Camerosity

Mike Eckman

The Camerosity Podcast is the world’s first open source film photography podcast. read less
TechnologyTechnology

Episodes

Episode 66: Ask Us Anything
Mar 9 2024
Episode 66: Ask Us Anything
The Camerosity Podcast goes full Reddit with our first ever Ask Me Anything, or more appropriately, Ask Us Anything.  Over the week prior to the recording, the guys solicited questions from our listeners through our official Facebook and Instagram sites and our Discord server.  The questions could truly be anything, so while we expected to get a lot of camera and photography related questions, nothing was off the table. Joining Anthony, Paul, Theo and Mike on this one were returning callers A.J. Gentile, Mark Faulkner, Miles Libak, Patrick Rapps, Ray Nason, and Stephen Strangways where we field questions submitted by our listeners and by the live guests on the show. If you've ever wanted to know what Anthony's favorite Elvis Presley movie is, or why Paul Rybolt had at one time one of the most notorious mugshots, or what each of our wives think of our collections, this is an episode you won't want to miss.  In addition to these compelling questions, we also hit the hard topics like what kinds of camera ephemera we have, what alternatives to eBay are there for buying and selling cameras, and what kinds of things besides cameras do we collect. As you might imagine, this was not a typical Camerosity Podcast episode.  This one was light on GAS, but heavy on discussions you won't hear anywhere else! Meet Paul and Mike: If you are in the vicinity of Cincinnati, Ohio on Saturday, March 23rd, come to the Ohio Camera Swap at the Hilton Garden Inn Cincinnati/West Chester and say hi to Paul and Mike.  While you're there, maybe you can buy something from us! As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you! Please don’t feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show. We LOVE people who are into shooting or collecting cameras, no matter how long you've been doing it, so please don’t consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, the Camerosity Discord server, and right here on mikeeckman.com. We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. For our next episode, we expect to have the return of Rick Oleson.  For those of you who have been collecting cameras for a long time, you've almost certainly run across Rick's name either by his excellent repair website or through one of his very popular SLR and TLR Bright Screens.  Rick was one of this show's earliest guests, last appearing in Episode 2, so it will be great to hear what he's been up to lately. We will record Episode 67 on Monday, March 18th at 7pm Central Daylight Time (-5 UTC), 8pm Eastern Daylight Time (-4 UTC), and Tuesday at 11am Australian Eastern Daylight Time (+11 UTC). We look forward to hearing from you! In This Episode Mike Had Failed GAS and Couldn't Buy a Meopta Opema / Theo GASsed a Telka IIICameras Engraved with Names and Social Security Numbers / Brinks Security MarkersPatrick is Shooting a Keystone F8 Aircraft CameraMike, Paul, and Ray Will Be At the Cincinnati Camera Show on March 23rd / Paul's eBay StoryWhy Would the Lord 4D Have a Film Cutter? / What Would it be Used for?Will There Ever Be Camerosity Merch or a Patreon Page?What Does Anthony Think Was Elvis Presley's Best Movie?Tracking Movies Using Letterboxd / Mike Recommends 'The Bear'What Photography Ephemera Does Everyone Collect, and What is Our Favorite? / Mike Has a Kodak LampMaking Lamp Shades Using Old Film Slides and Kodachrome FilmIf Not eBay, What Alternatives Are There for Buying and Selling Cameras? / Yahoo.jp / ZenMarket / Fred MirandaMost Collectible Cameras Are No Longer Owned by Their Original OwnersWhat's the Deal with Paul's Prison Mugshot?What Store Brands Are Good to Look For? / Sears TLSThird Party Lens Makers / Tomioka / Komine / HanimexWhat Do All of Our Wives Think About Our Camera Hobbies?When Will Dan Tamarkin Come Back on the Show? / Paul Got in Trouble on RedditThe Excitement Around Ricoh's New Half Frame CameraWho Develops Their Own Film? / Anthony's 59 Minute Photo LabWhat Other Things Do You Collect Besides Cameras? / Dan Cuny Collects Glass PlatesWhat Was Your First Camera and if You Had to Start Over, What Would You Start Over With?Name a Camera That Everyone Else Loves But You Don't Links The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord! Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike on our very own Discord Server. Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums. If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show! Check it out! https://discord.gg/PZVN2VBJvm. If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group, Instagram page, or Discord server. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 65: The One with All the Europeans
Feb 24 2024
Episode 65: The One with All the Europeans
For regular listeners of this show, the gang usually records each episode during the evening for listeners in the United States.  For those of you on Theo's side of the planet, it is either late morning or midday the next day, but this time slot is not good for listeners in Europe or Africa.  While we've had some graveyard shifters call us, we like to sometimes have episodes at an hour which is more time-zone friendly to our listeners in those areas of the world. It has been longer than we'd care to admit, but for this the 65th episode of the Camerosity Podcast, the gang invites our European friends for nearly 2 hours of non-stop Camerosity discussion!  Joining Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike are returning callers Alan Duncan, Brian MacDomhnaill, Frederico Quaglino, John-Michael Mendizza, Tim Peters, Wannes Scheipers and first time callers Adrian Cullen, Jeremy Scott, John Kelly, Stuart Pratt, and from Prague, Czech Republic, Tadeas Plachy. The conversations in this episode ranged all the way from Arsenic to Zeiss, hear about some of the groups favorite cameras from the Hungary, Italy, France, Czechoslovakia, England, Austria, and even Germany!  For those of you with access, what can Uranium and Mercury do for your film photography.  Who is still shooting Kodak Ektachrome IR film, and what is everyone's favorite method for removing Remjet?  When you invite such a wide variety of people from so many countries, you're bound to come up with some interesting conversation and boy did we ever! As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  Please don’t feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don’t consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, the Camerosity Discord server, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. Our next episode is going to be a little different.  It will be our first ever Camerosity AMA (Ask Me Anything) episode.  All episodes of the show have an open discussion format, but for this one we are soliciting questions on ANY TOPIC for Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike.  Want to know something about either Theo or Mike's blogs, or any stories about Paul's days owning his own camera story, or Anthony's tips and tricks about underwater cave diving or running your own coffee shop?  Literally no topic is off the table (except politics).  Like all episodes, we encourage people to join us, but if you have a question you'd like to be read on air, please submit them to us through Facebook, Instagram, or Discord before the show airs. We will record Episode 66 on Monday, March 4th at 7pm Central Standard Time (-6 UTC), 8pm Eastern Standard Time (-5 UTC), and Tuesday at Noon Australian Eastern Daylight Time (+11 UTC).  We look forward to hearing from you! In This Episode Tadeas Hates Flexarets / Meopta OpemaSoviet Countries were Allocated Camera Types for ManufacturingPaul has a Fokaflex / Meopta Enlargers are well respectedThe Czech press agency bought Nikon Fs in 1970 and 80sTadeas loves his Nikon FM2 / Canon 25mm LTM Lenses / Minolta SRT-101 and Prakticas / Zeiss-Ikon Taxona and Tenax II35mm Cassette Shapes Have Changed / East Europe 35mm Reloads Used Paper Wrapped FilmKodak Ektachrome Infrared Film / Full Spectrum and IR Digital Cameras / Shooting IR in a Movie Theater / Sony CyberShot DSC-F828Using Expired Film and Cinema Films / Removing RemjetUranium to Increase Contrast on Prints / Mercury to Increase the Speed of your Film / Kodachrome is Bad for the Earth / Arsenic Covered BooksMinox 35ML / Chinon Made some AGFA Cameras / AGFA Optima Parat and the AGFA Parat IBrian MacDomhnaill's Football Squad Camera Lineup / Pentax IQ Zooms (Espio) / Voigtländer Perkeo II and Zeiss Ikon Super IkontaNikonos III is a simpler camera than the Nikonos V / Fuji Super Fujica-6 / Voigtländer Rollfilm / Ensign Autorange 620 / Royer TeleroyDemaria Lapierre Telka III / Greek cameras / Sabina 127 and the Piccopoulos PiccaThe Hungarian Mometta III / Gallus Derby-Lux and Foth DerbyFrench Rex Reflex TLR / Complicated Italian Cameras / Rectaflex / Ducati / Bencini / FerraniaIlford Advocate and Witness / Scale Focus is Faster for Candid PhotographyMike Needs a Take Up Spool for the DucatiOnly Service a Camera if it Needs It Links The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord!  Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike on our very own Discord Server.  Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums.  If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show!  Check it out!  https://discord.gg/PZVN2VBJvm. If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group, Instagram page, or Discord server. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 64: Rollei Rollei Rollei
