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Authors blog
26/06
2008
"Patience is a
virtue" Patience is
really the secret if You want to find those rare and cheap bargains when
going to fleamarkets and carboot sales. You might have to visit that same
fleamarket many times before you strike gold. Evidence of this is the
fleamarket I visited earlier today. I have been there many, many times but
have never found anything interesting. This all changed today when I spotted
this small leather pouch lying on a table. It had no logo embossed, and I
was very excited to unzip the pouch to see what was hidden inside. Honestly
i suspected it to be just another Agfa. But it was not an Agfa.... Inside
the leather pouch I found the most beautiful and minty chrome Petri Color 35
in perfect working condition, lightmeter functioning and still with a film
inside and with the golden "passed" sticker totally intact... Not only did
the seller have this small treasure, but she also had the original Petri
metal sunshade, an original UV-filter and the original cartons for the 2
latter. Furthermore she threw a Gossen lightmeter into the deal also.. The
price ? 10,- Euros !!
So dear Possums; ,
patience.. You've got to visit those fleamarkets frequently and
often, so don't be discouraged if You don't find the pearl in the oyster the
first time. Now, get out there !! ;-)
01/06
2008
"All good things come to
he who waits" Yes it's
a phrase and a saying, but nevertheless I experienced this just today when I
strolled through a fleamarket in central Copenhagen. Lying there on a
folding table in the sunlight between old porcelain and books I spotted a
wonderful little treasure which I have been looking for for quite some time.
It was a beautiful Adox Golf III 6 x 6 folder, also known as the "mess Golf"
because it boasts an uncoupled rangefinder. It has a few signs of use, but
when I released the folding mecanism, it popped out with a "clack", I cocked
the shutter which was set to 1 sec., and it was just smack-dab right on and
accurate.. A test of the rangefinder reveiled that that too was totally
accurate. The lens ? A crystal clear and un-scratched Steinheil Cassar 1:4,5
75mm triplet. Apart
from the joy of finding this particular camera, it's hard to describe the
joy that comes from discovering that this old camera works like clockwork,
perfectly and smoothly, after all these years. The price ? 20,-
Euro..... I may not
have any luck when it comes to the love of women, but with this kind of luck...
who cares !! 25/05
2008
In continuation of
the blog entry from 20/5 I have a few comments on lenses. I am well aware
that there is quite some snobbery when it comes to photographic equipment
and lenses. Owning and using a Leica Summicron basically just leaves you
with the assurance, that it doesn't get any better than that no matter what
lens you should care to choose. On the otherhand it isn't a guarantee that
your shots will be perfect in all aspects. It's quite possible that you'll get
that perfect shot using a 20,- Euro Konica Big Mini or you old Voigtländer
Vitomatic. The most important factor are Your own ability to use your camera and
operate it perfectly and within it's limitations. Of course the build
quality is important if you need your equipment and lenses for heavy duty
use on a more or less professional basis. Just yesterday I sat with the
Minolta Riva Freedom 160 and the Contax T2, and the difference in build
quality, materials and finish are so obvious that it cries to the heavens
above. The Contax are lightyears away from the cheap plastic finish on the
Minolta. But that doen't mean that the Minolta are worthless or can't
produce superb shots. Do you get my drift ?
20/05
2008
Do You sometimes find
yourself sitting in front of your computer bored beyond belief ?
If you do, you should really try
to "google" some of the photography forums, and I can especially recommend
threads about lenses. It's a blast !. Let me try to illustrate what is so
entertaining about these posts and threads and forums. The fun begins when
some guy asks a classic question as f.e. "I have considered to get a M42
blahblah standard 50mm lens, but are they any good ?". And then the fun
begins.....
"I've heard that the
blahblah lens performs quite well, but I don't like the bokeh"
"I once tried the 50mm
blahblah lens, but was very disappointed. It was not as sharp a expected"
"The blahblah 50mm lens was
really made by Mamiya on license from Rollei, but is basically a Voigtländer
design"
"I use the Olympus mju II/stylus
epic, and can really recommend that" (???)
"The 50mm blahblah are a good
lens, but why not get a Pentax or Tessar"
"I used to use the blahblah
50mm, but then got a Fujinon, but replaced with a Yashinon which were a good
lens, and extremely sharp, but a bit softer at the edges than the Takumar or
the Mamiya SX"
"I STILL use the Olympus
mju II/stylus epic, and can REALLY recommend it !!!!" (???)
"The Leica Summicron 2,0 are
generally considered the best standard 50mm ever made"
"Leica lenses are horrible !. I
once knew someone, whos cousins sister couldn't afford one, but she had
heard from a friend that it was horrible, especially wide open".
"What about getting an
Olympus mju II (and i'm not the guy that posted the other comments, I swear
!!)" Isn't
that a gas, and a load of crap all together ! :-P.
Can you imagine a sales meeting
at one of the leading camera manufacturers which would start off with the
sales manager saying: "We are now ready to launch our latest quality SLR
the Blahmatic QT 5000, which our engineers have spent the past 3 years
designing and developing. It features faster shutterspeeds, a more reliable
shutter and state-of-the-art metering that is more accurate than ever seen
before !". and he continues: "Furthermore everybody, both engineers
and sales executives, have agreed, that it would be a very good idea to fit
the Blahmatic QT 5000 with a really crappy lens that is absolutely no good".
The truth is, that all the
wellknown cameramanufacturers have designed and produced wonderful and very
capable lenses, and if you really set out to compare lenses you should also
take quite a few other important details into cosideration as f.e. What film
is used ?. Processing, development and enlarging ?. Did you at all
manage to focus ?. If You're, for example, are looking for a good and
capable standard 50mm, M42 lens it might as well be a Pentax Takumar, a
Fujica Fujinon, a Ricoh Rikenon, a Yashica Yashinon, a Zeiss Pancolar, a Mamiya-sekor
or even a russian Helios 44 that gives you the shots you expect. By the way,
the latter Helios 44 are surprisingly good. Any of the above mentioned
lenses can produce sharp images. It's not the lens but YOU that have to be
capable or lucky to get that special shot that wins the photo contest. As
far as the Leica Summicron are concerned, it is probably not without
good
reason that this particular lens are used as a reference lens.
18/05
2008
I spent some time in
a local photoshop the other day, browsing the shelves and the prices.
Actually I feel somewhat sorry for the shops and customers that have not yet
entered the world of the WWW. By that I mean, that the products I saw,
especially Leica and Contax, were SO overpriced when compared to the current
marketprices on f.e. eBay that it is almost tragic. I'm not talking about
the price on an ordinary eBay-auction, but the "buy it now" prices from an
eBay shop, with warranty etc. I guess it's a hard decision for any
photodealer to realize, that a lot has happened when it comes to the market
for analog equipment. So if you want to "haggle" with your local photoshop
guy, you should gather documentation from the WWW before visiting him. I
would ALWAYS recommend that you take your business to your local photoshop
and support him, but sometimes some negociations are required ;-).
WANTED !
I am currently
looking for a Dr. Wöhler "Favor" in pristine/mint condition.
09/05
2008
Something is
definately upside-down with the global climate.
This year we have had almost no
spring here in Denmark, but have gone almost directly from winter and right
into summer with 25 deg.C, blue skies and a blazing sun. It's
just incredible. Summer is also the season for outdoor fleamarkets and
garagesales, and I think my season has started out quite well actually.
