35mm Camera Hall of Fame

wblynch · May 22, 2012

Kodak Brownie Hawkeye Flash.

Millions made. Millions Used. Still work.

ic-racer · May 22, 2012

SL3003 for its unique design and because it was the last 35mm SLR made in Germany.

Ricardo Miranda · May 23, 2012

ic-racer
That is a system that is rare to find here in the UK, which is a pity as they have first class optics and some interesting concepts.

cliveh
You're welcome!

Dali · May 23, 2012

The Barnack Leica because of its quaint charm and the Olympus OM1/2 because they introduced the RF size in the SLR world.

Thomas Bertilsson · May 23, 2012

gandolfi said:
Hall of Fame? Dunno, but my vote goes for Topcon.

At least as teh two images show, it would look great in a hall of fame (shouldn't it be hall of frame? ;-))

Does that thing take an entire 30m spool, or something?

gandolfi · May 23, 2012

Thomas Bertilsson said:
Does that thing take an entire 30m spool, or something?

not quite, but 250exposures (approx 8m film).
Heavy beast... But beautiful!

Thomas Bertilsson · May 23, 2012

gandolfi said:
not quite, but 250exposures (approx 8m film).
Heavy beast... But beautiful!

I'd like to see watch you process the film, Emil!

andrewc · May 23, 2012

I certainly agree with Les that the LX belongs in the 35mm Camera Hall of Fame. It really is an incredible camera. My vote is for the Canon EOS 1v. It's the pinnacle of Canon 35mm film cameras and just does everything right. It feels wonderful in the hand and its performance is always spot on. The AF is amazing and very seldom misses. Its build is rugged enough to handle pretty much anything. And it looks pretty good too!

David Lyga · May 24, 2012

For pure aesthetics, it goes to the Pentax H series (predecessor to Spotmatic).

For naked functionality "at the time made" it goes to the four year 'research and development' hiatus that begat the mighty, profound and utterly simple (engineering-wise) Spotmatic. NOTHING has ever been engineered so simply in order to synergize so completely. - David Lyga

chuck94022 · May 24, 2012

Well, a Hall of Fame would be a mighty lonely place with just one camera. I hope, if ever one is built, many if not all of these cameras will hold a place in it. And I would nominate the Nikon FM3a (just because), and the F4.

migtex · May 24, 2012

Nikon F!

bobwysiwyg · May 24, 2012

migtex said:
Nikon F!

+1, built like a tank.

zsas · May 24, 2012

What 4 pages now and nar a mention of the venerable ubiquitous Pentax K1000? I never owned one but it's reputation and Model-T-of-its-era should count for something in our fictitious museum...

Where will it be? Germany or Rochester NY???

lxdude · May 24, 2012

Japan, maybe?

cliveh · May 24, 2012

zsas said:
What 4 pages now and nar a mention of the venerable ubiquitous Pentax K1000? I never owned one but it's reputation and Model-T-of-its-era should count for something in our fictitious museum...

Where will it be? Germany or Rochester NY???

The K1000 is the perfect student camera, used by many colleges throughout the UK. Wonderful machine, simplistic manual operation, built like a tank and will last you a lifetime.

wblynch · May 24, 2012

Only cameras "Built Like a Tank" qualify

Pioneer · May 24, 2012

I already voted once but I have to nominate the Minolta SRT 101 as well. My first camera and still a great classic.

Derek Lofgreen · May 24, 2012

Nikon F4, I love it. I just do.

D.

zk-cessnaguy · May 25, 2012

Minolta XD-7, then Nikon F4 and Pentax Spotmatic.
XD-7 because it's a jewel of a camera, beautiful finish and so small, yet technically interesting too, with both Shutter and Aperture Priority as well as metered manual. F4 because it's an indestructible lump of camera and has the best backwards-compatibility with F-mount lenses of all the Nikon AF bodies. Spotmatic for its simplicity and ease of use, and all those glorious Takumar lenses (not to mention that it was my first SLR and it's sitting beside me as I type this, with half a roll of HP5+ to be finished off).

Thomas Bertilsson · May 25, 2012

I second the K1000. What a machine!

I had one for years, and loved everything about it, but a couple of KX bodies were forced upon me, so I let the K1000 move to a new home, someone who wanted to learn photography. Good karma, I hope. She still uses it, which I think is awesome. I keep feeding her lenses I stumble upon, and she seems to really love the camera.

Les Sarile · May 26, 2012

Surely the diminutive - all auto (loading, rewind, flash exposure & focus), Olympus Stylus Epic belongs in the Hall?

It's always been amazing to me that all these accept the same roll of 35mm film!

Guillaume Zuili · May 26, 2012

M3/M2/M6.
And the indestructible Nikkormat FTN.

fstop · May 27, 2012

Minolta XG-7 it lead the masses to 35mm SLRs.

BradleyK · May 27, 2012

And just how, pray tell, have we managed to overlook the F2? Solid, dependable, ultra-versatile (my god, just look at the accessories Nikon made for this camera) and, most important, it does not require batteries to operate (why, after 30 odd years of shooting, I always have one in my pack as an "insurance policy" of sorts when I head off to the hinterlands...).

fstop · May 28, 2012

Pretty sure the F2 was mentioned already.

35mm Camera Hall of Fame

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