brag

Bill Burk · Dec 8, 2017

E. von Hoegh said:
Kodak 35 Rf, 1941.

Yup. When I take that camera out I know it is going to work. With everything else I have to check first

keenmaster486 · Dec 8, 2017

Kodak Retina IIa - got it for $20 at an antique mall.

Kodak Retina Reflex III - $15 on eBay, and a few months afterward it very suddenly became worth exactly that.

Zeiss Contaflex B or something - $15 on eBay with case. Most reliable camera I own and I'm not even sure what model it is. Never fails me even once and has very respectable capability. Somehow I can't take better pictures than the ones I take with that little 45mm 2.8 lens and 1/300 shutter, even with professional SLRs with the best lenses and latest films or what have you, I just seem to work better with the old Zeiss.

choiliefan · Dec 8, 2017

My auto exposure, scale focus, viewfinder Zeiss-Ikon Tenax is amazing. Its 50mm Tessar lens is phenomenal. An exceptional example of a seemingly mediocre 35mm camera which cost $3 at a thrift store in '95. Z-I had a service center in North Hollywood back then and the tech was overjoyed to put in on the testing bench and give it a thumbs up. Business may have been slowing for Z-I in those days but he was quite keen on the virtues of the Zeiss Tessar lens and didn't charge a cent for the service. Great guy, great company, great camera.

Theo Sulphate · Dec 8, 2017

jnanian said:
...
what is the least impressive camera or lens you have? ... the most unassuming camera you own, that you use, that is something you don't even think about, it just works...

An Olympus XA2 that I bought new in 1981. Everything else I have is either more sophisticated or has more aesthetic value.

That said, my XA2 has captured more than a few precious moments.

MattKing · Dec 8, 2017

Olympus Trip 35, because my Retinette 1b (see my avatar) is actually kind of impressive.
And because a picture speaks a 1000 words...

E. von Hoegh · Dec 8, 2017

Bill Burk said:
Yup. When I take that camera out I know it is going to work. With everything else I have to check first

The 35 was my very first real camera, I was 13 or so. Still have most of the slides I made with it, Kodachromes and some High Speed Ektachromes. I used it with a late '30s Weston, and there are very few bad exposures.
After I got a GIII QL 17, the Kodak was forgotten and eventually traded away. This past summer the camera fairy gave another, same year as the first one!

Patrick Robert James · Dec 8, 2017

AgX said:
But it takes two hands to open.

I have no trouble opening it with one hand.

Laurent · Dec 9, 2017

I've got rid of many cameras, but both my M4 and Rolleiflex corrspond to these criterias. They were never owned by anybody famous, do not have some extra features (like chrome-black leicas) , have some dents and bings and marks, but work reliably and sure will continue

Jeff Bradford · Dec 9, 2017

Yashica Electro 35 GT. If it failed, I wouldn't even send it in. I have two more for backup.

Bipin · Dec 20, 2017

Linhof Technika 70. Bought it for $100 (as a student, it's all I could afford, let alone find - these aren't common cameras)! It was in poor condition when I got it, but I've fixed it up over the last few months, 3D printed the missing parts, and ground the trilobed cam for a 100/2.8 Planar and 65/3.5 Mamiya TLR lens by myself, with hand files and plastic calipers over a couple late evenings. Everything works beautifully now, and I plan on shooting it this weekend!

The 3D printed ground glass back and front fascia are seen above. They were made with sintered nylon.

Helios 1984 · Dec 22, 2017

oldtimermetoo said:
Only if she was "pretty boy Floyd's" or Clyde Barrow's mother and he stole it so it did not cost her anything..............As a Texan, I am assuming that you have heard of these two though "Pretty Boy" may have been from Oklahoma.......Regards!

Oh come on, Ma Floyd just lost her son, have some compassion...40$?
———-
If I was in a rush, I’d reach for my Praktica L. If it dies on the road, no years, I have a L2 as a backup.

brag

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