Feb 1 2024
Episode 64: Rollei Rollei Rollei
For this, the 64th episode of the Camerosity Podcast, the gang finally devotes our full attention to one of the most popular brands of cameras ever made.  A camera brand that was so popular, they named the entire company after it, the Rolleiflex! Originally founded by two ex Voigtländer employees who had an idea on how to build a better soldier's camera, a new company called Franke & Heidecke was created, and from there, a whole legacy of twin lens, and eventual single lens reflexes was born. Joining Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike are returning callers Bill Smith, John Roberts, Marc Gordon, Patrick Casey, Rafael Espinosa, Tim Peters, and first time callers Dean Robinson and Steve "Johnny Appleseed" Lederman. In this episode, we will cover the early history of the company, how Paul Franke and Reinhold Heidecke first got started, the early and later Rolleiflex and Rolleicord TLRs.  We also cover their transition into both medium format and 35mm SLRs, the compact Rollei 35, the Cosina made Rollei 35 RF, and a few other Rollei models. We ask the tough questions like what is the difference between a Rolleiflex and Rolleicord, are the triplet lenses really that much worse than the Tessars, are German Rolleis better than Singapore Rolleis, and what are everyone's favorite models.  In addition to Rollei GAS, we briefly discuss a strange Japanese Rollei copy, why people tend to blend in better using cameras with waist level vs eye level viewfinders, the confusing transition from Voigtländer, Zeiss-Ikon to Rollei, and whether or not Vivian Maier was creepy. As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  Please don’t feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don’t consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, the Camerosity Discord server, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. For our next episode, we are finally going across the pond for another European time zone friendly episode.  If you are a fan of the show but are asleep or otherwise unable to join us for our regular recordings, this is the episode for you!  We will record Episode 65 on Monday, February 12th at Noon Central Standard Time (-6 UTC), 1pm Eastern Standard Time (-5 UTC), 6pm Greenwich Mean Time (+0 UTC), 7pm Central European Time (+1 UTC), and 5am Tuesday morning Australian Eastern Daylight Time (+11 UTC).  We look forward to hearing from you! In This Episode Rollei Almost Didn't Exist / Paul Franke and Reinhold Heidecke Originally Worked for VoigtländerThe Original Idea for the Rolleiflex Was to Be an Improved Vest Pocket CameraFranke & Heidecke Heidscop / RolleidoscopThe Rolleiflex First Went on Sale in 1929 / It Is Difficult to Tell Every Rollei ApartEarly Rolleiflexes Were Designed for 117 Film / Some Were Modified to Use 620 FilmDifferences Between Rolleiflex and Rolleicords / Dim ViewfindersWas the 1950s the "Golden Era of Rollei"? / Triplet Lenses Can Sometimes Be Very SharpMike's First Attempt at Repairing a Rolleiflex Old StandardRolleiflex T and Rolleimagic / TLRs with Interchangeable Lenses / Bay Filter MountsJapanese Rollei Copy, the Rollekonter / Meopta Flexaret TLRsRolleiflexes Are Precision Machines That Require Regular Service and CleaningHoneywell Distributed Rolleiflexes in the US For a WhileHeinrich Peesel / Rollei 35 / Rolleiflex SLRs / Ifbaflex SLRRolleiflex SL66 Medium Format SLR / Rolleiflex SL26 Instamatic / Rollei A110 and E110The Confusing Transition from Voigtländer to Zeiss-Ikon to RolleiGerman Made Rolleis vs Singapore Made Rolleis / Triplets vs Better LensesCropping 6x6 Images / TLRs Are Great for Street PhotographyVivian Maier / Being Confronted While Out Photographing PeopleMike Loves Vivian Maier's Work But Thinks She Was Probably a Little CreepyCosina Made Rollei 35 RF is Based off the Bessa R2 Links The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord!  Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike on our very own Discord Server.  Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums.  If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show!  Check it out!  https://discord.gg/PZVN2VBJvm. If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group, Instagram page, or Discord server. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 63: Mount Olympus
Jan 13 2024
Episode 63: Mount Olympus
In Greek mythology, Mount Olympus was the home of the Twelve Olympian Gods, Zeus, Hera, Apollo, Athena, and others looked upon the mortals of the world and accepted their worship.  In modern times, Mount Olympus is also home to the Camerosity Podcast where Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike gaze down upon their followers, accepting tributes and praise. No, just kidding, none of us are that egomaniacal, no, the real Mount Olympus is in modern day Greece on the border between Thessaly and Macedonia near the Aegean Sea.  It was the inspiration for a small Japanese company formed on October 12, 1919 as K.K. Takachiho Seisakusho, or Takachiho Works Co., Ltd. in English.  The company would originally make microscopes, one of which was branded the "Olympus".  A series of cameras would come next with the same name, and in 1949, the entire company would then become known as the Olympus Corporation. In the years since, Olympus has created some of the best lenses and cameras the Japanese photo industry ever produced.  In the time doing this show, we've mentioned a variety of Olympus cameras here and there, but we had never dedicated an entire episode to them, until now. Tune in to Episode 63 where Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike are joined by returning callers A.J. Gentile, Howard Sandler, Mark Faulkner, Matt Murray, Patrick Casey, Patrick Rapps, Robert Coates, Tim Peters, and first time callers Josh Barker, Stephen Strangway, and Tony Plescia discuss their favorite Olympus models, some tips and tricks to using them, and a little bit of history. The episode barely gets started before we go down the academia route and debate what the plural form of "Olympus" is, but then we get to other questions such as why half frame was so popular in Japan, when did Olympus become a point and shoot company, and what are some tips and tricks to get an Olympus OM-2 or OM-4 cheaply at a thrift shop. As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  Please don’t feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don’t consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, the Camerosity Discord server, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. We will return with Episode 64 which will be dedicated to Rollei.  We will discuss all of the early Franke & Heidecke Rolleiflex and Rolleicord TLRs, plus their later SLRs, point and shoots, and maybe even an interchangeable lens rangefinder, digital camera or two.  We will record on a special night, on Thursday, January 25th at 7pm Central Standard Time, 8pm Eastern Standard Time.  We look forward to hearing from you! In This Episode What Is the Plurality of Olympus? / Was Olympus Famous for Their Lenses First?Olympus's Early History / Zuiko Lenses Made for Other People / Zuiko Leica Thread Mount 40mm f/2.8Olympus Pen and Trip 35 / The Pen Re-Started Half Frame Popularity in the 1960sWhy Was Half Frame 35mm So Popular in Japan? / Maitani Designed to Pen to Be Inexpensive Yet Still Capable of Great PhotosHalf Frame Was Single Frame Before the Pen / What Is Everyone's Favorite Pen? / Olympus Pen EE and D SeriesZuiko Lenses and The Letter Code Indicates How Many Elements / The Original OM-1 Was Called the M-1Olympus FTL Was the First Full Frame Olympus SLR / No One Knows Who Made the FTLAnthony Loves the Pen F and FT / The Pen F SLR is a Marvel of MiniaturizationOlympus Ace, Ace-E, and Tower 19 Rangefinders / Anthony's Olympus SP and EC Fixed Lens RangefindersAll the Olympus Fixed Lens Rangefinders / The Olympus 35 LC is the Same as the 35 SP but Without the Advanced ElectronicsAnthony Also Loves the Olympus XA4 / Maitani Created The Olympus XA / Reverse Retrofocus LensesOlympus OM-Series / OM-SLRS Shutter Speed Selector is Around the Lens Mount to Help Shrink the CameraMaitani Signature Cameras / OM-2 and 4 Shutters Will Lock Up if Batteries are Dead / How to Test ThemWhen Did Olympus Become a Point and Shoot Company?Olympus Stylus and mju Cameras / Olympus LT-1 / Olympus O-Product / Goofy Special Edition CamerasOlympus iS-Series SLRs / SP-330 Bridge CameraOlympus Jumped into Micro 4/3rds for the Consumer Market / Olympus OM-D E M1X and other OM-D MirrorlessesOlympus Really Likes to Recycle Model Numbers and Names / Olympus Pen Digitals / 4:3 vs 3:2 RatiosMike's Update on His Contax N1 from the Last EpisodeTheo Loves the Olympus XZ-1 DigicamLightning Round: If You Could Only Keep One Olympus Camera, What Would it Be? Links The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord!  Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike on our very own Discord Server.  Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums.  If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show!  Check it out!  https://discord.gg/PZVN2VBJvm. If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group, Instagram page, or Discord server. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Mark Faulkner - https://thegashaus.com/ Matt Murray - Matt Loves Cameras - https://mattlovescameras.com/ Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 62: Camerosity Live!
Dec 30 2023
Episode 62: Camerosity Live!
