I just received what is arguably the greatest 35mm camera ever made

[Cinema]

if you're developing yourself it's a non issue but bad labs snip and tape frames after 36 often

 

[Huss]

if you're developing yourself it's a non issue but bad labs snip and tape frames after 36 often

39 beautiful, evenly spaced frames

 

[Huss]

Ok, so, this camera works great. On that roll of film is a mix of sunny days, and cloudy days. Which happened to happen on the same day - the joy of being in Santa Barbara waiting for the sun to burn through! But this is a good thing as any camera can do nice sunny weather pics. With the Trip 35, the gloomier it is, the more the lens opens up and so the trickier the focus can become when you are up close.
Upside is the Trip, like my Konica C35 EF3, has focus symbols on one side of the lens, and actual distance measurements on the underside. Which I found really useful when what I was taking a snap of was between head/neck and head n shoulders. Or head n shoulders and group shot. You get the point.
Exposures are good - excellent job selenium meter! - lens is sharp but not super contrasty. Just very pleasant. Camera handles great and is fun to use.

But... I also shot a Fuji P&S and the bottom line is there is a reason cameras started to use batteries. It allows for AE that is far more flexible and sensitive. It allows for AF which is a very good thing 99% of the time! And we carry film so carrying batteries is not a big deal. I also just used my Ricoh FF1 which is just a superb tiny camera and therein lies the rub. The Trip 35 is a fantastic size to hold and shoot, but it is just a little too big to make it pocketable unless you have mongo pockets. The Ricoh is just tiny when you close the front and will slip into any pocket. It's lens is also incredibly sharp and because it is a 35mm lens, not 40, it is easier to scale focus. And it's AE meter runs from something like 2 secs to 1/500, which is a bit more than the Trip's 1/40th or 1/200 (?). But that's because the Ricoh is a much more modern camera.
It also is very fun to shoot with its single action lever advance, but doesn't have that retro chromey metal vibe of the Trip.

Then we have (ok I have) the Agfa Optima 1535 which has a 40mm 2.8 lens like the Trip, the lens is extremely sharp and it has the huge advantage of being able to focus it very precisely thanks to being rangefinder coupled. It also has a much more sophisticated AE (batteries) that runs from 15 secs to 1/1000. And a totally awesome bauhaus German industrial design.

Which out of these three do I recommend? Er, whichever one works properly with no issues! If they all do, then , well, er.. the Ricoh and Agfa are 'better' cameras. But if you like the Trip the most to play with, then that's that.

A selection of pics from that roll above - shot on C200

 

[Huss]

 

[Huss]

 

[Huss]

 

[Huss]

 

[Huss]

 

[albada]

The camera works great but your lab does not. I see three frames with blobs on them from something touching the negs during development. I recommend getting C-41 developed at NCPS -- North County Photo Services in Carlsbad, Calif.

 

[Huss]

Pic taken w Ricoh FF1, C200





Pic taken with Agfa 1535, C200

 

[Huss]

The camera works great but your lab does not. I see three frames with blobs on them from something touching the negs during development. I recommend getting C-41 developed at NCPS -- North County Photo Services in Carlsbad, Calif.

You do know those negs are in their plastic sleeves, right?

 

[Huss]

And one from the same week taken with a Fuji Work Record, C200. Developed by the same lab....
This is one camera that I REALLY recommend.

 

[albada]

You do know those negs are in their plastic sleeves, right?

In your pic above, the left two frames in the third row have blobs on them. Are they on the negs, or odd optical-effects from the sleeves?

 

[albada]

BTW, your photos show that you have an eye for the unusual and appealing. That's uncommon. For example, you saw the justaposition of the Ice Skating and Harbor Freight signs. Most people would not have noticed that. Likewise with the rock and sailboat, and many other pictures. Nice.

 

[Huss]

In your pic above, the left two frames in the third row have blobs on them. Are they on the negs, or odd optical-effects from the sleeves?

That is just a reflection of the light above me. The film in their strips were dropped onto the light pad with nothing holding them flat just so I could show frame spacing and # of exposures per roll.

 

[Huss]

BTW, your photos show that you have an eye for the unusual and appealing. That's uncommon. For example, you saw the justaposition of the Ice Skating and Harbor Freight signs. Most people would not have noticed that. Likewise with the rock and sailboat, and many other pictures. Nice.

Thanks!

 

[hiketripenjoy]

lots more love for this camera than expected.. what's to love about it?

only had experience with fuji klasse (before it got extortionately priced), and Leica mini as compacts. don't like the Leica as much as it is busy focusing on 'the moment'. I can assume the trip shoots right.. now!

 

[ciniframe]

Thanks for the write up and sample pictures Huss. Plenty of good information for anyone wondering about obtaining one of these cameras.
(Caution, old guy ranting.) I remember when they littered every photo swap meet and it would be hard to pay more than $20 for a working sample….
How times have changed!
Quite agree with albada, you do indeed have ‘an eye’, it’s also reflected in your Rollei 110 samples.

 

[Paul Howell]

I still have the Work Record on my list, along with the Fuji Fujica Super 6.

 

[Huss]

lots more love for this camera than expected.. what's to love about it?

only had experience with fuji klasse (before it got extortionately priced), and Leica mini as compacts. don't like the Leica as much as it is busy focusing on 'the moment'. I can assume the trip shoots right.. now!

I have the Klasse W and it has a superb lens and a really nice exposure compensation dial that I use all the time. The prices for these are insane now though. It is a nice camera but does not feel anywhere close to premium build. It basically is a cheapish camera w a great lens in an ok metal body.
It is also strangely slow to use, definitely not a camera to seize the moment while you wait for it to focus. It is weird because my fraction of the cost Fuji Work Record and Nikon AF600 (which both also have 28mm lenses) are so much more responsive.

That is where zone focus cameras like the Trip, Konica C35 ef3 etc are so much better. There is zero delay to take a pic. Sure u may have missed focus but there is zero delay in taking the shot!

 

[Sirius Glass]

BTW, your photos show that you have an eye for the unusual and appealing. That's uncommon. For example, you saw the justaposition of the Ice Skating and Harbor Freight signs. Most people would not have noticed that. Likewise with the rock and sailboat, and many other pictures. Nice.

The Ice Skating rink existed for decades and the Los Angeles King practiced there. Many childrens' parties and dates occurred there over the years. When the rink went out of business the community did not want to lose the landmark. Culver City designated it and its large parking lot a historic monument. Is sat unused until Harbor Freight rented it and Harbor Freight only uses a small part of the building and the parking lot remains quite empty most of the time. One can drive by it and see it as a business or as a historical sight that has retained all its ambiance.

 

[Huss]

Trip 35, c200

 

[darinwc]

Very nice results!
Here is an example with my Trip 35: These are capable cameras within their limits. However I much prefer the 35RC for a small go everywhere camera.

 

[Huss]

Very nice results!
Here is an example with my Trip 35: These are capable cameras within their limits. However I much prefer the 35RC for a small go everywhere camera.

View attachment 311750

Nice one Darin!

 

[Huss]

Just developed my Kentmere 400 that I shot in the Trip 35. I prefer the results from my B&W shots compared to the C200 that I had shot earlier.