Within the last week or so I've found the following small gems:
Ricoh 500 G with
everready case, almost minty: 3,50 Euro
Minolta SRT 101 SLR , with 50mm, 35mm, 135mm + case, evrything minty.
Complete outfit: 33,- Euro
Yashica T4, OK condition: 13,- Euro
Pentax UC-1 (Espio Mini), minty with pouch: 14,- Euro
So you see, it actually pays
off to explore these fleamarkets. For example the Yashica T4 was lying in a
suitcase, almost covered by crappy power supplys and old banged up remote
controls. When I finally got it out of the suitcase, I just turned on the
power-switch and "Bzzzzz" it was ready to shoot... So look carefully when
you're out there.. Just
recently I got a really good deal on a Voigtländer Bessa L body. Well
actually it's got nothing to do with a Voigtländer neither in build quality
or finish, and as evryone knows it's really just a Cosina. The only purpose
of this purchase are some future tests and comparisons of M39 lenses. But I
will admit that you can find a Cosina Bessa L body at very reasonable prices,
but if you also want the matching Cosina-Voigtländer lenses you should be
prepared for outrageously high prices. And if that isn't enough, shrewed
businessmen have of course taken the opportunity, and separated the matching
add-on viewfinders from the matching lenses, and sell these separetely at
very high prices.. Of course a 20mm or 15mm wideangle lens on a Bessa L body
with no viewfinder, or on ANY M39 LTM mount camera are a pain in the ass. You
really wan't to know whats in the frame, right ?. So you might think you get
one of those Cosina-Voigtländer lenses at a fair price, but wait until you
want the matching viewfinder.. Geeez....
29/04
2008
Adapter mystery
solved !
Dietrich Drescher who owns
the
Doppeld Homepage
has been so kind to solve the "Prominent adapter mystery" last night.
It turns out, that the Voigtländer 127/30 adapter are an adapter for
Enlargers, that allows you to enlarge prints with the same lens as they were
shot with. Yes, that means, that you can fit f.e. the Nokton from Your
Prominent to the Enlarger. I have never encountered this adapter before, but
thanks to Dietrich Drescher we're all much wiser now !. Thanks Dietrich !.
28/04
2008
Help !!
I have an adapter in my Prominent collection with the "Voigtländer" and the
nomenklature 127/30 engraved on it. It seems to be an adapter that fits
Prominent lenses to M39 thread mount, but is has got no F-stops,
depth-of.field scale or distance-scale on it. Can anyone supply me
with informations about this gadget ?.
23/04
2008
Just a few weeks
ago I received an email from Dave Tong living in Singapore. He had just
invested 4,- Euros in an
Altix N, and had absolutely no experience
with the Altix N at all, and manual photography in general I think. After a
few pieces of basic advice he went out and shot his first roll of color
negative film with this totally manual chunk of metal. I think that you
should visit the following link, and take a look at the results:
Dave Tongs first roll of film with his 1957 Altix N
Dave Tong's blog & experiences with the Altix
 *
Photo: Courtesy of Dave Tong -
Copyrigth Dave Tong I
find experiences like this SO rewarding, and I think it's wonderful that an
old Altix N can be put to such good use. Thanks Dave for sharing and having
the guts to travel back in time in this way ;-).
What else is new in my little
corner of the world ?. Well, I've found some small gadgets for the
Voigtländer Prominent, and I got weak in my knees and got my second
Bessamatic M. I am hopelessly in love with this rather rare Bessamatic model
with no lightmeter, and I think It has a very aesthetic appearance.
The other day I visited my friend Jorgen who own a couple of photostores in
Copenhagen. Browsing his shelves my eyes suddenly fell upon a modern, but
extremely beautiful small (and I mean SMALL !) camera. It was the Fujica
Tiara also known as the Fuji Nexia 2000ix Z mrc, the Endeavor or Fujinex.
It's an APS format camera equipped with a 23-46mm zoom. Yeah I know
it's a geisha and not very old, but I predict this will in time be a classic
too. The fact is, that it is very well built, a beautiful design, quality
materials, metal housing and extremely compact. I didn't actually measure
it, but I estimate the size to be app. 80mm x 60mm x 35mm. Come to Daddy my
precious !! ;-)
01/04
2008
Important information !
Unfortunately my old PC suffered
from a total crash and breakdown. The immediate consequence is, that I no
longer have my good old webdesign software, FrontPage 98. At the moment I
simply can't afford to buy a FrontPage 2003 license, and all updates and
uploads have to be made by a dear friend. I'm very sorry about this, but I
guess it will be some time before I can edit this page personally, and
upload more pages unless I find a generous sponsor. Once again, my
apologies... 21/03
2008
Now and then I
spend some time reading various photography Forums and the threads and
postings. Actually You can learn quite a lot about human nature by reading
these. People does not only reveal their passions, knowledge and expertise,
but also their envy, grudges, incompetance and plain stupidity. Some people
seems to never learn, that no matter how expensive and advanced the camera
may be, it's never better than the photographer that uses it. Others will
always shout "Olympus" when others say "Leica" and will call anyone that
want's a Leica for a moron. Others will use a lot of time pointing out, that
f.e. a Leica R4 are really a rebadged Minolta and telling others that it's
"not really a Leica" and funny enough the same people have no problems
buying a Contax that's really a Yashica or a Voigtländer Bessa thats really
a Cosina. Well the fact is, that in about 8 years you can't get spares,
service or repairs on any Yashica Kyocera Contaxes because they have
announced that all camera activities have been seized, and that they will
only supply spares and service for a 10 year period.
But Leitz - Leica are still here.....
One of the reasons that Leica
are still around and going strong are, that so many people and enthusiasts
all over the world choose not to listen to all those lame and stupid reviews
and opinions which can be found on the internet on various Forums. Just
maybe the many satisfied users of the Leica 35mm compacts such as the Mini's,
The C-series and the C11's are one of the reasons why it is still
possible to buy a Leica M and a choice of superb lenses ?.
I came across a certain guy, who
have posted his complaints about the level of Leica-service serveral places
on the internet. His never-ending complaint are, that Leica did not cover
the shippingscosts across the globe for his camera that needed repair/service
within the warranty period. So maybe he should have read the warranty
conditions, or be familiar with such conditions that apply for ANY product
that you buy no matter if it's a cell-phone, a flatscreen TV or a dishwasher
?. Actually it's quite standard conditions that a manufacturer does not
cover the shippingscosts. It seems quite stupid to make a complaint about
something that's really your own responsibility to begin with.
Know your rights, read the
warranty conditions and take responsibility before buying !
I have spend MY time behind the
counter in a photostore, and I've heard my share of the bullshit that some
customers pour out in your face. The "classic" is the total idiot that
simply CAN'T understand or comprehend, that without his receipt he can't
just get his negatives and prints RIGHT NOW !. So I offered them that they
could pay for my overtime in order for me to go through the entire lot of
un-claimed negatives and prints. Well suddenly it was not that urgent,
and just "maybe" they could look for their receipt again and blah blah blah....
29/02
2008
It feels very
encouraging and nice to receive emails from people from all over the world,
that have been inspired by my website, and subsequently have purchased f.e.
a Diax or a Weltini for their own collection or simply as a classic "user".