In the spirit of the earliest episodes of this show, as the last days of 2023 were winding down, the Camerosity gang found themselves with nothing to do on a Friday night and thought, "Hey! Lets do a Live show!"   Podbean, the service that hosts and distributes this show has a feature called Live Streams in which you can create a live podcast, where it goes out as you record.  Everything is done on the fly, no editing, just people talking about whatever.  We thought this might be a fun experiment to get the four of us together one last time in 2023 and see what a live Camerosity show might be like... Unfortunately, we couldn't make it work.  Apparently, Podbean has some requirements for more than one person to be able to talk during a live stream, and while it probably wouldn't have been too difficult to figure out, we just decided to go back to Zoom and record a quick episode as we usually do, except we'd keep the "live" spirit and do little to no editing. Episode 62 was not planned, we went into it with no idea of what we'd talk about, or for how long.  We stuck to our guns and left in all the pauses, uuummmmsss, and all the talking over each other heard in live recordings.  There are no guests, no show notes, no Instagram roll calls of all the cameras we talk about, just roughly two hours of raw audio of us chatting.  As I type this, I haven't even listened to the whole show myself, so I guess I should apologize now... We will be back with regular episodes in January and as always, we want to hear from you!  The topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by our listeners!  Please don’t feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don’t consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, the Camerosity Discord server, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. We will record Episode 63 on Monday, January 8, 2024 at 7pm Central Standard Time, 8pm Eastern Standard Time, and 12 Noon on Jan 9th in Australian Eastern Daylight Time.  Our topic of discussion will more than likely be Olympus cameras, so get out your OM-series SLRs and Olympus Sixes and stay tuned! Links The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord!  Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike on our very own Discord Server.  Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums.  If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show!  Check it out!  https://discord.gg/PZVN2VBJvm. If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group, Discord, or Instagram pages. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 61: Pointing and Shooting
Dec 18 2023
Episode 61: Pointing and Shooting
It took us a couple of tries. but the Camerosity crew finally managed to put together an episode dedicated to the best selling, widely used, and most accessible type of camera ever, the point and shoot. The great thing about the point and shoot segment, is that apart from being easy enough to literally "point and shoot", there was a lot of flexibility in design, features, ergonomics, and usability, with many camera makers free to do something different from established norms, adding things like solar panels, dedicated panoramic modes, and even speech capability to otherwise mundane cameras. In Episode 61, Paul, Theo, and Mike chatted with Andrew Smith. Matt Murray, Tim Peters, Kyle Lu, AJ Gentile, and first time caller Rafael Espinosa to share with us their favorite point and shoot models, how they like to use them, and their own tips and tricks to getting the most from these cameras. Addressing the biggest debate right at the top of the show, we discuss what exactly is a point a shoot.  Not everyone agrees where this era exactly begins and ends as something as simple as the 1888 Kodak could technically be considered a point and shoot as you literally press the button and Kodak does the rest, but we decide to cap it to simple auto exposure models from the 1960s and on. We talk about replacing rotted light seals, battery compatibility, which models are more likely to fail than others, underwater point and shoots, disposable point and shoots, and some premium point and shoots.  Will this episode give you GAS like some of our others?  I guess that depends on what style of photography you prefer, but you'll never know for sure if you don't listen in! As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  Please don’t feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don’t consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, the Camerosity Discord server, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. This will be our last episode of 2023 as the guys and I will take a short break before coming back in January.  We may have something special planned for the week after Christmas, but as always, we need to flesh out ideas and make sure that if we do record something it is worth listening to, but even if we don't manage to get something out, we will be sure to return in January with Episode 62.  As always, stay tuned and keep a look out for the show announcement! In This Episode We define what a Point and Shoot is / Theo suggests it might be a box cameraKodak made simple cameras to sell more film / Point and Shoots are perfect for the zooAndrew’s first was a Ricoh TF500 / Canon QL17 GIIIOld P&S cameras often need foam replacementYashica Electros are also a good option / Olympus XAThe Mamiya 7 is the best camera in the world, even as a P&SThe Fuji GA645 is a true medium format P&SFuji has a DX type coding for medium format filmsMatt Loves Cameras loves the Contax T3, his has only one tooth!Canon SureShot/Autoshot P&S are a great range of cameras / Canon A1 / Aqua Snappy 6 / Prima / Nikon Action TouchMatt’s Fuji Natura has a fast lens but only with fast filmThe Canon SureShot Series Are All GreatFuji TW-3 / Solar Powered Canon del Sol / Nikon Lite Touch Zoom 140Autofocus technology was important for zoom lens advancementMike Raves About the Olympus IS Range / Canon MC Inspired by the Olympus XAPaul loves the Samsung AF Slim / Samsung made the Rollei PregoKonica Hexar / Konica Genba Kantoku Rugged CamerasEveryone likes the Nikon L35AF / The Kodak Ektar 35 is surprisingly good / GOKO Macromax is Fantastic for Macro PhotographyPaul finds an Agfa Optima Flash / Tim’s first compact was a Konica MR70, But Enjoys the Olympus Pen STim also believes the Nikon EM SLR is a P&S / Backlight button on a camera is a great featureTheo has been using the Pentax PC35AF / Mike played the Minolta Talker/AFS-V / Minolta Vista/Ps is a Panoramic CompactPremium Nikon P&S are the 35Ti and 28Ti / Premium Compacts are Starting to Fail / Kyle has found repairers in China that can fix themPentax Espio Range are Great Value / Olympus mju / Ricoh FF series / Chinon Auto 3001 / Kodak VR35 K12 and K14Disposables have always been popular / The Cat Camera is a weird camera / Mamiya U and U AF / Hand Sammikeeckman.com is 9 years old! Links The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord!  Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike on our very own Discord Server.  Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums.  If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show!  Check it out!  https://discord.gg/PZVN2VBJvm. If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group or Instagram page, or email us at camerosity.podcast@gmail.com. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Matt Murray - Matt Loves Cameras - https://mattlovescameras.com/ Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 60: The Listener’s Choice Episode
Dec 6 2023
Episode 60: The Listener’s Choice Episode
As we begin episodes numbered in the sixties, the Camerosity crew decided we haven't heard enough from our listeners, so rather than devote Episode 60 to one specific brand, style, or region of cameras, we decided to put out the call for a Listener's Choice episode! Messages were plastered all over social media, Facebook, our new Discord server asking you all to join us, share with us what you've been shooting lately, any recent GAS you've picked up or are thinking of picking up, ask any questions of the hosts or other guests, whatever you wanted. And boy, did you all respond!  With a total of 18 participants on this show, Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike were joined by returning callers Patrick Rapps, Andrew Smith, Mario and Julienne Piper, Greg McCreash, Marcy Merrill, Marc Gordon, Kyle Liu, and first time callers, AJ Gentile, Bill Chou, Bill Vitiello, Joseph Schallmo, Sam Kellett, and Tim Peters! We went around the room and asked each caller what they've been up to, and if you were to have asked me and the other hosts what types of cameras would be discussed, none of us would have predicted the number of early 20th century box cameras, large Graflex SLRs, military cameras, and other oddball stuff that camera geeks like us love!  Of course, there was plenty of love for Rolleis, the Nikon S2, the Minolta X-700, Argus C3, Voigtländer Bessa, Yashica 44 and many more.  In addition to camera GAS, Julienne Piper shares with us her method for making 122 size roll film out of computer paper, shooting dry plates, making your own bellows, how Mike once used a garbage bag to keep light out of a camera, and much, MUCH more! As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  Please don’t feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don’t consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, the Camerosity Discord server, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. For the next episode of the show, we would like to focus on a subset of cameras that get mentioned often, but we rarely spend more than a short passing moment on them, compact point and shoots.  For many, point and shoot cameras represent the cheapest and simplest entry into film photography, but therein lies their strengths.  With a good number of point and shoots featuring a high quality lens, a point and shoot offers a level of convenience and spontaneity that larger, more feature rich cameras can't match.  If you've ever tried capturing a fleeting moment of a child playing with a puppy using a falling plate camera or an early roll film camera you'll know that perhaps that Nikon L35AF is just what the doctor ordered!  We will record Episode 61 on Monday, December 11th so be sure to look out for the show announcement 2-3 days before then! In This Episode Patrick Rapps has Panoramic GAS and Figured Out How to Repair a No. 1 Panoram-KodakEveryone Has a Panoram-Kodak / 105 Roll Film Compared to 120Marcy Bought a Novelty Yashica MF-1 in Japan and Then Ruined An Entire Roll of FilmAnthony Only Found the Super Expensive Camera Stores in Japan / Mamiya U Repair / Bill RogersAndrew Smith is Trying Not to Buy New Stuff / Chinese Light Lens Labs ELCAN 50/2 Collapsible LensRicoh 500 and Bottom Trigger Cameras / Leicavit / Canon VT Rangefinders / Riken LensesMario Piper Gets a Beautiful Spotmatic SP / Spotmatic ES and ESII / Nikon EL2No 3A ANSCO Postcard Camera /  Julienne Makes Her Own 122 Size Photographic Paper / Kodak Bullseye Falling Plate Camera / Empire State No. 2 Studio CameraPrinter Paper is Not Light Tight / Shooting Cameras in Garbage Bags / Making Your Own BellowsBill Loves the Bronica ETRC / Bronicas Are Very Sensitive to Degraded Foam Light Seals / Bronica S2More Love for the Chinese ELCAM LensTim Shows Off His Kodak No.2 Bullseye Special / Folmer & Schwing Home Portrait GraflexOther Companies Made Zeiss Lenses in the Early 20th Century / Nikon S2 / UsedPhotoPro in Indianapolis / Nikon F with Selenium MeterBill Vitiello Loves Every TLR / What is the Difference Between a Rolleiflex and Rolleicord? / Rolleiflex TThe Camerosity Podcast Saves Lives! / Minolta X-700 / Argus C3 with Sandmar 35mm LensAdapting DKL Mount Lenses / Most DKL Adapters Suck / A Brief History of the Deckel MountWet Plate Collodion Process / AJ's Nagaoka 5x7 Field Camera / Where to Get 2x3 Sheet FilmVoigtländer Bessa I / Ilford's Special Order Film / Leica IIIFShooting Dry Plates / Some Guy Built a Camera Into His Van / Making Positives from NegativesYashica 44 / 127 Film / Adapting to 35mmRerapan and Shanghai 127 Film / Cutting Bulk 46mm Film to 127 / Imperial 127 DeltaPaul Loves his Polaroid Snap Touch Instant Camera / Paul Sends Greg a Box o' StuffGreg McCreash Loves Military Cameras / Combat Graflex / The US Military Often Used Bronica CamerasMike's Recent GAS / National Graflex / Yashica YF Links The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord!  Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike on our very own Discord Server.  Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums.  If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show!  Check it out!  https://discord.gg/PZVN2VBJvm. If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group or Instagram page, or email us at camerosity.podcast@gmail.com. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Mario and Julienne Piper - https://www.instagram.com/genxphotogpod/ Marcy Merrill - https://junkstorecameras.com/ Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 59: Cameras of East Germany
Nov 17 2023
Episode 59: Cameras of East Germany
A couple episodes ago, the gang discussed cameras of the Soviet Union to give some attention to lesser known Soviet cameras, and the histories behind them, so for episode 59, we devoted the entire show to the East German camera industries, primarily those around the Dresden area. There were perhaps more companies making cameras in this area than anywhere else in the world, so making a single episode that could cover them all would be impossible, but we certainly tried.  In the end, we discussed the fascinating histories of Ihagee and how Dutchman Johan Steenbergen split up the assets of his company into two to protect it from the Germans, how two Jewish businessmen formed KW in the early 20th century to become one of Germany's most successful camera makers, and how an eventual American entrepreneur took over the company and created the world's first modern 35mm SLR. We devote some time to the Carl Zeiss Jena Werras, the Praktina, the battery driven Prakti, East German TLRs, and because we can't control ourselves, we even crossed international borders and discussed Japanese cameras with Exakta lens mounts. It was a crazy episode that started out with some technical difficulties resulting in Paul losing power, Anthony's keyboard dying, and Theo needing to find a new job, but we persisted and delivered what I think is a fascinating, albeit abbreviated look at one of the most elaborate camera histories out there. This episode also marks the official debut of the Camerosity Discord server, which is where Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike are ready and waiting to share in all of our tomfoolery, GAS, and a place for you to share what you've been shooting lately.  Be sure to check it out! As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  Please don’t feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don’t consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. Our next episode will be number 60, and I am extremely excited to invite a special guest who I've been yearning to speak to for years.  My desire to speak to this person goes back even farther than the start of this show, and they are someone I REALLY think you will all enjoy talking to.  I can't say their name yet, but I can say they are one of the most well known Camera Collectors, and that before they became Popular, in their early career, they were very Modern.  So stay tuned for the recording of Episode 60 on Monday, November 27th! In This Episode Dresden Was a Central Manufacturing Hub for All German Industry, Including Cameras / The Feb 1945 Bombing of DresdenCarl Zeiss Jena Werras / Differences Between the Various WerrasKW Praktiflex and the M40 Lens Mount / Paul Loves Biotars of Every Size and Lens MountKamera-Werkstätten Has a Very Sad But Interesting HistoryKW Patent-Etui / KW Pilot Reflex / The Story of Paul Guthe and Benno ThorschThe KW Praktina Was the First Modem Professional SLR / The Nikon F Was Influenced by the PraktinaPraktina Spring Wound and Electric Motor Drives / 50 Foot Film Back / Angled Shutter ReleasesWhy Were There So Many Different Camera Designs Coming Out of Dresden / Germans Didn't Like to Copy ThemselvesIhagee and Johan Steenbergern's Story / Ihagee Was Split Into Two Halves So the Germans Couldn't Own it AllEast German TLRs / Weltaflex / Peerflekta / MentoretteAnthony Once Found East German Linen Photo PaperThe East German Government Encouraged Photography for PropagandaPentacon Six SLR with CZJ Biometar LensJohan Steenbergen Was Successful in Getting the Rights to Ihagee Back, and Produced the Exakta Real in 1966Vest Pocket Exaktas and the Night Exakta / Every Different Exakta Used a Different Lens MountNippon Kogaku and Canon Both Made a Single Lens in Exakta Mount / Firstflex 35 SLRWhy Did Tokyo Kogaku Use the Exakta Mount on Topcon SLRs? / Mimosa IIIhagee Exas / System Exa RheinmetallEveryone Loves the Looks of the Exakta / 12 Second Exposures and Razor BladesJimmy Stewart and the Exakta in Rear Window / Kilfitt Fern-Kilar 400mm f/5.6 LensWhat is the Proper Spelling of Exakta? / Exacta CamerasTopcon RE 300 and Japanese Made Exaktas / Exakta Twin TL / Pentacon Prakti SoundsCamerosity is Now on Discord! / Listener Question About Good Books Covering the German Camera Industry Links The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord!  Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike on our very own Discord Server.  Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums.  If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show!  Check it out!  https://discord.gg/u7DvZEz6 If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group or Instagram page, or email us at camerosity.podcast@gmail.com. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 58: Yashicas Niccas and More!
