Camera Show in North Texas

stark raving · Sep 13, 2005

Dan Fromm said:
Um, stark raving, if yesterday's Second Sunday show is any indicator, the show in Phila. will be sparsely populated. Few sellers, few buyers. I have the impression that for camera shows the end is nigh.

Dan,

Shows are in decline for sure, but my impression is it's a gradual, not precipitous thing. I've been to all the Philly shows for the last 4-5 years. I still seem to find trinkets and oddments that I "need", especially when I go with an open (blank?) mind. (Blankness of mind is a state I am finding ever-easier to achieve as I close in on 50......)

Things I've snagged in the last year include an Imarect finder, a lovely, fully working Kodak Tourist with f4.5 lens, and a 300mm Super Takumar tele, all for bargain prices. Even if I don't buy, seeing and handling the goods and chatting up the sellers is worth the $5 admission fee.

The next Philly show is Oct. 23. Perhaps I'll bump into a Delaware Valley APUG'er or two...??

Jonathan

stark raving · Sep 13, 2005

MattKing said:
After wandering further for several minutes, and observing the sartorial splendour of the majority of the people there, her next comment was inspired by a recently popular television program, and even more telling:

"no offense, but if ever there was a group who together needed the 'Queer Eye for the Straight Guy' treatment, it is this one"

Matt-

Been there. Here's a little tale I originally posted on another forum:

A few years ago I took She Who Must Be Obeyed to her first camera show. We split up, as she watched the people and I (naturally) ogled the goods for sale. After a few minutes, she sidled back up to me with a priceless look on her face, sort of a mixture of bemusement and horror. She whispered to me, "Honey, these people here, they're.... they're..... they're....... THEY'RE ALL NERDS!!!!!!!"

What could I say, heh, heh.....
Indeed.

Jonathan

David Brown · Sep 13, 2005

stark raving said:
... they're.... they're..... they're....... THEY'RE ALL NERDS!!!!!!!"

Meetings are on 3rd Thursdays.

stark raving · Sep 13, 2005

David Brown said:
Meetings are on 3rd Thursdays.

Sorry. Can't come to PhotoNerds. 3rd Thursday's are reserved for my British Motorcycle Nerds meetings (aka local chapter of Riders Association of Triumph)!!

Dan Fromm · Sep 13, 2005

stark raving said:
Dan,

Shows are in decline for sure, but my impression is it's a gradual, not precipitous thing. I've been to all the Philly shows for the last 4-5 years. I still seem to find trinkets and oddments that I "need", especially when I go with an open (blank?) mind. (Blankness of mind is a state I am finding ever-easier to achieve as I close in on 50......)

Things I've snagged in the last year include an Imarect finder, a lovely, fully working Kodak Tourist with f4.5 lens, and a 300mm Super Takumar tele, all for bargain prices. Even if I don't buy, seeing and handling the goods and chatting up the sellers is worth the $5 admission fee.

The next Philly show is Oct. 23. Perhaps I'll bump into a Delaware Valley APUG'er or two...??

Jonathan

Jonathan, wild horses couldn't keep me away. She who must be obeyed allows me to go to them. I'll go early, take a couple of turns 'round the room, and probably leave empty-handed. If Charlie Barringer comes with me -- not likely, but it has happened before -- the process will take a little longer.

I continue going to shows within reach because I'm susceptible to intermittent reinforcement. The days when I could cover the costs of attending by buying things at the show and selling them on eBay were, I thought, long gone, but a couple of months ago I found an underpriced WF Ektar at Wayne. Yippee! The days when I could count on finding something on my shopping list at a camera show were, I thought, long gone, but a couple of months ago Leon Pomerantz turned up at Wayne with a pile of new Berlebach tripods. Bingo! And last Sunday I turned up a couple of very cheap pre-WWI CZJ Tessars that will do as trade bait or gifts. One never knows, but in all seriousness the odds just keep on getting worse.

About bumping, that can be arranged. Thing is, APUGgers, avatars notwithstanding, aren't easy to recognize. We'll have to wear APUG hats or something.

Cheers,

kwmullet · Sep 14, 2005

Has anyone kicked around a time yet?
If we're meeting early in the morning, that would seem to rule out the non-chain places for coffee/breakfast unless they don't show up when you say "show all restaraunts" in the Yahoo map. Most places seem to open around 11/11:30 unless we're talking starbucks, Denny's, etc.