I'm very happy to say, that noone has been disappointed so far !. If you're
considering to buy one of the "classics" I urge You to read my "eBay page".
The advice given on this page applies for many other "sources" than just
eBay. Please bear in mind, that many of the classic cameras are in fact
very old, and just maybe you are better off spending a little more money
on the "minty" camera that comes with some kind of warranty or return policy,
than gambling with not only the price, but also with banking fees, custom
clearance and VAT, shippingcosts and possible repair and service costs...
So what happening with my
collection these days ?. Well it's growing !. As usual i'm far behind
schedule when it comes to expanding this website.
Maybe I should just sell the
entire collection, and get a normal life !!. Bids ? anyone ? ;-) 11/02
2008
Today I received
a wonderful email from mr. David L. Jentz from the
"Historical Society for Retina Cameras" .
He has corrected the "registration errors" of my Retinas, and I'm am so very
grateful for his comments and help. If You own a Kodak Retina and wan't a
precise dating I kindly urge You to get in touch with David. I really
appreciate the feedback and the knowledge and competence from those
guys out there that really gets down to the nitty gritty of things. I
don't know what impression You get from my Retina pages, but I can assure
You that the Retinas are small gems of very high quality. 09/02
2008
I was browsing
different reviews of the Konica Z-up 150 VP Point & Shoot camera on the
internet because I am considering to aqquire one for my "Geisha" collection.
It features a 38 - 150 mm zoom lens. I stumbled across this hilariuos review
on amazon.com which made me laugh long and loud. Here it is:
"Can I just say that I
*LOVE* this camera! It's light, easy to use, and takes great photos! The
only way they could make it better would be if it had greater zoom capacity
and I could see the photo before it was written to the film."
07/02
2008
Today I have
completed and uploadet
the page on the wonderful
Zeiss Ikon Contessa 35.
I would like to thank Mr. Eigil
Sigbrandt who made it possible for me to own this exquisit camera.
So whats up next ?. Probably
more Zeiss pages if I can keep focus and not fiddle around with other things.
On the other hand this is just a hobby and not a job and it should be funny
and a joy to work on this website rather than a pain in the arse. So I
probably end up fiddling around anyway. 05/02
2008
I have been
watching the prices for 2 specific cameras, namely the Cosina CX-2 and the
even more famous russian copy Lomo LCA. Actually I would like to have both
in my collection, but honestly !, whats happening with those prices !. Both
the Cosina and the Lomo seems to be SO overpriced these days. It must be the
"collector effect" that kicks in. Certainly the high prices I have seen are
not at all attractive if You're loking for a user, but can only be justified
if it's for a collection that can't exist with any of these peculiar cameras.
Yeah yeah I know about the special shutter and bla bla bla, not even
mentioning the phenomenon of "Lomography" bla bla bla, but it isn't anything
that any totally manual camera can't do too. I guess it will some time
before either of these cameras find their way into my collection. Blasted !
... 03/02
2008
Whoopee !. A new
feature has been added to Retrography.com !
I have added a
chatroom to the website, which will open in
a new window for Your convenience. when I'm online on the chat I will be
logged in as Retrographen. You can enter the chat here:
Retrography Chat
A few words
about "crossovers"
Very soon I have to face some
serious choices regarding the way this website are structured. The problem
are of course the "crossovers" like Contax which on one hand were an
original Zeiss-Ikon brand, but on the other hand became a all Japanese brand
used by Yashica, and later on by Kyocera. I have decided to show the
Japanese Contaxe's in my "Geisha Collection" which will be uploaded in the
near future. I really feel that the Yashica & Kyocera Contaxes belong in the
Asian section, being cameras that have been designed, produced and marketed
out of the Far East. Of course I will crosslink from one section to another
in order to make it easier for You to navigate. 01/02
2008
There You go !.
The Voigtländer Vitrona page are finished and uploaded for Your
viewing pleasure. I
would like to thank those of you out there who takes the time to sign my
Guestbook. I really appreciate it a
lot, and I try to answer those of You who have questions, suggestions and
comments. Please have a little patience if i'm behind schedule with replies
and emails. 30/01
2008
The Voigtländer
Vitrona are just about ready. In the meantime please enjoy my new page on
the Mimosa II, which you'll
find here. I know of no other website that offers so many and
detailed photos of this strange german camera from the late 40's. Speaking
of illustrations: One of the philosophies behind this website is, that the
site should have as many detailed photos of the cameras as possible and more
than any other camera collection website. Some of the early pics will be
replaced over time with better ones and with additional shots. I
really don't think that the usual listings of shutter specifications and
other technical informations are quite enough when it comes to explaining a
subjective personal fascination. The technical specs are OK, but I really
wan't you to fall in love. Therefore the illustrations are also of big
importance to me, and hopefully also to You !. 28/01 2008
I'm very happy to announce, that I have finally suceeded in adding the
Voigtländer Vitrona to my collection. I have been looking for this milestone
in photographic history for a long time. For those of you who don't know the
1965 Vitrona, it was the first camera in history to have an integrated
electronic flash, a feature which evrybody knows are very common today.
Again Voigtländer showed the way to the future. They used the Vito body, and
added an external battery-grip which held the batteries. This grip were unfortunately
made of fragile plastic, and today it is very hard to find a working Vitrona
inklusive the battery-grip. My Vitrona page will be uploadet in a few days,
but until then you can download the German manual as .pdf file here:
Voigtländer Vitrona manual (.pdf)
26/01 2008
At last the
Zeiss-Ikon pages are being completed, and I have chosen to "open" them one
at a time as they get finished and uploadet. A new link has been added on
the "Links" page today to Jurgen Kreckel's website at
www.certo6.com . He's the guy that have restored my Adox
Sport "Blaue Engel", and I recommend that you pay him a visit. I'm sure
you'll have to show quite some selfcontrol in order not to being tempted to
buy one of his beautifully restored medium format folders. Personally
theres a little voice in my head that keeps on whispering "get a Franka
Solida IIIe with red bellows"... Arrrgh !!
Furthermore, an extra "About
Denmark" page has been added today with a lot of strange and interesting
facts about my country. Visit it
here ! 19/01 2008
Today I have
completed the "Buying on eBay" page. Please visit the page
here
!. I hope that some of my experiences and some of the advice will
be useful for you if you're not an experienced eBay user.
As usual i'm far behind
schedule when it comes to finishing and uploading new pages. That's just the
way it is when you've got to have a daytime job in order to pay for all
these "ladies" that keeps on tempting you, and believe me; I get temptet all
the time !!.
Some of the recent "temptations"
and aquisitions and additions to my collection have been the Leica Minilux
Zoom, a Konica Hexar AF Titanium, Leica R4 and a wonderful minty Petri TTL.
The latter is one of those cameras that I simply have got to own entirely for
sentimental reasons. I was very much in love with this geisha when I was a
teenager, but ended up with the Petri FTee in stead. Another addition to my
collection, and a BIG surprice I might add, is the Agfa Selectronic S. I am very
surpriced by the very high finish and build quality of this camera. It's
just exquisit !. I will claim until my dying day, that I'll never be an
Agfa-collector, but at the same time I must admit that this little
rangefinder (which by the way had a pricetag of around 400,- DM way back then !)
is quite fascinating and impressive.