Nov 6 2023
Episode 58: Yashicas Niccas and More!
We've done a lot of deep dives into specific camera brands here on the Camerosity Podcast, but one brand I've been the most excited to do was Yashica.  Some of my earliest acquisitions of film cameras right when I first started collecting were Yashicas, from the wonderful Yashica Electro 35 to the Yashica-Mat TLR, to the Yashica TL-Super, there was probably a time when nearly 20% of my collection was a Yashica. More than that, if you were to break down the entire Japanese camera industry into A, B, and C-List manufacturers with Nikon and Canon at the top, and the hordes of "one and done" Japanese makers from the 1950s in the C-List, Yashica seems to be one company that exists somewhere between A and B. So for this podcast, I really wanted to bring out the big guns and invite not one, but two people who love Yashica more than I do.  The first guest is someone who I've interviewed before on my "One Hour Photo" series, is Paul Sokk.  Hailing from about 90 minutes away from Theo, Paul is THE authority on Yashica TLRs, fixed lens Yashicas, and early Yashica SLRs.  He also has a huge amount of info on Nicca, Leotax, and Canon rangefinders too making his site a very worthwhile read for many collectors. In addition is Chris Whelan who has frequently collaborated with Paul, providing him with information and photographs that Paul has used on his site.  Chris has bought, owned, and sold a huge number of rare Yashicas, even to people you probably know.  Mike personally owns a few cameras that Chris has previously sold to other people, completing some form of Camerosity/Yashica Cycle of Life. In this episode, we focus on the early days of Yashima, their TLRs, early SLRs, the company's acquisition of Nicca and Nicca rangefinders, and touch upon some of Yashica's great fixed lens rangefinders, plus some of their stranger cameras like the Sequelle and Samurai. As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  Please don’t feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don’t consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. We don't yet know what we will be doing for our next show, but we are definitely mulling on some topics suggested to us from other listeners, plus the many different areas in which we interact with you on social medial.  Whatever we decide to do, I am sure it will be interesting and a lot of fun, so be sure to join us on Monday, November 13th for the recording of Episode 59! In This Episode Paul Sokk and His Blogs, yashicatlr.com and leica-copies-japan.com / Chris Introduces yashicasailorboy.comWe work out Anthony and Chris / Theo and Paul live close to each otherChris has sold to Kurt / Paul found the same camera when looking it upThe Yashicaflex S and A3 found their way to Mike / Kurt wanted his collection to go to people that would appreciate them / Minolta Super A to TheoChris’s first camera was a Yashica Electro TL X and a Nikonos IIHe went to Canon F1 but returned to Yashica because of Paul’s site / Chris turned Paul onto the PentamaticTheo has been using the Electro TL X recently and the Yashinon 50 f/2 is one of his favourite lensesThe Yashica FFT was the last M42 mount cameraAnthony has a Contax S2 and ST with more Yashica lenses than Zeiss lensesTomioka was responsible for the high quality Yashica glassChris loves the Yashicamat EM / Mike Loves the Yashica DYashica provided military goods to making cameras / Pigeonflex then Yashimaflex Was NextThe Yashicamat Was One of the Best Selling TLRsYashica was trying to sell volume by having the right quality for the right priceWas 1956 when Yashica started to sell in US and Europe?In 1957 Yashima started to also make other cameras other than TLRs, first the Yashica 8 movie cameraYashima's First 35mm camera Was the Yashica-35 in 1958Brian Wants a TLR / Yashica 124G are as modern a TLR you will find / Kyle collects Contax SLRsNicca was a Canon service company / Paul and Theo will fight over a Snider 35 / Niccas Were Sold by Sears as TowersNiccas are well built, so were the Leotax / Nicca introduced some innovations but Only Made RangefindersNippon Kogaku made the Rigid Body 5cm f/3.5 Nikkor-QC Exclusively for NiccaYashica bought Nicca before they went bankrupt / Yashica Pentamatic / Auto frame counters can be problematicWho made lenses for the Yashica SLRs? / Yashica's First M42 Camera was the Penta J / J is for Jaguar / Yashica J-3TL Series when started with TTL metering / Fixed Lens Rangefinder Yashicas / Yashica Lynx / Yashica MinisterUnique Yashica Cameras / Yashica Rapide / Yashica Sequelle / Yashica SamuraiYashica Electro 35 was hugely popular in the USA, and they have fantastic lensesThe Contax/Yashica C/Y mount cameras and the Point and Shoots will be covered in a future episode Links If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group or Instagram page, or email us at camerosity.podcast@gmail.com. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ One Hour Photo 2 - Paul Sokk: https://mikeeckman.com/2019/05/one-hour-photo-2-paul-sokk/ Paul Sokk - http://yashicatlr.com/ and http://leica-copies-japan.com/ Chris Whelan - https://yashicasailorboy.com/ and https://www.ccstudio2380.com/ Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 57: Robert Shanebrook’s Kodak Moments
Oct 21 2023
Episode 57: Robert Shanebrook’s Kodak Moments
Looking back at past episodes of the show, there are a few memorable ones, not necessarily for anything myself or the other hosts contributed, but rather from some of our esteemed guests.  Of those esteemed guests, one that consistently piles on great information and awesome anecdotes about our hobby is Robert Shanebrook.  A former employee of Eastman Kodak who while working there did everything from build cameras that went to the moon, to helping create some of the company's best film emulsions ever made, even some like TMax which are still being made today. With an incredible wealth of knowledge about Kodak's past and present, Robert still has his fingers on the pulse of the company and the industry and can often give insightful comments on where the industry is headed, so any time Robert agrees to join us, you know you're in for a ton of great information! Joining him on this show is returning guest Mina Saleeb and first time caller Jesse Wisdom.  Of course, joining Robert, Mina, and Jesse are the four horsemen of the world's first and only open source film photography podcast, Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike! In this episode, Robert shares his insights into Kodak's recent announcement of their intent to keep making film for as long as there is demand, and what exactly that means for the film community.  Robert reminisces on his days torture testing film and all of the great lengths Eastman Kodak went to making sure only the best film made it to your cameras, he talks about regional films, and a few more memorable film emulsions like Verichrome III and Supra. In addition, Jesse shares his passion for instant film photography and we learn of some history behind Polaroid's lawsuit against Kodak in the 1980s, and how if it weren't for Kodak, Polaroid might have never existed. Mike brings up his Kodak Aero-Ektar surveillance lens, and two recent pickups, a LOMO LC-Wide and W-Nikkor 2.5cm f/4 rangefinder lens.  Anthony shares his experience going to a recent KEH film event in Atlanta and how there is a clear disconnect between younger film enthusiasts and the older generation.  Jesse takes a stand and says that we need to connect the two groups of people as each can benefit from talking to another, but young people don't go on Facebook and old farts don't go on Discord. As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  Please don’t feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don’t consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. For our next episode, we are devoting the entire show to Yashica.  From the earliest Yashica TLRs to Nicca rangefinders to screw mount Yashica SLRs to the final Contax/Kyocera/Yashica SLRs, we plan on covering the entire output of this once great Japanese camera maker.  To help us traverse Yashica's long history, we will be joined by not one, but two Yashica experts who are certain to share with us a great deal of Yashica history and GAS!  If you've ever had any questions about your Yashica Electro or Samurai, this is the episode you won't want to miss, so be sure to join us on Monday, October 30th for the recording of Episode 58! In This Episode The Ultimate Debate: Tim Tam Biscuits vs Mint Slices (aka Girl Scout Thin Mints)Kodak's Statement That They'll Stay in the Film Business As Long As There's DemandChristopher Nolan's Oppenheimer Has Increased Interest in Film / 65mm Kodak Double XX FilmHow Kodak Scaled Down Their Production While Keeping Quality HighKodak Built in Different Tolerances for Consumer and Professional Films / Kodak Torture Tested FilmDoes Film Need to be as Consistent Today As It Used To Be?You Can Make a Lot of Stuff and Throw Away What's Bad, Or You Can Just Make Only Good StuffDid Kodak Ever Resell or Give Away Their Film That Failed Quality Checks?Is Expired Film Stored at a Consistent Temp More Stable than Film Stored in Varying Temperatures?120 Degrees Seems to be the Breaking Point for Film / Humidity is More Detrimental than Temperatures AreWere There Differences in the Same Film Produced in Different Markets? / Tropical Film and Cameras / Kodak ProImage 100The HBO Series Euphoria Was Shot on Ektachrome / Why Aren't There More Ektachrome Films?Differences in E2, E3, E4, and E6 Processes / Chemical vs Light ReversalHow Similar are 1990s Pro Film to Today's Portra? / Iridium Doping Gets Rid of ReciprocityThere Was Supposed to Be a Film Before Portra / Vericolor IIIWhen Portra Came Out Kodak Couldn't Sell Their Vericolor III Anymore So It Had to be DestroyedWhat Happened to Kodak Professional Supra Film?Instant Film / At Kodak the People Working on Instant Film Were in SilosKodak Initially Helped Make Polaroid Film / Edwin Land Would Have Failed Without Kodak's HelpKodak Made the Negative for Polaroid Type 55 Peel Apart FilmHow Kodak Would Work With Fuji / Advanced Photo SystemKodak Had an Earlier Attempt to Make a New 35mm Film in 1979Aero Ektar Military Lenses / Lenses with Thorium / Don't Lick Radioactive LensesIce Station Zebra / 30 Mile Long Rolls of Film in SatellitesDental X-Ray Film / Minilabs in Dentist Offices / Yashica Dental-EyeAnthony Goes to KEH and Sees a Bunch of Youtube Influencers with Very Expensive Cameras / Film Discord ServersYounger People are Enthusiastic About Film and Older People Are Enthusiastic, But the Two Groups Aren't Talking to Each OtherShooting Expired Film Means Something Different Depending on Who You AskMike Has a Cat Camera In a Can Made in Japan by Holga (WTF?!) / Film Photography Echo ChambersMina Bought a KMZ Horizont After the Soviet Episode / Mike Gets a LOMO LC-Wide / W-Nikkor 2.5cm f/4 Rangefinder LensRobert Shanebrook's "Making Kodak Film" Book is Back In Print, So Order Now if You Want One Links If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group or Instagram page, or email us at camerosity.podcast@gmail.com. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Keppler’s Vault 56: Kodak 35mm Film Prototype - https://mikeeckman.com/2020/02/kepplers-vault-56-kodak-35mm-prototype/ Robert Shanebrook - http://www.makingkodakfilm.com/ Mina Saleeb - https://www.instagram.com/crookandflail Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 56: Советские Фотоаппараты
Oct 7 2023
Episode 56: Советские Фотоаппараты
Very few episodes of the Camerosity Podcast are recorded without mentioning at least one Soviet camera, or something about the Soviet photo industry.  When deciding what we should discuss in future episodes, it was quite a surprise to the gang and I when we realized we had never devoted an entire episode to the subject, so for Episode 56, we put out the call for all our Soviet comrades, poured a large glass of водка, and loaded some film into our favorite Советские Фотоаппараты. Joining us on our tour of camera factories in Moscow, Kyiv, Leningrad, and Minsk are esteemed Soviet camera collector and blogger, Vladislav Kern and all around Soviet enthusiast Mark Beadle.  In addition to Vlad and Mark, regular callers Mark Faulkner, Ray Nason, and Ira Cohen came along for the ride as well. As we often do, Episode 56 starts off with some history and a quick summary of Soviet factories and how their photo industry differed from those in Germany, Japan, and elsewhere.  A whole lot of Soviet GAS was discussed including recommendations for first Soviet cameras for someone whose never shot one, Mike raves repeatedly about Soviet triplets, Paul shares with us his incredibly rare Soviet Leica Summicron lens, and Anthony gets into a discussion about the Soviet motion picture industry. In this episode we talk about Smenas, the half frame Chaika and Agat, the panoramic Horizont, medium format Iskra, the Leningrad and Droug rangefinders, Soviet fakes, swirly bokeh, and a whole host of other Soviet GAS. Later in the show we get into a round of Soviet Mythbusters in which Mike asks Vlad several commonly cited "facts" about Soviet cameras, and whether they are true.  Find out if orphaned children really built FED rangefinders, whether cameras with English logos are built with a higher quality, or whether or not you really need to wind your Soviet camera before changing shutter speeds. As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  Please don’t feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don’t consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. For our next episode, we are coming back to a favorite topic of the show, which is film stocks and film developing.  We will be welcoming back Robert Shanebrook from Eastman Kodak to talk about all the different types of film from history and past, and hopefully get some insight into what might come in the future.  These film emulsion episodes are always fascinating, so be sure to join us on Monday, October 16th for the recording of Episode 57! In This Episode Differences Between Soviet and Other Country's Camera Industries / Soviet FactoriesCamera Production Was a Cover for Military Manufacturing / Very Little Official Information About Camera Production Was Kept / Photography Was Encouraged to Aide in Soviet PropagandaWhat Soviet Camera Would a Photography Student Buy? / Smena 8 and 8MHome Developing and Recycling Everything / Camera Repair Manuals Were CommonPre-Soviet Cameras / Export Cameras Were Controlled by TOE aka the KGBSoviet Cameras were Distributed All Over the World as Kalimar, Global, and Many OthersIn the UK, Soviet Cameras Were Pretty Common and Seen as Good First CamerasA Zenit SLR Could Be Bought For Less Than a Third of a Nikon or CanonSoviet SLRs Came in M39, M42, Pentax K, Nikon F, and a Few Proprietary Mounts / KMZ StartSoviet Cameras Built for Export Were Generally of Higher Quality / Latin vs Cyrillic LetteringRay's Distributor Used to Bring Him Kiev 60 and 88s for Ten Bucks EachAfter the Soviet Union Collapsed, the Arsenal Factory Attempted to Privatize and Compete on the World Market / Kiev USAArax and Hartblei Also Refurbished Kiev Cameras Making them Better than New with Upgraded FeaturesThe Soviet Motion Picture Industry / Stalin Had to Approve Every Script That was Submitted for a Motion PictureFrench and Japanese Equipment Was Used to Make MoviesThe FED and Zorki Weren't the Only Soviet Leica Copies / VOOMP II Pioneer and Foto Apparat GeodeziyaKMZ Started Producing Leica Copies After the War and For a Very Short Time, So Did ArsenalDid Orphaned Children Really Assemble FED Cameras? / American Children Worked in Coal MinesAre Other Eastern Bloc Cameras Made in Czechoslovakia and Hungary Part of Soviet Camera Collecting? / MOM Mometta IIIThe Soviet Union Helped China Start their Camera Industry / Chinese Copies of Smenas and ZenitsGOMZ Sport SLR / The Soviet Camera Industry Pioneered More Things Than They Often Get Credit ForArsenal Kiev Rangefinders Were Built Using Actual Zeiss Contax Parts and MachineryPaul Has Never Ever Shot a Soviet Camera / Mike Recommends the Smena 8 for Paul / Agat 18KMike Thinks Soviet Cloth Shutters Hold Up Better than Other Cloth CurtainsSoviet GAS / Lubitels / Kiev 17 and 19 / Kiev 10 and 15 / Kiev 30 SubminiLOMO LC-A / Chaika and FED Micro Half Frame CamerasPanoramic Cameras / KMZ Horizont / KMZ FT-2 / Fedor Vasilievich TokarevSoviet Mythbusters: Some Soviet Cameras Use Animal Fat LubricantKMZ Cameras Built for Export are of Higher QualityLenses with Serial Numbers Beginning with 00 Were Made for VIPsWhole Warehouses of New Soviet Lenses Are Still Being DiscoveredDon't Change Shutter Speeds Until After Cocking the Shutter / KMZ Narciss Soviet Fakes / Paul Has a Summicron 50mm f/3.5 Leica Lens / British Reid Soviet FakeKMZ Droug Has a Rangefinder Coupling WheelIs it Difficult for Vlad to Get So Many Soviet Cameras Living in the United StatesTSVVS Prototypes / Mike Raves About Vlad's Collection and Rambles Off a Bunch of Soviet Cameras We Didn't Talk AboutWhere Do You Get Soviet Cameras Repaired? Links If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group or Instagram page, or email us at camerosity.podcast@gmail.com. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Vlad Kern - http://ussrphoto.com/ and https://www.instagram.com/ussrphoto/ Mark Beadle - https://www.instagram.com/Mark_Beadle90/ Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 55: Travelling With Cameras and Film
Sep 22 2023
Episode 55: Travelling With Cameras and Film
In the first episode of Season 3 of the Camerosity Podcast, the guys and I opened up the call-in lines for the first time since late July and asked everyone who has travelled lately, what their ideal travel cameras are.  When deciding to take some cameras on a trip, what makes the cut or doesn't, and why.  In addition to travelling with cameras, what are your tips for getting through airport security, is it worth getting your film hand checked, or should you separate your film from your cameras into separate luggage. Joining Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike are returning callers Mark Faulkner, Patrick Rapps, John Roberts, Howard Sandler, and first time callers Maxwell Whitaker, Mina Saleeb, and Kevin Knipp who all help us answer those questions. In addition to our travel tips, we also stray into the world of mirror lenses and other strange lenses of the 20th century like the Voigtländer Zoomar, KMZ Rubin-1, and the Minolta Rokkor-X 40-80mm f/2.8 "Gear Box Lens".  As we often do, much praise is heaped upon Voigtländer and the Bessamatic SLR and Cosina Bessa Rangefinders, we share our opinions of Minox submini cameras, the Carl Zeiss Jena Werra, AGFA Karat 36, plus many, many others. Later, hear Anthony admit that he's struggling with the decision of whether he needs to rebuy another Leica M3, whether or not people mix digital and film on vacations, and how many times Paul has bought the same camera more than once. As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  Please don’t feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don’t consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. For our next episode, we are going red, for Red October.  That's right, the Camerosity Podcast is going to discuss the Soviet Photo Industry.  What are the best cameras to pick up for someone new to the hobby, which ones to avoid, and what are some under the radar models.  