-KwM-

lee · Sep 14, 2005

cracker barrel is good for me 9am on Sunday?

lee\c

David Brown · Sep 14, 2005

lee said:
cracker barrel is good for me 9am on Sunday?

lee\c

Cracker Barrel, albeit a "chain", sounds fine with me, too. Is it visable from the intersection of Main and 114? If not, which direction is it?

David

photomc · Sep 14, 2005

David Brown said:
Cracker Barrel, albeit a "chain", sounds fine with me, too. Is it visable from the intersection of Main and 114? If not, which direction is it?

David

Have been waiting to see if I had to work this weekend or not....for now it looks like maybe not....Yeah!!! Been H*ll since we all met up last, lay-offs today, ugh!! but at least survived this round. Looks like Cracker Barrel is not in Grapevine, nearest is Lewisville. There is the place and a Denny's on Wm D Tate. If anyone knows of any other places, speak up.
9am sounds about right...

kwmullet · Sep 14, 2005

photomc said:
[...]
There is the place and a Denny's on Wm D Tate. If anyone knows of any other places, speak up.
9am sounds about right...

That place sounds tasty. Here's another link.

-KwM-

David Brown · Sep 16, 2005

OK, here's the deal!

WHO: anybody that wants to join us
WHAT: 29th Greater Metroplex Camera Show
WHERE: Grapevine Convention Center, 1209 South Main St. Grapevine, Texas
WHEN: Sunday, Sept. 18th @ 9:00 AM!

We APUGgers are meeting before the show and will go for coffee/breakfast beforehand. We have decided to all meet at the Convention Center (at 9:00 sharp!) and go to food from there.

The actual event opens at 10:00. The event is also open on Saturday. See: http://www.donsphotoequipment.com/

If you don't know what any of the the usual suspects look like, PM me and I'll help you out.

Cheers, y'all.

David

lee · Sep 16, 2005

I should be there

lee\c

photomc · Sep 16, 2005

What lee said..

kwmullet · Sep 16, 2005

Probably what photomc said.

Dianna(Wifey) has an IT evolution the night before and everything depends on how late that runs and when sleep can be squeezed in.

-KwM-

Jeremy · Sep 17, 2005

The girlfriend hasn't been feeling well, so we had to skip the Fall Gallery Night, but I'll be at the convention center tomorrow morning.

See you there!

photomc · Sep 18, 2005

Report from this morning, a good visit was had with Lee, David and Jeremy...we even managed to agree on a place for breakfast

The camera show was about as sad as one would think...maybe sadder. Just a shadow of it's former self. Lee was smart and kept his hands in his pocket, but I did find an Ilex #4 shutter (no iris) for $20 that seemed to be in good condition. Will try the Agfa 305mm in it, if that will not work, can always try to find another set of optics that will fit it. That and a couple of Linhof Technica lensboards for $10 each rounded out my day....Of course the day was not a total lose, since Jeremy picked up an excellent copy of Laura Gilpin's An Enduring Grace for me...at half the price.

It really is a great book Jeremy....Thanks!!

kwmullet · Sep 18, 2005

Lookie what I'm sporting!

Dianna got back from work around 3am, so we got a late start and had to miss the meet-up and breakfast, but we did make the camera show around 2pm, a couple of hours before it closed.

Hey, photomc, this was the BEST camera show I've ever seen, but then again, it's the ONLY one I've ever been to. From your disappointment, I guess the closest thing I've ever seen was the merchandise room at a Star Trek convention in Houston around 1974 or 75.

I managed to score a Canon F-1 (an Dead Link Removed, I believe) manufactured in Sept 1971 at the whichever factory the "C" code is for and an FD 50mm 1.4 manufactured in March 1980.

At one table, I "lightened my load" of a spare spot meter and my Crown Graphic. At another table, I found two F1s, each of which I got tested at the other end of the room by David Powell, and I chose the better/cheaper of the two.

I'm very pleased. This F1 was the model camera that I used routinely as a US Navy Photographer and is a wonderful linkage for me to an earlier time in my life when I enjoyed a lot of benefits I didn't fully appreciate at the time (guaranteed room/board, lots of travel, no bills, as much film and paper as I can use for free, unlimited access to a huge darkroom complex and doing photography every single day).