Some time ago I considered to
join a local photoclub in Copenhagen. I wrote them an email, and mentioned
that I had a great passion for classic cameras and analog photography, and
asked them whether there might would be other members sharing my interests. I
received a rather arrogant answer that stated, that most members were "modern
photographers", and in other words they made it clear that they were "on the
beat" with digital photography and that I like the dinosaurs were about to
become extinct. Furthermore they wrote, that they had closed and scuttled
their darkrooms for the same reasons.
Just the other day I happened
to visit their webpage again, and I just rolled on the floor laughing when I
read, that they had now re-established their darkroom facilities, and would
welcome the analogue photographers and their craftmanship and ways of
artistic expression !!. Isn't that just a laugh !!??. Well as far as I'm
concerned they can go f... themselves and shove a memorycard up where the
sun don't shine...
It's a fact, that a B/W
negative, if well stored, will last for 200 years...
Where have all the pixels
gone?
Long time passing
Where have all the pixels gone?
Long time ago
Where have all the pixels gone?
Time has erased them every one
When will they ever learn?
When will they ever learn?
15/12 2007
Goddamn how times
flies... In less than 2
weeks it'll be Christmas, a time of the year that I actually don't care that
much for. I have a tendency to transform myself into Ebeneezer Scrooge and
keep away from the frantic christmas rush and fake glitter. A few
interesting cameras have arrived like f.e. a beautiful Kowa Model "E" SLR
with 2 attachment lenses. My christmas present to myself this year is the
legendary Contax T2 + a databack. I haven't shot any film with this baby yet,
but my first impression when fiddling with the T2 are, that it works very
differently from any other compact 35 that I know of or own. I guess it will
take some time getting used to the different controls of this camera. I
can't help but thinking how complicated many of these "modern" classics
really are in comparison with a totally manual older camera. I agree that an
"Auto" control of either aperture or shutter makes things easier (and
faster) in many cases, but when this simple aid evolves into endless
pre-settings, countless programs, modes and menus AND a number of
possibilities for compensations, override options and such it really gets
plain stupid in my opinion. The "auto functions" supposedly should make
things easier, but in many cases they actually get out of hand and makes
things very complicated. And if that weren't enough, you can spend valuable
time to go through various menues and settings, and "Bzzz !" as soon
as the pre-detemined "on-period" has elapsed, the camera shuts itself off,
and resets to the original factory setting !. And I have not even mentioned
the on-going struggle with "flash ON" and "flash OFF" settings. Talking
about compact 35's with built-in flash, I really like the old Konica C35's
with the built-in flash that only fires when you push the button and it pops
up.. Thats simple and fast and it works !.
The truth, Ladies and Gentlemen,
are that your eyes, your brain and your hands and fingers will outperform
any kind of automated function on an analogue camera if You just
learn a few basics and tricks of the trade. I've said this before, and I say
it again: Analogue photography is NOT rocket-science,
allthough some people will try to tell you so. These must be the people that
are not even capable of turning the speed-dial or the aperture setting 2 or
3 click stops..
06/11 2007
A lot of water
under the bridge, and work in progress..
Recently I have aqquired some
cameras that I have been looking for, for quite some time. One of these are
the Mimosa II, a strange little classic german 35mm camera, and also I have
finally found a Nikon 35 ti, which also are a remarkably designed 35mm point
& shoot AF camera. Working on the new "Geisha" section I've come to think
about the term "classic". What really makes a camera a "classic".
Heureka ! I've come to the conclusion, that the qualities that really makes
a camera a true "classic" are not just the value in Euro or USD, but also
things like "design" and "popularity". Maybe cameras like the Olympus Trip
35 and the Ricoh KR X 10 Super SLR are the perfect examples of this. It's
also the success and popularity that makes a real classic in many ways.
Of course the trick for any collector are to spot a "classic" even before it
has become a "classic". Oh well, just a short message to let you know,
that I'm still at it !! 21/09 2007
Early autumn
winds are blowing through the trees here in Denmark, and it's time for me to
pick up where I left off, and get on with the work on my website. Please
have patience. The past days I have been uploading new entries and new
pages, and more will be uploaded in the very near future. Furthermore I have
decided to add a separate section "The Geishas" which will include my small
collection of Asian cameras, mostly 35mm compacts in particular. This part
of my collection are in fact very new, because I have been stumbling across
these Geisha-girls all summer, whereas I have not encountered so many German
fräuleins. Just like any other addict I needed my kicks, and the geisha's
were my rescue in troubled times. Well thats of course not the truth all
togerther, but i'm weak ! I know !.. So hang on and check for updates...
06/09 2007
Once in a while magic things
happen. One of these incidents occured today when I received notice that a
parcel from the US had arrived for me at the local postoffice. The thing was,
that I was not expecting any deliveries at all from the US. It turned out to
be a small parcel containing the most beautifult and minty DeJur D1, which
you might know is really a Perlux 1 viewfinder; the only cameramake that
will accept those Braun M39 lenses besides the cameras made by the evil Dr. Braun. Suddenly
I remembered that
I had won an eBay auction a looooong time ago, but the Danish Postal
Services fucked the delivery up completely, and the DeJur were subsequently
returned to sender. But today the DeJur D1 arrived, not thanks to the Danish
Postal Services, but to Adela Wynn of Fairfax Virginia USA, who decided to send the
camera once again. Dear Adela, I am ever so grateful !!!!
Let me tell You about the Danish
Postal Services, which used to be the Royal Danish Mail. Like it is the case
in many other countries, the state-owned Royal Danish Mail was sold and
privatized. It was one of the oldest and honourable postal services in the
world. Since the privatization it has been all downhill.
Cut-backs, closing of many many small Post Offices and the implementation of
a private corporate policy that have cut to the bone. The result ?. In
Denmark, one of the richest countries in the world, you a lucky if you get
your parcel or letter. It's just appauling and should serve as an example to
other countries which considers to do the same. It's SO bad that I can't
even find words to describe it. Thats privatization for You !.
But Adela Wynn: I love You ! 19/08 2007
I simply just have to write
this entry in my blog. I'm just baffled and really just left in the dark
here. Some days ago I visited a friend, and while sitting having coffee in
her living room, my eyes fell upon a camera lying beside the couch. I picked
it up, and it turned out to be one of those Canon digital SLR's. You know...
The damned plastic thing weighed approxemately as much as my mocca-cup or 2
packages of cigarettes. "Please don't laugh at my camera" my friend said,
and I honestly didn't. Actually I have never been more sorry and baffled,
and almost left speachless. Especially when I heard what my friend had paid
for this gadget which will moste likely melt away if left in the car on a
hot summersday. Well, I am not bullshitting You, but I have just
collected a Leicaflex SL outfit in perfect working condition incl. a 50mm
Summicron and shade, a 35mm Elmarit and a 135mm Elmarit for LESS money than
my friend have paid for this Canon plastic camera.... I mean have you ever
tried to handle one of these gadgets, and felt how utterly cheap the
focussing and zoom operation feels ?. It's just a disgrace that's what it
is... I will not argue,
that the plastic gadgets can produce fine results, but taking production
costs and finish into consideration it's just waaaaay too overpriced and
it's almost robbery. And furthermore, what is the lifespan and longterm
value of these things ?...
I'm really appauled....
I rest my case..... 12/08 2007
I don't know about Al
Gores doomsday predictions about the global climate, but what was supposed
to be summer here in Denmark has turned out to be some kind of "monsune
season", and it has been raining cats and dogs.. This has kept me indoors
too much, and I have not been shooting so much as I would have liked to.