So for those of you looking to expand on your Soviet GAS, be sure to join us on Monday, October 2nd for the recording of Episode 56! In This Episode How Do You Decide Which Cameras Will Go With You on a Trip / Theo and Anthony Are Going to AsiaBringing At Least One Digital Camera on a Trip / Panasonic Lumix LX SeriesJohn Roberts Took a Canon F1 and Nikon Z5 and Used the Same Lenses Using an Adapter / Mike Loves the Z5Mina Took a Nikon F-801 with Two AF LensesInspecting Film Through Airport Security / Put Film in Clear Bags, Be Polite, and Make the Inspection as Easy as PossibleSome Airports Have a No Hand Check Policy / If You Are Eligible for TSA Pre-Check, Do It / ISO 800 Film And Up / CT ScannersFilm Shield Bags Are Lined with Lead / Paul Once Lost an Entire Pelican Case of Film in Airport SecurityAnthony Is Going to Japan / Voigtänder Perkeo II / Olympus XA4 / Minox 35Howard Brings Cheap Cameras On Trips / Rollei 35 B / Mike Gets Stressed Out If He Brings Too Many CamerasPaul Travels Specifically for Photography and Food / His Wife Traveled with an RB67 One YearIf Your Cameras Are Stolen While Travelling, A Tip Is To Also Lose Your Passport So You'll Stop Thinking About the CamerasGetting Film Stolen is Worse Than Cameras Stolen / Travel With Your Cameras and Film SeparatelyGood Compact Digitals for Travel / Ricoh GR / Panasonic Lumix LX100Olympus Pen F Digital and Film Cameras / Half Frame vs APS-CMicro 4/3 Cameras Are Quite Good / Olympus OM-D EM1X / Olympus Pen DigitalsMaxwell's Ideal Travel Camera is a Minox B He Bought from Paul / Getting and Developing Minox FilmSlitting Film / 3D Printing Slitters / Using a TLR to Slit FilmAnthony is Going to Attempt to Barter His Way to a Good Camera in Japan By Selling Argus C3sTheo and Anthony Love the Zeiss-Ikon Contessa 35 / Mike Not So Much / Voigtländer Vito IIICarl Zeiss Jena Werra Series / The Werra is the Only Carl Zeiss Jena CameraLeaf Shutters That Go Faster than 1/500 / Kodak Tourist and Chevron / Minolta V2, V3, and OthersRudi Made Anthony Take a Bunch of 110 Cameras and 110 Film from Him / Minolta and Pentax 110 SLRsMike Didn't Like the Canon 110ED / Anthony Loved his Minox 110 and the Vitoret 110Voigtländer Was Owned by Zeiss, Then Rollei, then Licensed to Cosina for the Bessa RangefindersVoigländer Vitessa, Vito C, Bessamatic, Ultramatic / Voigtländer Zoomar LensesRussian MTO 500 and 1000mm Mirror Lenses / Maksutov Invented the Catadioptric Lenses for TelescopesSoviet Rubin-1 Is Not a Copy of the Zoomar But is Similar / The Zoomar Originally Came on the KMZ Zenit 6Mike Attempts to Explain How a Mirror Lens Works / Mirror Lenses Are Almost Always Found in Mint ConditionNikon and Minolta Mirror Lenses / The Rokkor 250mm f/5.6 Mirror Lens is Very GoodMinolta Rokkor-X 40-80mm f/2.8 Gearbox LensShow Suggestions for Season 3 / Yashica / TLRs / SubminisViscawide 16mm Swing Lens Camera / Large Format / Robert Shanebrook / Another Euro EpisodeLeicaflex SL Mirror Locks Just like the Nikon FHow Many Cameras Have You Bought More Than Once?Anthony Is Starting to Miss His Leica M3 / Voigtländer Cosina Made Bessas / Contax RTS II and RTS IIIThe Earlier AGFA Karat is the Rangefinder for People Who Don't Like RangefindersWe Have Lots Planned for Season 3, Stay Tuned! Links If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group or Instagram page, or email us at camerosity.podcast@gmail.com. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Chuck Rubin Photographics - https://www.facebook.com/p/Chuck-Rubin-Photographics-100054624692201/ Mina Saleeb - https://www.instagram.com/crookandflail Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 54: Camerosity Unplugged
Sep 6 2023
Episode 54: Camerosity Unplugged
We're back....sorta! For the month of August, the Camerosity Gang has been on vacation, traveling all over the United States Southwest and Northern Dairylands, battling Florida storms and insect borne illnesses, and handling the stress of a new job and shopping for a new home. In a moment of spontaneous availability, the guys and I jumped on a Zoom call, hit record and just started talking.  If you've ever wanted to know what it would be like to be in a room (virtual or real) with Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike, this episode is what it's like, just four guys sitting around talking about whatever comes to mind.  In the spirit of Cocaine and Waffles, we put no effort into this, had no agenda, and just started talking. As promised at the end of Episode 53, we will return soon with Season 3, featuring (slightly) more organized and thought out episodes.  We have a ton of great ideas for topics coming up, so please keep a look out for our next show announcement soon.  If you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We will record our next episode on Monday, September 18th at 7pm Central Daylight Time.  Stay tuned! This Week's Episode Paul and Black Paint Leicas / Anthony is shooting the Voigtländer Perkeo, Robot Royal, and Mercury IIFlorida Storms / Disruptions to Business / Shooting in a Hurricane / Waffle House Index / Florida ManKonica Genba Kantoku and Other Industrial CamerasMinolta Weathermatic / Canon Aqua Snappy AS6 / Sureshot A1 / Nikon NikonosMike is shooting with the Rollei 35 RF with TTArtisan 50mm f/0.95 / Konica Hexar AFNikon 35Ti and Other Compacts Which are in Danger of Electronics FailureTheo’s Tale of Leica R Woe and What He Did to Solve itTheo is Also Shooting a Voigtlander Vitessa L with Ultron lens and Keks 2 Meter and Kodak 2238Anthony’s Vitessa is from the Original Importer / Voigtländer ProminentTheo is Also Shooting the Zeiss Ikoflex, Voigtländer Superb and the Zeiss Super Ikonta CTaking Panoramas with a Nikkor PC Shift LensPaul is Overloaded With Cameras But Still Buys Leicas / 650 Boxes of CamerasCameras with Sequential Serial NumbersDigicams Are Great for Kids to Learn PhotographyTheo is the Adapter King of AustraliaLots of Voigtländer Brillants and Kodak Vest Pockets Have Been FoundRolleiflex with Duct Taped Polaroid Back / Leica Accessories Made in JapanPaul Did the Americana Festival and Met Patrick Rapps / Ray Nasson visited MikeTheo Bought a Canon FTb from Peter Kitchingman Without KnowingAnthony talks about John Minnicks and the Aero LiberatorAnthony had his Canon IV Sb Repaired and Loves ItHe also Had Robot Royal, Mamiya 645 Lens and Tower 22 RepairedWe Keep the Repairers Busy / Robot Royal / Anthony is Feeding Ticks Links If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group or Instagram page, or email us at camerosity.podcast@gmail.com. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 53: Unobtanium
Aug 1 2023
Episode 53: Unobtanium
We've covered a lot of gear on this podcast before.  Some cameras are ones that flew under the radar that deserved some recognition as something worth checking out, others were less common models in which a bit more effort (and cost) were required to add to a collection, but then there's a level of camera in which no amount of money or effort will result in one coming your way.  These are the Unobtanium cameras, models which are so expensive, or so hard to find, that even the most experienced of collectors don't have them. Joining Anthony, Theo, Paul, and Mike on this episode dedicated to the hardest cameras to find are some people who have found some of the hardest cameras to find, Ira Cohen, Ray Nason, Robert Rotoloni, Patrick Rapps, Rudi Berden, and James Thorpe.  Each of these guys has at least one camera that for most people would quality as unobtanium.  How they came across each model varies, but nevertheless, represent some of the coolest and hardest to find cameras ever made. As we did in the last episode, we start off this one with a question, asking our guests to define what exactly qualifies as unobtanium.  As you might expert, rarity and cost are definitely prerequisites, but what about functionality or provenance?  Does a camera that's very difficult to find in working order or a camera formerly owned by the Beatles still qualify as unobtanium.  In addition to rare cameras, lenses and accessories can qualify too, so we get into some extras that are really hard to find as well. If you were to break down types of unobtanium cameras, one that would be the hardest of the hardest to find would be prototypes, so in this episode we spend time talking about some of the coolest prototypes including two interchangeable lens rangefinders made by Minolta and Konica, but also Robert Rotoloni goes DEEP into the rabbit hole of prototype Nikon rangefinder cameras and lenses.  If you thought the Nikon SP was the most advanced 35mm rangefinder the company ever made, think again as there were two others. The rest of the episode is all over the place, discussing rare cameras by Ilford, Argus, Wica, Premier Instrument Corp, and LeCoultre.  We are quite certain that we missed some other rare and otherwise difficult to find cameras, but as always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  We would love to hear from more listeners, especially those who are new to shooting film or collecting cameras.  Please don’t feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don’t consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. As we did last year, we're taking the entire month of August off to relax, soak in some sun, and maybe even catch up on shooting all of the cool cameras we've all picked up in the past year so we will not be back with Episode 54 until September.  