoot, automatic everything cameras. I’m not knocking such cameras; they’re excellent and have introduced many photographers to the world of film through their ease of use, pocketability and appeal in popular culture. Not to mention the Instagram and Celebrity crowd. Sadly this has also caused the price of certain premium and even primary point-and-shoot cameras to skyrocket in price. However, I do love a good unique camera, and the Minolta Weathermatic 35DL certainly fits that criteria. There are two reasons for this; the first and most apparent is that the camera is designed for underwater applications, fully watertight but can alsoRead More →

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When it comes to the world of TLRs, I was hooked from the first time I picked one up; in my case, the LOMO Lubitel 2. But the Lubitel was primitive even for the age when it was produced as a simple camera aimed at budding photographers. And while there is a certain character to the images produced by that T-43 lens, I had hit the gear acquisition hard after listening to the Film Photograph Podcast. Thankfully in those days, the cost of cameras had not yet risen, and you could get excellent deals on almost anything. At a local camera show put on byRead More →

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I remember the first time I learned about the Nikon FE2; it was one of the early episodes of the Film Photography Podcast, I can’t remember which episode it was initially, but I do remember talking to him about the camera when I met up with him at one of the FPP recording sessions back in 2011. The camera didn’t particularly interest me; I still had my Nikon F3. But the camera stuck in my head. And even though I have an FE, the FE2 is an excellent addition to the stable as it is a newer camera, has a faster shutter, and the viewfinderRead More →

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In the 1990s, a particular bread of camera was cheaply made, often in mass quantities and questionable quality. While many have been passed off these days as cheap and trash cameras, some achieved a bit of a cult following. One such camera was the Vivitar Ultra-Wide & Slim (VUWS). Vivitar never made the camera itself; instead, it was marketed and sold under the name. And actually, I don’t think Vivitar ever made anything of their own. What set the UWS apart from the other contemporary trashcams of the 1990s; it featured a simple 22mm f/11 ultra-wide lens, something that most well made point-and-shoot and toyRead More →

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I like a camera with history, something unique, a variant or a failed move forward. While I’m a Nikon shooter, Nikon cameras are fairly dull in the broader picture of photographic history. Sure, Nikon cameras often set the standard for photography and technology, but they often played it safe. On the flip side, Canon tried different things, they experimented, and sometimes it worked. Other times it was too early. The Canon Pellix is a fine example of the engineers at the company in the 1960s who wanted to try everything to improve photography. Sadly they were several decades ahead of the game. Thanks to OriRead More →

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The KMZ ЗЕНИТ 3m (Zenit 3m) is a camera that is often bought for only a couple of reasons. The first is the desirable Helios 44 lens; the second is a collector’s item. In the overall history of Soviet cameras, the Zenit 3m marked the first popular SLR to come out of the Красногорский механический завод or Krasnogorskiy Mechanicheskiy Zavod (KMZ). Sadly, like many older Soviet cameras, they aren’t known for their longevity and often suffer shutter failure. But my good friend John Meadows uncovered his Zenit 3m, and it still works, so he loaded it out to me along with his Helios lens withRead More →

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This won’t be the first time that I have a Nikon camera that is Nikon in name only. Remember the Nikkorex? While not the same idea, while the Nikkorex line was contracted out to another manufacturer, the Nikon FM10 is a straight-up rebrand (with some modifications) of an existing camera. The Nikon FM10 is one of many cameras built on the Cosina CT-1 Super/CT-1G chassis and dressed up to look like a Nikon. And I’ll give Nikon and Cosina one thing, the FM10 seems a lot like a Nikon right down to the red stripe. Camera Specifications Make: Cosina Model: Nikon FM10 Type: Single LensRead More →