Of course the blasted weather hasn't kept me from finding some new items for
my collection. First of all I'm now the proud owner of a small Leicaflex SL
outfit incl. an Elmarit wideangle, and an Elmarit tele lens. I have said it
before, and I'll say it again; you really have to hold and handle a Leica
yourself to really appreciate the finish and craftmanship. Another very
interesting entry in the collection are the Rollei Prego Micron. I haven't
tested it yet, but what a nice camera it seems to be !. The body is
extremely sleek and will not only slip into a coatpocket, but even in Your
shirt pocket. If You're looking for a Ricoh GR, You should also take a look
at the Rollei Prego Micron !. 22/07 2007
In continuation
of my blog from the 5th about the Petri FTee and the lenses that suddenly
came my way, I guess I was not quite out of luck. Just a few days later I
won an auction on eBay for an original 200mm telelens for the Petri also. I
felt almost bad about it, because my winning bid was 1,99 Euro incl.
sunshade !. That didn't even leave much money for the seller to provide a
decent cardboard box. In cases like this I usually try to be a gentleman,
and send some more money than the actual invoice total. My max. bid was
actually 13,- Euro so thats what I sent to the seller. Yeah I know that an
auction is an auction and bla bla bla, but it doesn't hurt to try to be a
nice person once in awhile. Really i'm just so happy to finally have
collected the FTee outfit that I never managed to get together as a
teenager.
Petri 1:4 200 mm at
1,99 Euro
So what else have I been
doing lately. Let me see... work, work and work mostly. We are in the middle
of the holiday-season here in Denmark, which judging by the weather here are
scheduled in the wrong time of the year. I have been testing some of the
Leica compacts, and thus far I must admit that especially one of them really
have impressed me bigtime. I am talking about the Leica C2. This one
hell of a camera !. It's one of the very few modern compact 35mm's that I
have ever used which provides results just like I imagined and intended them
when shooting. I am absolute sure, that this camera will be one of my all
time favourites for candid street photography and such. Highy recommended !
The superb and capable Leica C2.
Get one !! 06/07
2007
Miracles do
happen you know, and I don't just mean those miracles reported from Santiago
De Compostella, Madonna statues crying tears of blood or the healing of the
sick by prayer. I have just added a wonderful Mamiya 528 AL SLR to my
collection. The 528 AL were manufactured in 1975, and were the last of the
fixed lens Mamiya SLR's. The only option for lens change are a (rare) Mamiya
conversion kit including a wideangle and a tele-attachment which are fitted
in front of the standard 1:2,8 48 mm fixed lens. Apart from being quite rare
and hard to find, the 528 AL it's not that interesting, and certainly
not a miracle in itself or technically. The miracle is, that about 30 pcs
were discovered just recently in a forgotten stock somewhere in Austria, and
that they were all brand new and off-the-shelf. Of course I had to
get one of those rare birds, and it has just arrived, totally untouched by
human hand since 1975, and in the original sales-carton including booklet,
ever-ready case and neckstrap. Furthermore it was delivered to me including
a quite capable Maxwell 505C flash, also brand new in its original carton.
Isn't that just amazing ?. For more than 30 years these cameras have
survived untouched in a stockroom, and this fact alone makes them quite
desirable. Oooh Did I forget to mention, that a conversion kit are also on
the way to Denmark... Complete kits ? Yes !.
Note the orange protective cover
on the bottomplate, just visible above.
05/07
2007
It's raining cats
and dogs in Denmark these days, and the best you can do is to stay indoors
with a nice hot cup of cocoa. For me it's has also been "days of nostagia",
because I have succeeded in finding a beautiful Petri FTee SLR, which were
the first SLR I ever owned. As mentioned in my biography,
I got enough cash as presents from my family at my confrmation when I was
14 years old, and finally I was able to buy a decent camera. I fell in love
with a brand new Petri FTee, which followed me for quite some years and it
really served me well. The only extra lens I could afford back in those days
were a M42 135 mm Prinz Galaxy and an adaptor ring, but just today I've also
found both the original 28mm Petri wideangle and the 135mm telelens, so more
than 30 years later I finally collected a nice little Petri FTee set. It
really feels somewhat strange... -but good ;-)
You might
ask if i'm going astray and forgetting my passion for the German classics.
The answer is a definate "No !". I do admit that I followed some paths which
by acts of sheer coincidence and maybe some faith have lead me to quite a
lot of japanese 35mm compacts. But that's the way it is, and I haven't
encountered any of the German classics up for sale that I am looking for.
Collecting classic cameras also involves an element of luck.. I dare to say
that I have been extremely lucky finding the black Petri Color 35, and the
Yashica GX. But that doesn't mean I have forgotten my search for f.e. a
Wöhler "Favor", the Finetta 99, Leica SL2, Diax Ib and many many more..
The Petri FTee, in mint
condition.
I actually doubt if this camera
has ever been used at all.
23/06
2007
Just to follow up
on my last blog dated 20/6-07, I decided to carry out a very simple test. I
put an Gossen "Sixtomat" selenium lightmeter and an EXA 1b in my deepfreezer,
and left both items in there for 2 whole days. Both the EXA and the
Gossen lightmeter worked perfectly when taken out of the deepfreezer and I
was especially impressed by the old selenium lightmeter, which were just as
responsive and accurate as if it had been kept by room temperature. Of
course the EXA quickly became full of "meltingwater" when it un-froze, but
because it can be taken apart in 4 different parts it very quickly dried up. This is
of course no scientific test at all, but merely a little household
experiment. Yesterday
I shot a roll of film with the Leica C2 compact. Of course I didn't bother
to read the instruction first, and got very surprised and baffled when I
discovered that the C2 automatically winds the entire film onto the take-up
spool when loaded, and loads the film back into the cartridge frame by frame,
counting down from 36. Apart from this little detail, the C2 is a
genuine pleasure to work with, and I will upload some samplepics from
Copenhagen Airport soon. 20/06
2007
One aspect of
being interested in classic cameras, and using them of course, are that you
listen to other peoples opinions and read reviews and comments. However I
ever so often come across people who seems to have bad experiences with a
certain camera, and use a lot of time to warn others that they should not
buy this and that camera because it is unreliable of poor qualtity etc etc..
The apparent truth in many of these cases are, that is it in fact the user
that have made a wrong choice of camera, and have not been aware of the
limitations and/or particular design that obviously makes the camera
unsuitable for the purposes for which the owner wants to use it.
If you are going to drive across
Africa, your should choose to do it in a Land Rover and not in a Ferrari.
The fact that a Ferrari can't make the trip due to its specialized design
doesn't make it a poor car. It's just not suitable or the right tool for the
job, and don't blame Ferrari for your own wrong choice. Right ?
If you are going to use your
camera in moist, humid and warm conditions you should not choose a camera
packed with electronics. Moisture will condense indside the camera, and will
probably lead to malfunction, short-circuits and corrosion on printboards
etc. This is not because it's a poor quality camera, but simply because it's
not designed and built for that kind of purpose. The same is the case when
working in cold freezing climates. Batteries will loose power due to the low
temperatures, displays will
freeze up and lubricants in the mechanical parts will thicken and cause
malfunction of f.e. aperture and shutter.