The guys and I will still be active on the Camerosity Facebook page, so keep in touch with us there, and once we have an idea of when we'll record the next episode, and what possible topics we might discuss, we'll be sure to let you know! This Week's Episode How Do You Define "Unobtanium" / Rarity, Expensive, or Something Else? / Unobtanium LensesCameras Not Known to Be Very Reliable: Kodak Ektra, Hasselblad XPan, Graflex 3ARudi Berden Reviews the Kodak Ektra / Leaving Notes in the Film CompartmentCameras that Have Provenance or Were Owned by Someone FamousMike is Collecting Cameras Owned by Other CollectorsBefore the Internet, Finding Rare Cameras Was Extremely Difficult / Paul Finds a Leica LuxusWalter Dorwin Teague No. 1A Gift CameraCameras that Have Cross Appeal to Different Collectors, The Price Goes Up Dramatically / Mickey Mouse CamerasPaul Handled 80 Boxes with 640 Cameras in Them in One Day / Graflex Combat GraphicKodak Bantam Special in Original Box / Versions with Supermatic and Compur Shutters / Using the Bantam SpecialNippon Kogaku Almost Made a TLR, Two Prototypes Were Known to ExistOther Companies Made Cameras with Nikkor Lenses / Aires Flex TLR / Sawyer's Mark IV / Mamiya SixMinolta Sky Prototype / Konica FR Rangefinder PrototypeAndrew Lloyd MPP Press Camera / Robot Royal 18 Half Frame CameraIt is Very Difficult to Assign Value to Extremely Rare CamerasKonica IIIM with Half-Frame Mask / Unobtanium Accessories / Getting a Pax 35 To Work is Not EasyPatrick's Strange Okaya Lord 5D / Rudi Reviews the Super Kodak Six-20Digital Unobtanium / Epson R-D1 Digital RangefinderIra Cohen's Most Wanted Camera / Mike Helps Ira Buy a One of a Kind Camera / Lausar 127James Thorpe's Unobtanium is a Zecaflex Folding TLR / Welta Superfekta / Zeiss-Ikon Contaflex TLRThe LeCoultre Compass is a Very Unobtanium Camera...Except for IraBob's Nikon Rarities - Follow Along The Rotoloni Report 4: Nikon Rangefinder Prototypes 50mm f/1.8 Nikkor RF Lenses / 35mm f/1.4 RF Lens / Nikkor-O 50mm f/1.0Nikon Screw Mount RFs / Nikon SPX / Nikon SP2 / The Original Nikon Rangefinder Paul and Mike Are Cornering the Market on Lens Hoods and Lens AdaptersIlford Witness / The Melcon II Looks like a Nikon Rangefinder / Wica RangefinderMike's Recent Unobtanium GAS / Military Kardon / Argus KUnobtanium Accessories / Some Unobtanium is More Difficult to Find in Other CountriesCameras That Are Opposite of Unobtamium Argus Brick / Kodak Vest Pocket / Voigtländer Brilliant / Pentax K1000 / Canon AE-1 / Big Royal View Trashcam / Yashica Electro 35 Anthony Shoots a Pentax Takumar 18mm f/11 Pancake Lens / Theo Won't Buy a Contax T2Paul and the Americana Folk Music Gathering in Scottsdale, Arizona Links If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group or Instagram page, or email us at camerosity.podcast@gmail.com. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Americana Folk Music Gathering - https://americanafolkgathering.com/ Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 52: Panorama City
Jul 24 2023
Episode 52: Panorama City
Venturing back into the early days of the Camerosity Podcast, the topic of panoramic cameras came up often on the show, so often that we jokingly referred to ourselves as the widest film photography podcast out there.  As we often do, the gang got distracted in later episodes by various other formats, brands, and special guests, but we thought it was time to revisit our love of all things panoramic and take a ride to Panorama City.  No, not that Panorama City in southern California, but the land of Hasselblad XPans, Fuji G617s, Horizonts, and Noblexes. Joining Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike on our wide journey was a motley crew of panoramic enthusiasts, fans, and just passers by.  Returning guests, all the way from Cape Town, South Africa, Dean Blumberg, Ray Nason, Skip Williams, Richard Driver, Andrew Smith, and Mark Faulkner.  Also, first time callers Patrick Rapps, Rudi Berden, and Paul's ex-Fuji rep, Bob Grzesiak were in attendance. Not content with only talking to people who like to use existing panoramic cameras, also joining us from Silvergrain Classics is Marwan El Mozayen who most people in the film community know as helping to bring back a new version of the Widelux F8 swing lens panoramic camera.  With the support of Hollywood A-lister and renowned Widelux fan, Jeff Bridges and his wife Susan, Marwan shares the back story of how he became involved in resurrecting this panoramic classic.  Marwan isn't just some PR guy helping to spread word about his company's project however, as he has extensive knowledge of other panoramic cameras like the Noblex, Soviet Horizonts and many others. We started the show off with what we thought would be a pretty straightforward question, but the topic of what exactly defines an image or camera as panoramic elicited a pretty interesting discussion, relating panoramic still photography to that of cinematography and that angle of view should be considered in addition to physical size. Differences between wide angle panoramic cameras like the Hasselblad XPan and swing lens cameras like the Panoram-Kodak were discussed, along with cropped panoramic, 3D printed masks, how to use a perspective control lens to shoot panoramic digitals, and even some panoramic developing and scanning hacks that make like easier for the hobbyist.  With Marwan on the show bringing back the Widelux, we did a lighting round asking every participant what other cameras you would like to see someone make an attempt at bringing back (who wants to guess what Theo's was?). [label type="warning"]Silvergrain Classics Discount Code: [/label]During the show, Marwan El Mozayen mentioned that listeners of this show get a discount when ordering a copy of issue #19 of their magazine, which features a ton of information about the upcoming re-release of the Widelux.  To receive this discount, use code: WLX10 when ordering. Like all other episodes of the Camerosity Podcast, we were excited to go down the panoramic rabbit hole but had no idea of how deep it would be.  We ventured into some discussions that I could have never imagined, sharing the love and passion for this subset of  photography with a fascinating and very experienced panel of callers. As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  We would love to hear from more listeners, especially those who are new to shooting film or collecting cameras.  Please don’t feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don’t consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. Our next episode of the Camerosity Podcast will be all about "unobtanium cameras", those cameras you never thought you'd get a chance to see, let alone use.  Maybe it's a rare one of a kind prototype, or a common, but REALLY expensive camera that is beyond your budget.  If you can't find or afford it, come on the show and join us for Episode 53, which will be recorded on Monday, July 24th! This next episode will be our Season 2 finale before the gang goes on vacation.  As we did last year, we're taking the entire month of August off to relax, soak in some sun, and maybe even catch up on shooting all of the cool cameras we've all picked up in the past year.  We will return in September! This Week's Episode What Do We Mean When We Say “Panoramic”? / Widescreen in CinematographyBanquet Cameras in the 1900s / Banquet vs Kodak Cirkut CamerasAspect Ratio as a Starting Point for Panorama / Aspect Ratio vs Field of View as a Way of Defining PanoramaIs the Fuji G617 Panoramic or Wide View?Can a Cropped Image be Panoramic? / Cropping Before and After Taking the Image / The Hasselblad XPan and the Noblex 135 SWhat Makes the Widelux Special? / The Mechanics and Simplicity of a Swing Lens CameraThe Original Kodak Panoram / Kodak 3A Using 122 and 616 film in Old Folders for Wider Aspect RatiosZeiss Super Ikonta 616 and Zeiss Cocarette / 3A GraflexCamera Hack and 3D Printed Adapters for Older Film TypesSilvergrain Classics and the Project to Resurrect the Widelux F8The KMZ Horizont Was the First “Modern” Swing Lens CameraThe Shift from Medium Format to 35mm Swing Lens Cameras Under the Widelux BrandJeff and Susan Bridges and their Love of the WideluxHow to Visualize Shooting with a Widelux / Looking to Cinematography Instead of Still Photography for Panoramic Compositional IdeasDepth of Field in Panorama / Using Contact Lenses to Modify Swing Lens PropertiesThe Best and Worst About the Noblex / Every Released Noblex was Really a “Mostly” Working PrototypeThe Mechanics of Reproducing the Widelux / Swing Lens Camera RepairHorizont 202 The Affordable Swing Lens AlternativePulling Back the Curtain on the Hasselblad XPan’s Reliability IssuesSkip’s Mamiya Pro S 220 Back with a Mercury 3D Printed Film Gate AdapterDean’s Bronica ETRS Kludge / Skip’s Cameradactyl Homunculus 69Turning to 3D Printing for Wide Aspect Ratio AdaptersThe Virtues of the Fuji G617 / The G617 goes to the North PolePaul’s Sony A7 RII with a Nikkor Perspective Control Lens for Digital PanoramasRudi’s Zone Image Pinhole 617 / Patrick’s Sinhao Wide Aspect HackBack to Silvergrain Classic and Details on the Release of the New WideluxLightning round: Pick One Camera you Want to see Brought Back! Minolta XM Motor / Hasselblad XPan / Plaubel 67 / Fuji GW690 / A Miranda That Works / Mamiya 7 / Fuji GX617 / Nikon FM3a / Panon 120 swing-lens / Kodak Medalist / Mamiya 6 Theo’s Panora Wide Pic / Minolta P's and Masked 35mm Point and Shoots / Viscawide 16Lightroom and Photoshop for Panoramic Merging / Flatbed Panoramic Scanning HacksPanoramic Chromes and AGX Imaging for Pro Level E6 Developing and Scanning Links If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group or Instagram page, or email us at camerosity.podcast@gmail.com. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Silvergrain Classics Widelux Revivial - https://silvergrainclassics.com/en/2023/07/the-widelux-revival-project/ Andrew Smith – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClXrAlbnU3gvdRrJ5gAR4mw Mark Faulkner – https://thegashaus.com/ Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 51: Kodak with the Eastman Museum’s Todd Gustavson
Jun 20 2023
Episode 51: Kodak with the Eastman Museum’s Todd Gustavson
