No More Collecting For Me!

One good example is Canonet GIII cameras: The used black bodies run for a couple of hundred bucks each in the Japanese market.

How can they look into my eyes, and still they don't believe me?

I only own 5 cameras :rolleyes: .........I humbly apologise and promise to buy more ASAP

firecracker said:

Yeah, every foreign product is a potential rare collectable item in this culture, which kills me. Even mass-produced low-end domestic cameras are so, too.

You can see a lot of blogs by those collectors who show their test results from their book knowledges, etc. They never fire the shutters of their vitage cameras because that will decrease the values.

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But on flip side, you might say that collectors in Japan have exquisite taste and that we Americans are just jealous becuse we lost the bid on ebay for that F2AS...

snegron said:

But on flip side, you might say that collectors in Japan have exquisite taste and that we Americans are just jealous becuse we lost the bid on ebay for that F2AS...

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Yeah, that, too. But seriously speaking, because of the high-price settings, many people have no way of having access to using common photographic tools and other things in this country.

Photo students (not me) seem to be the victims of this culture when they want to try out many things.

Some things go on a upscale when they cross cultural and economical borders. The best of the irony I can think of is cream Cheese, "Philadelphia Cheese." I thought it was just like any other cheese product when I was living in the U.S. But over here, it's something, and how it's being advertised is pretty laughable.

I like it, though.

Japan or bust...

Some of my best fleabay sales have been made to someone in Japan. If its an older camera I can bet that it will sell for over $100 more than I can get stateside, not including the cost of shipping. Three cheers!

I now have a Retina II craving. Sigh. If it's not cameras, it's darkroom equipment. Just got a great buy on a complete Beseler/Minolta 45A head. Then there is the catch; the tubes are only available as NOS from second source channels and the cost of one replacement set of 6 is roughly twice what the head cost... So, the next year will be spent hoarding a lifetime supply of flash tubes.

Same as with the Photogenic studio flash heads. Seems like I have 4 AA-12 heads and 8 spare OEM H4-1 tubes. More in them than the heads... Well, I think that my signature line says it all!!!

I don't collect, I just give poor wayward cameras a home and a chance for a better life (sounds like Boy's Town). I am doing better. I am down to 38. I just gave away five, one to an old friend and 4 to new photography students.

A few years ago I purchased an 8X10 enlarger from the estate of a very wealthy physican. After loading the enlarger in my car the executor of the estate took me into the doctors private office to get the lenses. On two walls was the almost complete history of Leica M. An example of almost every body, lens and accessory from the "O" until he stopped collecting in the mid 1990's. He shot 8X10 and a couple of favorite Leicas, the rest were just a collection. They were trying to find a buyer to take the collection as a lot.

All is not well though. Last night I purchased 40 near new 4X5 film holders to replace some of my beaten ones. Father Flanagan, help me!

raucousimages said:

All is not well though. Last night I purchased 40 near new 4X5 film holders to replace some of my beaten ones. Father Flanagan, help me!

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I'm not father Flanagan, but I suppose I could help you with a few of those holders

Last time I went out to shoot I discovered I only have 5 4x5" holders. I thought I had more, but found out that that was because I usually bring both 4x5" and 9x12cm, as well as a 5x7" camera with 5x7" and 13x18cm holders.