Film Camera Shop in Kumamoto, Japan?

[PGraham3]

Howdy, APUG!
I'm visiting Kumamoto, Japan for several days next month, and while I'm aware that there are a decent number of film camera shops in Fukuoka, I'm curious, does anyone know of any in Kumamoto?

Also, in Kumamoto there are a number of second-hand shops, a few of which are chain second-hand shops like "Hard-off" and "2nd Street". Are these pretty cool? Does anyone happen to know if these second-hand shops sell old film cameras at all?

Thanks for your help!

-Paul

 

[mooseontheloose]

Hi Paul,
I used to live in Kumamoto (for 4 years) and I can tell you right now that there isn't much choice. In fact, I did most of my film and chemical shopping in Fukuoka (usually at Yodobashi) since pickings were pretty slim. That said, towards the north end of Kamitori shopping arcade, next to Muji, is a small camera store (second hand shop) that has a small cooler with film (35mm and 120, colour and black and white). They also did a same-day 3-hour turnaround for slide film developing, any size. I can't even get that here in Kyoto! I don't know if they still offer that service, but this is probably your best bet in the downtown area. They don't speak much English there, but they were always very nice to me whenever I went there.

As for Hard-off and 2nd Street, I used to visit those kinds of shops all the time and never once found a camera (other than maybe a simple point and shoot once?) there. You could get lucky but I wouldn't waste my time on it.

It's funny, I have an old friend from Kumamoto visiting me here in Kyoto right now, and he was telling me how much the city has changed since the earthquake (I haven't been back since it happened). So it's possible that some things have changed - but hopefully not too much!

 

[PGraham3]

Thanks a bunch, @mooseontheloose
I’ll definitely check out the second-hand camera shop you mentioned and see if there are any good cameras for a decent price. I’ll also check to see if the shop has some good film.
Would you happen to know of any other second-hand camera shops in Kumamoto?

Thanks so much for the tips!
-Paul

 

[mooseontheloose]

Hey Paul,

As for second-hand shops, I'm sure there must be more, but I can't think of any off the top of my head. The thing is though, is the earthquake that happened two years ago that was pretty devastating to the area. While there continues to be a lot of reconstruction, a lot of smaller businesses did not rebuild afterwards, so I don't know that what was there before is still around (it's been 4 years since I've been there). However, the one good thing about Kumamoto is that the downtown core is pretty compact - it wouldn't take more than a couple of hours (and that's being generous) to explore all of the shopping streets. If there are still any camera stores around, they'll be there.

 

[PGraham3]

I once visited Kumamoto for a quick day-trip back in 2011, and it was a nice place to walk around for sure. This time around I'll have a better chance to roam around more. I remember hearing about the Kumamoto earthquake a few years ago, as it was also felt in some parts of South Korea. It was a strong one for sure and hope reconstruction has been going smoothly. I greatly appreciate your information regarding questions I had about Kumamoto. I look forward to visiting again.
-Paul