When your favorite camera is unreliable...

GarageBoy · Oct 31, 2015

So who else loves a camera that is known to have issues?

I love the Minolta xd11- its quiet, its that perfect size, looks very cool in black, the viewfinder is perfect... And yet, of the 4 that I picked up off eBay, only 1 works... Reading on the web, its not uncommon for the electronics to go on these. Really bummed out about the last one I picked up... It's a black chrome one that's almost mint (finding one with intact black chrome and leatherette was hard), and yet, the meter is dead - hope its just dirty contacts and that John titterington can fix it

Jeff Bradford · Oct 31, 2015

My Kodak Medalist II showed winder issues on the last two rolls of film I put through it. The original Medalist is known to have film-advance issues. I got frame-overlap as well as gaps with my II. Maybe it was just the shots with the release cable. Maybe I botched the 620 re-rolling and the backing paper was dragging. It worked perfectly for a dozen rolls before this excursion. I have yet to test it after "the tragedy". Some of the shots I had been waiting years for and purchased the Medalist II with this and another trip in mind. Fortunately, there was some overlap - some subjects were also shot in 135 or 645. As much as I love it, it may be cheaper in the long run to consolidate into one system that can do everything from 645 to 6x9. Consolidating camera systems would give me room for extra socks & underwear when I travel.

darkosaric · Oct 31, 2015

GarageBoy said:
When your favorite camera is unreliable...

Then it goes in trash and I don't use it anymore. One example is Minox: perfect in every way (small, silent, excellent picture quality) except for the unreliable shutter that fails when you need it the most.

benjiboy · Oct 31, 2015

GarageBoy said:
So who else loves a camera that is known to have issues?

I love the Minolta xd11- its quiet, its that perfect size, looks very cool in black, the viewfinder is perfect... And yet, of the 4 that I picked up off eBay, only 1 works... Reading on the web, its not uncommon for the electronics to go on these. Really bummed out about the last one I picked up... It's a black chrome one that's almost mint (finding one with intact black chrome and leatherette was hard), and yet, the meter is dead - hope its just dirty contacts and that John titterington can fix it

If you love them so much have them serviced, it will probably cost more than they will sell for on the open market but if you want to have reliable cameras that will give you pleasurable picture taking for years (especially since very few decent film cameras are still been manufactured) the cost isn't the first consideration nor is buying more and more unserviced cameras the answer either.

Pioneer · Oct 31, 2015

If it cannot be repaired to be reliable, then it may be time to find a new favorite camera. Some camera designs have already far outlived their anticipated life span and have internal parts that are no longer available.

480sparky · Oct 31, 2015

It's not my favorite, but I still run film through my dads' 1962 Tenax Automatic. Shutter fails to fire half the time, but I don't care.... it's the camera that took all the pix of me when I was a kid.

Old-N-Feeble · Oct 31, 2015

Iluvmycam said:
Sounds to me like your more of an anal, camera fondler than a serious shooter.

I cover camera fondlers and cam choices here...

nsfw (digital and film)

https://danielteolijr.wordpress.com/2015/05/13/what-is-the-best-camera-in-the-world/

Sure, it is nice having a quiet cam. But I shot most of the pix in that link with noisy cams. I suggest you take a liking to other cams if your serious about producing. Or just keep buying your favorite unreliable cam to put on the shelf and fondle.

Well that's just gross. BTW, how did you discover that cameras have anuses? You must REALLY luvyourcam.

GarageBoy · Oct 31, 2015

To be fair, it also mounts my favorite new toy, the MD 50 1.2-
Maybe I am a fondler, but its nice getting photos without the "what are you doing, garageboy?" When the shutter on my F2AS goes off
I guess I can pick up another x700, but damn, the XD was the closest thing to my FE2

Paul Howell · Oct 31, 2015

I just tossed my Sigma SA9, the pentaprism turned yellow almost dark orange, the camera has the features of a N90, and with better quality Sigma lens a good performer. I kept the SA 7 and use it as meter for MF and LF, the matrix and spot meter are spot on and the yellowing is not an issue.

Sirius Glass · Oct 31, 2015

Not a problem with my cameras.

narsuitus · Oct 31, 2015

One reason my favorite camera is my favorite camera is because it is reliable. Once, after I dropped my favorite camera on concrete, it became unreliable. I sold my repaired but unreliable body and replaced it with a brand new reliable body. Today, I am still shooting with that replaced Nikon F2 body.

Today, if one of my three favorite and reliable Nikon F2 bodies becomes unreliable, I will either send it to Sover Wong for repair or save it for spare parts.

Sirius Glass · Oct 31, 2015

If it is not repairable, I replace it.

Vonder · Oct 31, 2015

My Mamiya RB67 drives me nuts. So many ways for pictures to go wrong, as well as pure operator error.

Sirius Glass · Oct 31, 2015

Wolfeye said:
My Mamiya RB67 drives me nuts. So many ways for pictures to go wrong, as well as pure operator error.

You have not even begun to find out what can go wrong until you move to LF! There are just so many things that can get screwed up.

Had enough problems with the Mamiya RB67? Switch to Hasselblad and you will be set free. :devil:

Alan Gales · Oct 31, 2015

My Contax 139's film advance jammed so I sold it as parts or to be repaired on Ebay and purchased a pair of near mint 167 MT's from a local Dentist. Out with the old and in with the new. Cameras are just tools after all.

