Since well before the COVID-19 pandemic, I’ve been learning (slowly and carefully) how to repair and restore certain types of film cameras. As time has gone on, I’ve tackled increasingly bigger challenges, and one of them recently was resurrecting a Yashica-D twin-lens reflex (TLR) camera that its previous owner apparently dropped, face down. What follows is a narrative on bringing that camera back — with a subtext for all of us on how not to handle your cameras, since drops onto hard surfaces are not generally reparable. And when they are, as I discovered, it can be quite challenging.
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How (and How Not) to Clean a Film Camera
For a few years now, I’ve slowly been learning the art of camera repair and restoration, and no matter the condition of the camera I’m working on, the process begins with a good, thorough cleaning. I tend to think of it as a key part of my bonding process, sort of like giving your baby its first bath, I suppose. In any case, I’ve established both a routine and a set of techniques that are working well for me, and after posting many of these restorations to social media, I’ve gotten more and more inquiries about how I approach the cleaning process specifically. This article aims to provide the answers.
Continue reading…Review: Ihagee Exa 135 (35mm) Film Camera
Anyone who’s read my extraordinarily lengthy review of the Ihagee Exakta Varex IIa knows that I have a bit of a fascination with this brand of German cameras, the majority of which were produced in the post-war period behind the Iron Curtain in the former East Germany. But the Exakta family had a smaller, simpler, less costly sibling: The Ihagee Exa. After ignoring these models for a long time, I finally got the bug and secured my first example from an online charity auction.
Continue reading…My Favorite Film Cameras: 2022
My film camera collection has grown over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic — both as I’ve stopped spending money on things like vacations and shifted those dollars to spending on cameras, and as I’ve gotten into restoring and repairing cameras, which involves buying cheap, derelict cameras with a hope of returning them to service. (Sometimes, as with my Yashica-D, it’s been a massive success, too.) But as my film camera collection has topped 130 examples, I’ve been thinking lately about which ones I shoot, which ones I want to shoot more, and which ones I’d keep if I ever chose to downsize. This article is the result of that thought process; a Top 10 (or so) list of some sort, I guess you could say. And foreseeing that my opinions might shift with time, I’ll just label this as being for 2022.
Continue reading…Review: Graflex Pacemaker 23 Speed Graphic Medium Format Camera
My fondness for the iconic Graflex Graphic cameras was no doubt in evidence as I reviewed the Pacemaker 45 Crown Graphic back in 2020, and my fondness for the Graflex brand has only expanded since, as I discovered the quirky but quite usable Graflex Graphic 35 rangefinder cameras for 135 film and restored a few of them on my workbench. But while the Pacemaker 45 scratched the 4×5 large format itch, I continued to be intrigued by its smaller sibling, often referred to as the “baby” Graflex, baby Graphic, or “23” Graphic. The 23 is a reference to the cameras’ use of 2¼ x 3¼ inch sheet film (2×3, nominally), and they’re everything the larger Graphic cameras are — just presented in a petite (and adorable) little package that has charmed me to the core.
Continue reading…Film Camera Repair: Observations and Advice
My film camera collection has grown through various approaches. Sometimes it’s lusting after a specific model, and waiting patiently for the perfect example to come-up for sale. Sometimes it’s been seeing something on the shelf of one of my two local brick-and-mortar camera shops, and having it capture my imagination. Other times it’s been seeing a derelict camera in an auction listing and thinking I can restore it myself (often successfully). And still other times it’s been discovering something in an auction lot I wasn’t expecting, and being pleasantly surprised. But no matter how the cameras make their way to me, not all of them work properly, and not all are good candidates for subjecting to my rapidly growing but still amateur-level knowledge of camera repair. That’s where sending a camera to a professional comes into play, and I’ve learned — and continue to learn — a great deal about that exercise. This article captures some of the insights I’ve gleaned from years of sending my film cameras off for some TLC, and the obscene amount of money I’ve spent in the process.
Continue reading…Review: Yashica-D Twin Lens Reflex (TLR) Medium Format Camera
I’ve said very little about it here as I write this review in October 2021, but for over a year now, I’ve been slowly, methodically gravitating toward repairing and restoring cameras, and developing a workbench and collection of tools to do so. First it was the Zeiss Jena Biotar lens on my Exakta. Then I managed to get a couple of Zeiss Ikon Contina II cameras running (a model which still needs its own review here). Then a Graflex Graphic 35. Bit by bit, my confidence and knowledge levels rose in the face of (or perhaps because of) a few notable failures. And while I still know my limits (e.g., complex cameras don’t belong on my repair bench), I nevertheless relish tackling basket case cameras in horrible cosmetic condition just to see what (if anything) I might be able to do to get them working and looking acceptable again. Such was the case recently with a very tired, non-working, aesthetically bankrupt Yashica-D — one of the many twin lens reflex (TLR) models to come out of the Yashica factories over the course of the company’s existence.
Continue reading…Tips and Advice for Buying Used Film Cameras
Let’s face it: Buying a used film camera is fraught. The majority of them, at this point, are decades old. Many haven’t been physically well taken care of by their owners. Most haven’t seen a camera tech’s workbench once in their entire lives, other than (perhaps) for warranty service when still relatively new. Tons of them are filthy dirty on the outside, and likely just as grubby on the inside. And yet, many people buy cameras expecting (or at least hoping) that they’re ready to load with film and to work perfectly for years to come. While that’s sometimes possible, my experience tells me that’s the exception, not the rule. Instead, I find it best to become an educated buyer, and to calibrate one’s expectations in the process.
Continue reading…Review: Yashica Mat-124G Twin Lens Reflex (TLR) Medium Format Camera
I don’t generally require nearly two years to write a review, but in fact, I did start this one in October 2019. The passage of time has given me new perspectives on the venerable Yashica Mat-124G TLR camera, and in those two years, much as changed about the used film camera market — especially when it comes to decent medium format cameras. Given this camera’s stature in the medium format universe, and given its amazing 16 year production run, from 1970 clear until 1986, it constitutes both a popular and a worthy choice — at least when you can find one to buy.
Continue reading…Review: Conley No. 2 Kewpie Medium Format Box Camera
When I got back into film photography a few years back, I was interested in one thing: shooting medium format film, using modern cameras — those no older than the 1980s. Rolleiflex lust dragged me into vintage camera territory, but I resisted embracing anything that could be described as antique. But one charity auction lot later, and here we are, deep into antique camera territory.
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