...a plethora of creative nonsense...
Database and reviews of cameras in my collection, past and present
Reading Time: 2 minutes This is a simple 110 cartridge film camera, designed by Schlagheck Schultes Design; like the rest of the range it is styled in black and silver and has the ubiquitous red sensor button for the shutter. The film is advanced by closing and opening the case after shooting. It has a 3 element resin Color Agnar Lens at 26mm with a fixed aperture of f/9.6. It has a socket for Magicube Flash Bulbs.
Reading Time: 2 minutes This is a small compact viewfinder camera. It has no branding other than the Barclaycard Logo, though I assume it will be a rebrand of something else. It has a sliding lens cover, a flash, and a closeup control for shots between 0.6 and 1.2m which moves the lens away from the film plane (acting like a very simple extension tube).
Reading Time: 4 minutes This is a version of the classic Holga re-made for 35mm film. It has a smaller squarer body, with what looks like the original lens mount on the front, which has been relabelled with a focal length of 47mm – this has been commented on a few times, but seems to be accepted that this is the correct focal length – I would guess the meniscus lens differs inside the mount. The BC in the name stands for “Black Corners”, a reference to the vignetting evident on the images it produces.
Reading Time: 9 minutes The primary selling point of the Genesis III was its Automatic Picture Composition System – subject to certain picture modes the camera would set an appropriate aperture and shutter speed combination, focus and even zoom for you, based on 3255 programmed image variations! Focusing is carried out by a dual mode system – an active IR beam and passive TTL phase differential detection.
Reading Time: 4 minutes This was the first film compact I bought, for £2.99 in a charity shop in Scarborough, boxed with a case and information leaflet. I can find very little about it on the internet. This is one of my favourite cameras and has a special place …
Reading Time: 2 minutes The best camera is the one you have with you. Unless it is a BlackBerry Curve… Interestingly this came up in conversation recently about how the BlackBerry, only a few years was an important and groundbreaking piece of technology – how things change. About The …
Reading Time: 4 minutes This little compact was first produced in 1996, as part of Canon’s hugely successful Sureshot range. It is a wonderful pocket sized camera, which performs very well at metering, handling tricky exposures.
It has an in built flash, with a guide number of 7.5; with automatic, red eye reduction, and suppressed modes. One thing that is useful is that these are set by a dial, not a menu, so you can keep the flash suppressed when the camera is switched off.
Reading Time: 3 minutes This was another of my brilliant 75p finds in our local charity shop. My copy is in good mechanical, optical and cosmetic condition, though the case is a little battered. I am amazed at some of the interesting old things that crop up there. About …
Reading Time: 4 minutes I found this quirky little camera in Oxfam for £5.99 for a copy in very good mechanical, optical and cosmetic condition, with case. There is a reasonable amount of literature on the internet about the Agfa Optima Sensor series, though much of this is in …
Reading Time: 2 minutes This rather odd twin lens camera came from a charity shop for £2.99 I think, with a case. It has a slightly damaged battery compartment and is somewhat temperamental. About The Vivitar TW35 dates from about 1986. It is a twin lens 35mm camera; the …
Reading Time: 3 minutes Another 75p bargain find, in good optical, mechanical and cosmetic condition. All the documentation I can find online describes this as either the ‘Sureshot Owl’ (American Market) or Prima AF-7 (European Market). But as you can see in the image, my copy definitely says ‘Sureshot …
Reading Time: 2 minutes So it seems this new found addiction with buying cameras is going to become a thing. I found this in Poverty Aid recently. It’s nice to start adding some more vintage cameras to the collection. About This box camera was apparently produced by Standard Cameras …