Thomas Bertilsson · Oct 31, 2015

Part of owning a camera is to maintain it. If your car breaks, you repair it, and you change the oil and service it to prevent it from breaking in the first place.
I keep my Hasselblad kit up to snuff, and my Pentax SLRs. The rest I don't use seriously, so they are not treated as well. Currently I can't afford to service my dead Leica M2, for example. It is what it is, but the point is that if we aren't able to keep our machines in good repair, we can't expect them to last either.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

TheFlyingCamera · Oct 31, 2015

Thomas Bertilsson said:
Part of owning a camera is to maintain it. If your car breaks, you repair it, and you change the oil and service it to prevent it from breaking in the first place.
I keep my Hasselblad kit up to snuff, and my Pentax SLRs. The rest I don't use seriously, so they are not treated as well. Currently I can't afford to service my dead Leica M2, for example. It is what it is, but the point is that if we aren't able to keep our machines in good repair, we can't expect them to last either.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Ditto. The most important thing you can do, aside from buying gear that was originally high quality when new, is to keep it serviced regularly. Ideally, by someone you can have a relationship with and who knows the quirks of your camera.

I've gone almost totally over to Rolleiflex for my smaller-than-4x5 shooting because when new they were built like tanks, and properly maintained they remain as such. And I'm lucky that I have someone here in DC who knows how to work on them, so I can get them serviced, and with reasonable alacrity should the need arise.

Marvin · Oct 31, 2015

The XD-11 was a much liked camera but now is getting quite old and does have electronics. I still have two X-700 Minoltas that are in good working condition also picked up a X370 as an extra. I had some Maxxum lenses so I picked up two 9xi Minoltas these are the pro versions and appear to be well built. I think that with older cameras you just need to have spares. With prices on ebay many times it is less expensive to just replace the camera.

Theo Sulphate · Oct 31, 2015

darkosaric said:
Then it goes in trash and I don't use it anymore. One example is Minox: perfect in every way (small, silent, excellent picture quality) except for the unreliable shutter that fails when you need it the most.

Which format Minox?

This year I had a Minox IIIs repaired. Earlier, I had a Voigtländer Bessamatic repaired. Now they're perfect.

John_Nikon_F · Nov 1, 2015

narsuitus said:
One reason my favorite camera is my favorite camera is because it is reliable. Once, after I dropped my favorite camera on concrete, it became unreliable. I sold my repaired but unreliable body and replaced it with a brand new reliable body. Today, I am still shooting with that replaced Nikon F2 body.

Today, if one of my three favorite and reliable Nikon F2 bodies becomes unreliable, I will either send it to Sover Wong for repair or save it for spare parts.

Exactly.

One of the reasons why the majority of my cameras are mechanical Nikons. Pretty darn reliable.

-J

IloveTLRs · Nov 1, 2015

Theo Sulphate said:
Which format Minox?

This year I had a Minox IIIs repaired. ... .

May I ask who repaired it and how much it cost? I'm always afraid the shutter blades will go on mine (I had an LX that broke that way.)

I'm guessing he means the 35mm Minox - they had well-known shutter problems.

Theo Sulphate · Nov 1, 2015

IloveTLRs said:
May I ask who repaired it and how much it cost? I'm always afraid the shutter blades will go on mine (I had an LX that broke that way.)

My Minox IIIs was repaired by Don Goldberg (DAG Camera Parts). I bought it from a friend even though I knew the shutter speeds were inaccurate. Within two hours, one of the blades entered the viewfinder. Excluding shipping, Don repaired it in less than a week and now operates very smoothly and sounds right. I emailed Don first. It was under $100 to fix.

IloveTLRs · Nov 1, 2015

Theo Sulphate said:
My Minox IIIs was repaired by Don Goldberg (DAG Camera Parts). I bought it from a friend even though I knew the shutter speeds were inaccurate. Within two hours, one of the blades entered the viewfinder. Excluding shipping, Don repaired it in less than a week and now operates very smoothly and sounds right. I emailed Don first. It was under $100 to fix.

Thank you!

blockend · Nov 1, 2015

Cameras from the XD11 era were often experimental and pushed the boundaries of the available technology. It's unfortunate when the host body of your favourite lens dies, but most manufacturers offered a Pro version that will take your best glass, even if the size, weight and operation may not be what your favourite camera offered.

Brett Rogers · Nov 1, 2015

Iluvmycam said:
Sounds to me like your more of an anal, camera fondler than a serious shooter.

I cover camera fondlers and cam choices here...

nsfw (digital and film)

https://danielteolijr.wordpress.com/2015/05/13/what-is-the-best-camera-in-the-world/

Sure, it is nice having a quiet cam. But I shot most of the pix in that link with noisy cams. I suggest you take a liking to other cams if your serious about producing. Or just keep buying your favorite unreliable cam to put on the shelf and fondle.

Irony much, with a user name of "Iluvmycam"?

But seriously, thanks for the above post. It motivated me to take a look at your blog and find the truly hideous overdone HDR and selective colour. If that is your definition of a "serious shooter" I can happily put you on my ignore list right now, which might save me time in future.

When your favorite camera is unreliable...

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