News Update – 12/6/2022!

Hi everyone! If you are new to my site, I thought that I might just offer a little assistance to ensure that you see all the posts. This is not as daft as it may seem. I will explain. When you land on the home page there are only a limited number of posts displayed….

Half-Frame Frenzy (Part 1)

BackgroundI have previously commented on film costs and possible solutions involving smaller format cameras here. In that post, I mentioned my Chaika 2 half-frame camera. Since then, I have obtained two other half-frame cameras – an Olympus PEN-EE S and a Fujica Half. I decided that it would be good to explore the possibility of…

Canon EOS 300

I will place my cards firmly on the table and say that a Canon EOS 300 is not a camera that I had ever considered actively adding to my modest collection of vintage cameras. Then an acquaintance contacted me to say that they had one that they wanted to dispose of along with a few…

A Tale Of Two Praktica LLCs

What’s the fascination with the Praktica LLC?That’s a difficult question to answer. I guess it is the fact that this camera was an innovative departure for Praktica in that it had a vertical, metal, focal plane shutter unlike its predecessors that had cloth shutters and perhaps more importantly, its open-aperture, through the lens (TTL) metering…

Zenit LC-A

A Little BackgroundI am not sure where to start this article. Should it be a discussion on the merits of Lomography? Should it be about how Soviet camera manufacturing influenced the photography world or simply about the LOMO LC-A which is what I originally intended? (Mine is badged Zenit LC-A). Let’s see how this goes….

Olympus OM-10

IntroductionI think it is fair to say that I have a few vintage cameras. Certainly not as many as a lot of collectors but certainly more than your average ‘Happy-Snapper’! However, I must confess that I have never owned an Olympus camera – that is until now. I chose to bid on this particular camera…

Another Look At Panoramas

IntroductionIt will come as no surprise when I say that there are numerous cameras available that allow the film user to shoot panoramas. I guess that the daddy of them all amongst 35mm and medium format cameras is probably the Hasselblad Xpan. Friends and anyone that will will listen will tell you that I have…

Thoughts on the Minolta Freedom Zoom 140EX Panorama Date.

IntroductionThe Minolta Freedom Zoom 140EX Panorama Date compact camera, There’s a mouthful! The name might accurately describe this camera but was it really necessary to include all its functions in the name? I guess that those entrusted with the marketing of this interesting compact camera felt the need to differentiate it from the ‘bog-standard’ Minolta…

Another Bronica – The Bronica SQ-Ai

Introduction I have had a bit of a love affair with Bronica cameras for many years but it took me until 2019 before I ever owned my first one, an ETRS complete with speed grip and AE II prism finder. Since then, I have acquired a further ETRS body, an assortment of lenses and accessories…

It’s Quiet, Oh So Quiet! -The Minolta A-5

I have had this Minolta A-5 for a little while now but only just got around to testing it. As the title of this article suggests, it is extremely quiet to use and makes an ideal candidate for street photography. I tested it with a short roll of Fomapan 100 bulk film developed in XTOL….

My Argus ‘AF’ – An American Masterpiece?

I must confess to being rather taken with the ‘Art Deco’ period with its simple, clean shapes, often with a “streamlined” look. This has previously been reflected in some of my vintage camera collection, specifically in my four Flexaret twin lens reflex cameras. Although they were built in the Art Deco style they were not…