An example, that has nothing to
do with photography but illustrates these issues very well, are the problems
that the US troops encountered in the beginning of the first Gulf war.
Allthough equipped with state of the art vehicles, they were not prepared
for the very fine sand which penetrated the ordinary airfilters etc. causing
breakdowns. Subsequently all vehicles had to be retrofitted with new special
airfilters designed to operate under these particular conditions. This was
also the case with the intake filters for cooling water on Navy ships. Due
to the high temperature of the seawater, the ordinary filters clogged up
very quickly filled with rapid growing algies, and all intake filters for
cooling water had to be replaced.
So it isn't always due to
the quality of the camera, but in many cases because the user have chosen an
unsuitable camera for the job. So what should you choose ?.
Personally I would choose an
all-mecanical, all manual camera for use under any kind of extreme climatic
conditions, from the freezing temperatures on Antarctica to the warm moist
climate in the rainforrest and the scorching high temperatures in the Tenere
desert. I would probably choose something like the folding Retina, Leica,
Rolleiflex or even an EXA due to it's simplicity. In ANY case I would have
the camera cleaned and lubricated with lubricants that are suitable for the
particular climate, and have this done by a skilled repairman. This is
very important ! . Secondly I would probably choose a camera that
could be carried close to the body under my clothes when not in use. Thirdly
I would bring a handheld lightmeter. Allways remember :
KISS (keep it
simple stupid) 14/06
2007
I simply
can't believe my luck these days. Less than a week ago I found the beautiful
little black Petri Color 35, and today I just happened to stumble across
another little gem when I was visiting a local "antique" shop. In a pile of
Agfa rubbish I found a near-mint Yashica Electro 35 GX, which is one of the
very rare Yashica Electro's. The GX is one of the last of the
great Electros, and are more compact than the rest of the Electro family,
and the jewel are of course the outstanding 40mm DX Color Yashinon 1:1,7
lens. The price ? 11,- Euros ;-)
 11/06
2007
You may
ask why I am getting those japanese plastic cameras such as the ones I found
yesterday. The answer is actually quite simple. These are my "disposable
cameras" which I will use at times when I would not bring my Contax, Leica
or Prominent. If they break, are run over or dropped in a creek I will have
no regrets, and I'll just find another one, and paying almost next to nothing, no
harm is really done. 10/06
2007
Another
warm and sunny summersday in Copenhagen, and yet another mercyless
fleamarket raid. The AKA Akarelle with accessories and ER-case were of
course the find of the day, but the 2 Konicas weren't bad deals at all
neither ! All items are fully functional !.
Konica C 35 AF incl. UV-filter
and strap: 1,5 Euro 
Konica MT-7 in kinky red incl.
original pouch. 2,- Euros
AKA AKArelle incl. Sixon
lightmeter, Yashica YEM 35 CDS lightmeter
sunshade and ever ready case for the camera. 12,- Euro 09/02
2007
Not only is
it time for shooting lots of test films, but it's also season for outdoor
fleamarkets, jumble sales and garage sales. The weather in Copenhagen this
weekend its sunny and 30 deg. C, and accompanied by my Yashica T4 I visited
a local fleamarket. A guy, who called himself a "camera collector" had put
up his little folding table, and would you believe that I bought a beautiful,
fully working Petri Color 35 in black, incl. UV-filter and leatherbag for
13,- Euros, and I didn't even had to haggle !!. The seller might be a
collector, but he doesn't know shit about the value of the stuff he's
collecting and selling. 
I also got a mint condition Watameter rangefinder from him for
4,- Euros. He also had put a Cosina Voigtländer Bessa L up for sale, and the
price was reasonable, but let me be honest: It might very well be a capable shooter,
but the feel of the lightweight body is just plain crappy !. Wham, Bang - No
thank You Ma'am ;-).
You'll be much better off buying
a classic M39 original Leica in good condition, and f.e.
Collectible Cameras in th
US always have a nice collection to choose from. You should ask yourself how
often you really need a top shutterspeed of 1/2000 sec. Furthermore you will always
be able to have your classic Leice serviced, repaired or restored.
Talking about fleamarkets,
here's a piece of advice. Always bring a small selection af the most common
camera batteries in a little pouch. The batteries in cameras found on
fleamarkets are almost always dead, and you'll be able to perform a simple
test on the spot. Another piece of advice: Unless it's an extremely rare and
unique camera, don't let the seller persuade you to buy a camera that's
defective. A shutter repair these days are rather expensive, and often
exceed the value of the camera. Replacement of a dead CDS or Selenium
lightmeter-cell is in most cases VERY expensive if at all possible. There
will always be another chance and another camera, but of course there a a
few (very few) exceptions. 02/06 2007
It's a totally crazy world.....
Well I guess I left home this
morning in a hurry. I was absolutely sure, that I had a bag packed with some
cameras for testing locked in the trunk of my Audi. It must be my Alzheimer
"Light", because there were no camerabag when I arrived to my destination. I
still really wanted to shoot some pictures, and for a moment there I
actually considered to buy a disposable camera which, by the way, aren't all
THAT bad. I've seen wonderful shots taken with an Agfa disposable camera.
But then I decided to take a stroll on a local fleamarket, and within 10
minutes I had spotted 2 cameras owned by the same seller. It was a Konica
Big Mini BM-21 and an Olympus i200 AF APS camera. Luckily, right across the
street, I found a photo-store, and bought a CR2 battery which is used in
both cameras, and I hurried back to the seller. I couldn't really decide
which of them to buy, and knew absolutely nothing about either of these
plastic gadgets. So I bought both of them. The crazy thing is, that the
battery (1 pcs.only !) cost me 13,- Euro, and I paid 9,50 for BOTH cameras !!. Isn't that just crazy !!. It says something about the "street
value" of these plastic cameras, but nevertheless it's still a MUCH better
deal than buying a disposable camera, right ?.
Oh did I forget to mention, that
both camera fired up perfectly when the battery was inserted ?. Here they
are; 9,50 Euro worth of emergency cameras. Please click on the samplepics
below to enlarge. Especially the Olympus impressed me quite a lot when used
under available light conditions and the flash turned off.
Sample pics
Konica Big Mini BM-21
|
Olympus i200 AF APS
|
Olympus i200 AF APS |
26/05 2007
Almost all my
sparetime these days are being spent shooting rolls and rolls of testfilms.
There will plenty of cold and rainy days later which can be spent in front
of the computer uploading the missing pages and update the website. My new "Compact
35" section of my collection are really being expanded day by day, and I
look forward to share these cameras with you also at some point. By the way:
Now is a good time to get some of the 35mm Leica compacts ;-)
As a little compensation for the
looong wait, I have uploaded a page with examples of some of the recordings
I have made as a jazzsinger and trombonist. It's all for free !!.
Go here for Your free jazz !!
28/04 2007
It's summer in
Copenhagen.... 25 deg. C and sunny. Today is the day where I finally had to
make a hard decision, because I have run out of space in my exhibition
cupboards. So a lot of the lenses and accessories had to be stored in
designated boxes. I really don't like that at all !!. But until I can
get another pair of cupboards, or meet a wealthy widow or well off single woman, this
has to be the tragic solution. The fact is though, that it really annoys me
to collect something, and then have to store it away in boxes in stead of
looking at the precious jewels every day.