As tested, the meter seems a little weak, but most of the time I anticipate using my spot meter. The light trap felt is gummy and almost gone, so that'll probably be my first expenditure on the camera.

My Zorki is jealous. No sooner did I get the camera in the car, than I stripped my Domke strap off the Zorki and put it on the F1, my new favorite camera!

Now that I've got an F1 and Dianna has the AE-1 program, we're going to liquidate the remainder of our Canon EF gear to fund lenses for the FD kit.

It's a wonderful time for film shooters.

-KwM-

David Brown · Sep 18, 2005

Kevin, sorry we missed you, but glad you had a great day. You're right, it's all relative. Imagine a room three times that size and 5x the vendors, and you would have the Ft. Worth show a few years ago!

However, for vintage 35mm SLR, there was stuff, and you got what you needed. Congrats.

I expect there was more action yesterday!

Cheers y'all.

David

JHannon · Sep 18, 2005

Sounds like a good time... I am going to be in Norman, Oklahoma next month for two weeks. Looks like I just missed the show

We have some local shows here and I also notice they are getting smaller. I still enjoy going.

Regards,
John

Konical · Sep 18, 2005

Good Evening,

Sounds as if the Texas show was similar to one which occured in St. Louis about three weeks ago. Number of dealers was greatly reduced from what I recall several years ago. Nothing really tempted me. Overall, it was a waste of gasoline and entrance fee.

Konical

photomc · Sep 18, 2005

Kevin, sorry we missed you as well....still sounds like they had what you were looking for

Have watched the decline in the shows (and other shows like them - gun shows,etc) and would say that ebay and the internet probably have something to do with the decline as much as the change to digital.

We did have a great time, after all it's good to get together with like minded friends and thanks to APUG now have new ones

John, while your in Norman, head down to Ft. Worth if you get a chance and see the Avedon exhibit...the Amon Carter is closed on Mondays, but if you are interested and I'm around PM me and would be happy to meet you up there.

kwmullet · Sep 18, 2005

photomc said:
Kevin, sorry we missed you as well....still sounds like they had what you were looking for [...]

Yep. We regret not catching the communion (communing? community?)

I think the interval between get-togethers is too long and we should get together more often, that way, if someone has to miss one, it won't be a year or so between meetups.

Funny about the camera show. I went there with a dollar in my wallet, sold my spot meter + my Crown Graphic for 225, then got the lens from one F1 and the body from another and made a 225 offer and walked out with a dollar in my wallet and an F1 in my hand.

A good day.

(actually, we're doing the same thing with most of our furniture. We're selling it all on eBay 'cause it's too big and imposing for our smaller house, and using the proceeds to buy Ikea stuff, which we like a lot more at this point in our lives.)

Changeling1 · Sep 20, 2005

Texas Camera Thieves-Caution!!!

David Brown said:
Upcoming camera show in Grapevine - Sept. 17 & 18. Although these are not what they used to be (curses to both eBay and digital) , they can still be interesting. Never know what you'll find.

I have 3 (count'em 3) $1 off coupons. ($4 instead of $5)

I usually go on Saturday (17th). Anybody want to meet me there? Sunday is not out of the question.

David Brown

Just a reminder to all those bringing equipment to camera shows. There's a group of thieves who will watch exhibitors load their vehicles after the show and follow them to a restaurant, bar or motel. Whilst the camera traders are otherwise indisposed, the thieves very quickly break into the vehicle and steal all the good stuff. It takes the crooks under a minute to complete the theft and one guy at a Dallas show lost $40,000 worth of equipment! You might want to check and see if you're being followed before leaving your camera-laden car unattended for any length of time.

David Brown · Sep 20, 2005

Changeling1 said:
... one guy at a Dallas show lost $40,000 worth of equipment! ...

:rolleyes:

Trust me, there wasn't anybody there with 40 grand worth of anything ...

photomc · Sep 20, 2005

That did happen about 5 or 6 years ago, at least. It was the Dallas show, and the dealer had stopped to eat, by the time he came out to his car (van) it had been cleaned out of all the equipment. As David said, no one at this show had anything near 40 grand worth of equipment...mater of fact don't think most had much more the $4,000 worth...it was indeed slim pickins.

Camera Show in North Texas

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