Somebody, a dear friend, has
given me the most remarkable and fantastic present !. He commisioned me to
buy 2 Futura lenses, a 35mm and a 90mm each with cases and viewfinders. It
was "one of his customers" that had commisioned the purchase, and I had to
get these lenses at any cost on eBay. Well, I did, and they did not
come cheap, I can tell you that much !. When the beautiful lenses
arrived I went to my friend, and delivered the lenses and got the payment in
cash. No questions asked whatsoever. When I was about to leave, my friend
said: "Hey, you forgot your lenses" !.. So he had tricked me, and gave
me the
lenses as a present because he knew how bad I wanted a small Futura outfit. Isn't
that just amazing and touching !!.
I have uploaded 3 sample pics
taken with the Panta, and will soon upload Rollei 35 XF sample pics as well.
I must reluctantly admit, that allthough the Rollei 35 XF is very nice to
handle, and looks very good too, it's not a good shooter !. I have
never experienced SO much flare as on these samplepics. Used in overcast
light conditions the so-called Sonnar 2,8 performs OK, but in bright
sunlight it's just no damned good at all.. Why ever get a camera that
performs lousy in sunlight ?.
Considering the time it is
taking me to complete the Zeiss-Ikon pages, it seems foolish to make more
promises at this point regarding new entries and new pages, BUT I am
preparing a Yashica page also and a page dedicated to the straaaaange
phenomenon "Compact 35mm cameras". On this page you will find
interesting cameras made by Petri, Minolta, Olympus, Voigtländer, Minox and
Chinon. Actually the Chinon Bellami has been the biggest surprise to me.
It's a surprisingly well built and wonderful little camera that I just can't
wait to try out. 06/04 2007
The weather in Copenhagen has been marvellous lately, so I have chosen to
get out and shoot some testfilms with some of the cameras in my collection
in stead of staying indoors and working on the homepage. The first testshots
uploaded will be taken with the Dr. Rodehüser "Panta" and the Rollei 35 XF.
I have read SO many bad reviews of the Rollei 35 XF, but my example are in
pristine condition, and are simply a joy to handle. You must bear in mind,
that it IS a snapshot camera and was never intended to be an advanced
high-end camera. The next cameras up for test are the Yashica Electro 35 CC,
the Eumigetta and the Zeiss-Ikon Nettar. 24/03 2007
Another week has
passed, and I have been in bed again with a fever. Not much work has been
done on the site, but I've decided to expand the collection with a small
"Sushi" section including a few japanese rangefinders, especially Yashica. I
am currently testing the wonderful Yashica Electro 35 CC, and will hopefully
be able to post a review soon. Spring is really in the air in Copenhagen
these days, which means that it's time for some street photography and to
dust off those compact 35mm rangefinders. 15/03 2007
I'll spare you
for all my bad excuses for not having uploaded the Zeiss-Ikon pages yet.
There are still about to be finished. Today I received the Leica IIIc from
1939 that I bought a few weeks ago. It's absolutely fabulous, or "ab fab"
as I think it's called nowadays. Hardly a scratch, and no dings or dents. Once it
was a valued belonging of Mr. Peter Reichert, an independent architect from
Rickenback in Germany. When I received the parcel I couldn't believe my own
eyes. The seller (not Mr. Reichert) had written in big capital letters
outside on the parcel "Leica Camera - Fragile" !!. Jeeeeeez !. I guess I
have been rather lucky that the parcel hasn't disappeared in transit !!.
Holding a beautiful Leica in my hands reminds me of what REAL values are.
It's quality and not really about Euro's and cents, but the feeling, and
most of all the fact that this
camera was made in 1939 and was built to last a lifetime. Well, the first "lifetime"
has passed and this extraordinary piece of German craftmanship are going on
the second lifetime.. If well kept and serviced it could probably serve 3 or
even 4 generations !. In comparison I have bought 3 DVD players in the past
5 years, and have thrown 2 of them in the trashbin. The truth is, that
my new Leica (see pics below) costs a bit less than the (allready outdated)
Samsung L85 DigiMax digital camera that I use for the pics on this website
!!. Go figure !!.. Another new entry
in the collection soon will be the (un)popular Rollei XF 35, the successor
to the Rollei 35.
09/03 2007
It has been some
very busy days for me, but unfortunately I have not been busy with this
website. Other things have called for my attention. However due to a lot of
requests from visitors, I have uploaded some pages in the "Gallery" section,
so please go and take a look:
Gallery
I have not spend a lot of
work and effort in these prelimenary pages, and they will probably change on
a regular basis. This weekend I am going to help The Baroness get settled in
her new domicile, and I will probably not get much work done on these pages.
The Zeiss-Ikon pages are still in the progress of being completed. 02/03 2007
First of all I
have been redoing some photos of the Weltini II on the Welta page:
Some of the early photos are not
quite up to standard, and will be replaced over time. Especially the Weltini
deserved better and more photos !. regarding the Zeiss-Ikon
pages I am almost done with the photos, and only the text remains to be
completed, so hopefully the pages will be uploaded soon. As mentioned on the
23/2-07 I really felt like getting another Leica, and i'm happy to say, that
it was exactly what I did. A very nice Leica IIIc are on the way to home to
"daddy" ;-). I only own 3 Leica's and they are all "users" and invaluable
tools for me. The Leica page ?. Soon to come ! .
23/02 2007
Denmark has been
engulfed in a blazing snowstorm for the past couple of days, and if that
were't enough I have been in bed for 3 days with a nasty cold and fever. So
I haven't done much work on the website. On the positive side, I have been
snowed in with 2 bottles of Jamaica Rum, which makes being sick a lot more
comfortable. Maybe it's the fever, but I have a destinct feeling that I need
one more Leica. Maybe as a "get well soon" present from Simon to Simon ?. A
nice little Leica IIIc or IIIf would for sure lighten up my day !!
19/02 2007
As Dame Edna
would have said: "I've got a treat for you Possums !". During my work on the
Zeiss-Ikon pages i've scanned the entire Contarex brochure, and I would like
to make this a "preview present" for all to download. It's a 22 pages .pdf
file, and i'm sure you can print it out and cut it to size yourselves. There
are both corny photographs, but also some valuable informations such as
accessory list, price list and lens informations. Get it here ! :
18/02 2007
The Lipca / Rollop
page has been uploaded this morning. I haven't really any intentions of
collecting all the Lipca cameras, but the Rollop I are really a beautiful
mid-level TLR and of course Lipca should be represented in my collection. In
between the work on the Zeiss-Ikon pages I also do some work on other pages.
Once again the small Adox
section has been updated with new photos, and a few more has been added. I
just can't get this page right. Bollocks !!.
17/02 2007
I've just spend
this saturday morning by scanning some leaflets, and have used some of the
original illustrations to spice up a few pages. Please take a look at these
pages:
Praktica
Bessa I
Kodak Retina IIc
Apart from that, i'm still
working on the Zeiss-Ikon pages, and also a page with a new entry in my
collection, namely the Rollop I from Lipca.
14/02 2007
I have added this wonderful Bessa E-Messer to the collection on the
Voigtländer pages today. She's really a beauty, and allthough it's not
spring yet, I think i'm a little in love.
The webserver has been totally
down for several hours today. Maintenance and service you know.. A new link
has also been added to friends in the US;
www.collectiblecameras.com
12/02 2007
Today I have uploaded a new page with the Rodenstock Robra. Go see !
Models & Job page added. Have
camera(s) WILL travel ! ;-)
10/02 2007
What a remarkable day it has been so far today. I went on one of my usual
flea-market raids in search of a "German lady", but found absolutely nothing.
Not a single interesting camera to be found anywhere. Then I came across a
cardboard box with old postcards, theater-programmes and personal letters.
Among those documents, which were the belongings of a certain Mrs. Lillian
Cilander were a very special letter. Mrs Cilander was appointed Director of
Gymnastics by Mr. J.P. Moeller who developed and invented a method of
gymnastics known as the J.P. Moeller Method. However Mrs. Cilander
apparently loved the theater and "Le beau Arts" very much too, because apart
from the many, many theater programs dating from the 30's to the late 60's there
were this very special letter. Obviously it is a reply to a letter sent by her,
because it is from the world famous Harald Lander, Maitre de Ballet, written
when he was director at the Paris Ballet in 1959. If you want to see the
letter, which is written in Danish, please click here (.pdf.file)
Harald Lander letter
Yeah I know. I collect the
strangest things.... But basically I can't resist when a little piece of
history comes my way. Maybe that why I also have a collection of
antique Bibles..hmmm.
08/02 2007
I'm still working on the Zeiss Ikon pages, and slowly progressing. An
entry in my Guestbook confirms me in my feeling, that the interest for
classic cameras are on the rise, and not only as collector items, but also
as desirable "statements" that especially younger people wish to own and use.
After years with low cost and almost dispensable plastic cameras, people
want to own quality cameras, that emphasizes their personality and lifestyle.
Take a look at this photo, where 2007 fashion trends meets the 1949 Zeiss
Ikon Contina. A match ? ;-)
04/02 2007
The Bessa 66 has been added to the Voigtländer "Bessa" page !!
03/02 2007
An epedemic of the Flue has been ravaging Denmark in the last week, or at
least at my work. So I have been extremely busy, and haven't had the time to
work on the Zeiss-Ikon pages much. Today i have added the following link on
my "Link" page:
Joergen Lybaeck are a dear personal friend, a great collector and owns
several photostores in Copenhagen. Whereas other shops have got rid of all
the "old stuff", Joergen has kept it all, and he's got a lot of accessories,
filters, hoods, gadgets and also rare bulbs for projectors etc. Once in a
while he also offers classic cameras for sale, and he has almost always some
Rolleiflexes, Rollei 35's, Nikons, Canons etc for sale PLUS a huge stock of
lenses. If your are in Copenhagen and need repair, service or support, he's
your man !. He is one of those rare guys, that allthough he sells modern
cameras and digitals, he refuses to let the classics die !.
A couple of new cameras are
about to enter the collection. First of all a Bessa RF, a Bessa 66 (Baby
Bessa), Rodenstock Robra and a Lipca Rollop I. So watch out for the new
entries !!
27/01 2007
Today I have finally uploaded the 14 pages with Voigtländer cameras. Minor
corrections will be made later. A new link has also been added, namey
to Paul Winters camera reference site, which he took over from Eric "Tigin"
who is a wellknown name among enthusiasts and collectors. My next work will
be on the Leica page, and the Zeiss-Ikon section, which will probably also
take some time to complete. Another piece of good news is that a Bessa RF
will also be added to the collection soon. It has been on my want-list for
quite some time, and recently I've found one in acceptable condition.
Usually it takes a few weeks before a new camera will be uploaded, because
they usually are sent directly to CLA after arrival.
18/01 2007
Ohh the Voigtländer pages will be the death of me !. I'm really
struggling !. Most of all because i've started on a new job a couple of days
ago, which seems to delay things a little bit. Today I have continued the
work on the Voigtländer pages, and also made a little addition to the "Welcome-page".
Some "special thanks" were needed and maybe even overdue. Sometimes you have
to appreciate the people around you.
17/01 2007
Today a new page has been added about"Service and repair". It's just a
few words of advice really. I want to support and promote and support the guys out there,
that makes it possible for those of us that don't carry out repairs, to have
our cameras serviced and restored. I am finishing the last Voigtländer
pages, so please be patient. In a day or two i'll upload the entire
Voigtländer section with 13 pages !.
14/01 2007
The work on the Voigtländer pages are soon ended. Today I have also made som
changes on the "The Collection" page and adding some words about the future.
A couple of new cameras are soon added to the collection, because I have
found a Reflecta II and a beautiful Voigtländer Baby Bessa 66.
12/01 2007
Today I have uploaded the Plaubel page. I guess I needed a break from
the Voigtländer pages which i'm still working on, and the Makina II S just
came from CLA yesterday, so I took the opportunity. I was my local photoshop
yesterday, and I noticed a brown leathercase lying on the floor. When I
asked the guy what it was he just said "oh just an old worthless camera" - "You
can have it for free if you want it". Well, it's a very beatiful Zeiss-Ikon
Super Nettel in very good condition with the Triotar !!. Sometimes you can
get lucky !!
10/01 2007
Good news !. I am halfways done with the Voigtländer pages, but due to
several jobinterviews this week things have been delayed. Unfortunately I
lost my job after 15 years recently, and I really need to resolve this
situation and get on with a new career very soon. Another piece of good news:
I have just aqquired a new domain name, which means that
www.voigtländer.dk
will be incorporated in this website soon.
07/01 2007
The Voigtländer crusade continues !. A dear friend asked me why I don't use
black/white photos of the cameras instead of the color shots to emphasize
the "retro". Well, I haven't even considered that. What do You think
?. Email me
here ! . I must admit, that I have been somewhat surprised over
the reactions and answers from some people on the internet
when I have asked for permission to link to their webpages. Some
replies that they don''t "trade links" allthough I don't ask them to link to
my page. Others simply don't send any reply. I guess it's all about traffic
and "personal status" to some extend, but all the same I think it is a little disappointing.
So if You wonder why I don't have links to certain webpages, it's simply
because these website owners either dont' want it or haven't replied to my
email requests.
I have just installed a
Guestbook !. Please use it ! ;-)
New Beltica folder and pics
uploaded on the Beltica page
06/01 2007
Finally I have begun the work on the Voigtländer pages, and hopefully they
will be ready for upload in a day or two. When I run back and forth getting
cameras for photos and descriptions I realize, that I own too many cameras
!!.
04/01 2007
I haven't started on the Voigtländer and Zeiss pages yet. I have been
busy with other things, but I have managed to upload the short video
compilation of photographs from Dresden after the horrible 1945 bombing. You'll find it
here:
Dresden video
02/01
2007
Today I finished the Kodak - Nagel section for now. I was somewhat in
doubt how to organize it, but I think it all turned out OK. I have
also added a camera to the FED page. Coming up are the Zeiss-Ikon and
Voigtländer pages which also will take some days to complete. Happy
New year to You all !! 23/12 2006
I have completed the Exakta and Praktica pages for now. I'm currently
working on the Kodak-Nagel pages and this work will last for some days.
Today I found my late cousins Minolta rangefinder which I had forgotten all
about, and I feel obliged to included this camera in the collection pages as
well and maybe tell his story at the same time. Would you believe that I also found 2 old Canon SLR's incl. telelenses that I had also forgotten that
I had ?. I'll put those up for sale one of these day together with some
other lenses.
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