Hot off our 50th episode, the Camerosity Podcast goes back to the roots of our name, exploring the rich history of Eastman Kodak, one of the most influential companies in the photographic world.  You can't talk about the history of Kodak without George Eastman and what better way to explore that history than with Todd Gustavson, curator of the George Eastman Museum in Rochester, NY. Todd has been on the show before, but in this the 51th episode, he gets center stage, talking of his role at the Eastman Museum, the origins of George Eastman and how his company got started.  In this episode, you'll learn about George Eastman making dry plates in his mother's kitchen, his motivation for making the original 1888 Kodak, where the name "Kodak" comes from, early 20th century Kodaks, prewar, postwar, and everything in between. Also joining us on the show is the only person in the US I would trust with Kodak Retina repair, Paul Barden.  Back in 2022, long time Retina guru Chris Sherlock hung up his lens spanners and retired from Retina repair.  Not willing to leave a void in quality Retina service, Chris passed on his knowledge to Paul, who lives on the west coast of the United States.  This not only means that there is still a quality option for Retina repair, but for those of you in the US, shipping rates are much cheaper than to New Zealand!  Listen to this episode as Paul talks about his work repairing Retinas, what some of his favorite models are, and what models he does and doesn't repair. In addition to Todd and Paul's massive amount of Kodak knowledge, we go deep into some of the best Kodak cameras ever made, the Kodaks Ektra, Medalist, Monitor, and Regent get discussed here.  We talk about Walter Dorwin Teague, Dr. August Nagel, and Hubert Nerwin.  Mike shares what his all time favorite Retina is to shoot, Anthony discusses his nomination for a medium format Retina, Todd and Mike talk about Joe Mihayli and his contributions to Kodak's legacy. As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  We would love to hear from more listeners, especially those who are new to shooting film or collecting cameras.  Please don’t feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don’t consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. Our next episode of the Camerosity Podcast will be our widest ever, as the gang discusses panorama photography and panoramic cameras.  If you've ever wanted to know what it's like to shoot a Hasselblad XPan, Soviet Horizont, Noblex, or a Widelux camera, this is the episode for you!  Episode 52 will be recorded on Friday, June 30th.  We hope to see you there! This Week's Episode What is the George Eastman Museum and Why Should Anyone Go There?Largest Collection of Nitrate Film / Over 10,000 Cameras / Not Just Kodak Is on Display / One of Louis Daguerre's Original CamerasPaul Once Got Liquored Up in the George Eastman Museum / The Museum Has an Impressive Music RoomGeorge Eastman's Early Years / Eastman Dry Plate Company / Eastman's First Film Wasn't Actually FilmThe 1888 Kodak / Origins of the Kodak Name / Variations of the Original Box KodaksGeorge Eastman Pioneered Dental Care and Donated a Ton of Money to Local SchoolsWhat Caused Kodak to Move Away from Simple Box Cameras to More Complex Folding and Other Camera Designs?Early Color Film Was a Two Color Film / Kodachrome Was a 6 Layer Black and White Film with Color FiltersSuper Kodak Six-20 / How Many Were Made?Kodak's Priority Was to Manufacture World Wide / Kodak Canada and UKKodak Film Was One of the Most Complicated Consumer Products Ever MadeWas It a Coincidence that Kodak Started Producing Much More Advanced Cameras Right After Eastman Died?Kodak 50th Anniversary Brownie Camera Was Given Away to Children for FreeWhy Did Kodak Hire Dr. August Nagel to Make Cameras For Them?The Original 35mm Type 135 Cassette is Slightly Different Than the Ones TodayIntroducing Paul Barden Who Studied Under Chris Sherlock to Repair RetinasPaul Does Not Repair the Retina Reflexes or All the Models Chris RepairedDisabling Dead Meters on the Later Retinas Actually Improves their Usability As There's Less Parts to MoveWhich Retinas are the Most Dependable Shooters After Receiving a CLA?Mike is Working on a Review of the Retina IIIC /  Mike's Favorite Retina to Use is the Retina IBNot Having a Rangefinder is Not Always a Bad Thing / The Retina Accessory Lenses Aren't Very Easy to UseBesides the Retinas, What Other Great Kodak Cameras Were Made After the War?Kodak Signet 35 / Kodak Ektra / The Ektra's Focal Plane Shutter Was Like No OtherAnthony Loves the Kodak Medalist / The Kodak Chevron is Not a Replacement for the MedalistHow Much Influence with Walter Dorwin Teague Have on Kodak?Kodak Was Always a Film First Company / The Profit Margins Making Film Was 10x Higher Than Making CamerasKodak Tourist and Monitor Folding Cameras / Series III Pocket Folding KodakThe Problem with Nearly All Folding Kodaks Are the Bellows, They All Leak LightKodak Retina Bellows Usually Do Hold Up To Time and Rarely Leak LightThe Kodak Duo Six-20 Is Like a Medium Format Retina / Kodak RegentMike Summarizes Other Great Kodaks to Shoot / Kodak Signet 35Kodak Dated Their Lenses and Cameras Using a Code Inspired by the CAMEROSITY Podcast! / UK Lenses Used CUMBERLANDWhat Was Kodak's Motivation With Instamatics and Disc Film? / Kodak Disc Film Was Better Than People Gave it Credit ForHubert Nerwin, Designer of the Zeiss-Ikon Contax II and III Designed the Kodak Instamatic Type 126 CassetteA Kodak Designer That Doesn't Get Talked Much About is Joeseph Mihayli / Mihayli Designed the Super Kodak Six-20, Ektra, Medalist, and Much MoreWhat Are Some Good Kodak Reference Books Out There? / Robert Shanebrook, Brian Coe, and Douglas Collins's BooksKodak's Major Developments in New Apparatus / Kodak Prototypes of the 1930s / Kodak's Crazy System TLRKodak Super 35 and Kodak Technar Prototypes are in the Eastman CollectionAnthony Was Heavily Inspired by The Art of Fixing the ShadowPaul Barden Can Repair Your Kodak Retinas (Excluding the Retina Reflexes)Always RTFM Before Shooting a Retina / Also Always Check the Exposure Counter Links If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group or Instagram page, or email us at camerosity.podcast@gmail.com. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ George Eastman Museum - https://www.eastman.org/ Todd Gustavson - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkDCZrTKQaI Paul Barden's Retina Repair - https://kodakretina.exposure.co/the-story-of-the-kodak-retina-camera and https://www.flickr.com/photos/paulbarden/ Episode 8: Making Kodak Film with Robert Shanebrook Episode 25: Steve Sasson and the First Digital Camera Keppler's Vault 42: George Eastman Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 50: Return of the Classic Lenses Podcast
Jun 8 2023
Episode 50: Return of the Classic Lenses Podcast
In this the 50th episode of the Camerosity Podcast, the gang and I look back at the past two years of open source film photography nonsense.  A podcast created late one night on a whim has turned into one of the most popular of its kind. This is a screenshot from the recording of the very first Cocaine and Waffles Podcast recorded on May 12, 2021. Coming out of podcast retirement (somewhat) is original host, and former creator of the Classic Lenses Podcast, Johnny Sisson.  Dusting off his headset and microphone, Johnny updates us on what happened to his former co-hosts and reflects on what his favorite episodes were.  One of which involves Mr. Bob Rotoloni who conveniently joins us on this episode along with returning guests Rob Jamieson and podcast host himself, Andre Domingues. On a show featuring both Bob and Johnny, we are treated to a great deal more stories about Nikon and Polaroid, along with discussion about a strange product that brought both brands together.  It wouldn't be a Camerosity Podcast episode without the discussion foraying into other topics such as the Bronica S2 and adapting Bronica lenses, Hasselblads, Diptychs, and Andre's very favorable review of the half frame Kodak H35 which we touched upon in the last episode. In the spirit of an anniversary episode that reflects back on our origins, be sure to stay through the closing music for a look back into the very first moments of this show...Episode 0! As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  We would love to hear from more listeners, especially those who are new to shooting film or collecting cameras.  Please don’t feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don’t consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. For our next episode, we are inviting back Todd Gustavson from the George Eastman House in Rochester, New York to share with us stories about Eastman Kodak, the company's history, some of the best Kodak models to look out for, more about the museum, and lots more.  If you've only ever thought of Kodak as a film company who also made cameras...well, you'd be right...but they're so much more than that.  Be sure to look out for our next show announcement.  Episode 51 will be recorded on Monday, June 12th.  We hope to see you there! This Week's Episode Johnny Reminisces About His Favorite Classic Lenses Podcast EpisodesWhat Happened to the CLP? / Perry Ge Has Gone Radio SilentMike's Favorite Camerosity Episodes / Instagram is Our Visual Aide / We Will Never Release the Zoom VideoPaul's First Impressions of the Podcast When He First Came On / The Four Hosts Talk Every DayHow Bob Rotoloni Got Started Collecting Nikon /  Bob's First Two Books and First Trip to Japan in 1987Japanese Collectors are Reluctant of Western Collectors / Differences Between German and Japanese CompaniesThree Historians for Nikon, Canon, and Leica Were All Americans (Robert, Peter Dechert, and Jim Lager)Bob Had to Pay Japanese Students to Translate Old Japanese Articles to Learn More About NikonJoe Ehrenreich Was a Typhoon / Canon Never Had a Joe EhrenreichNikon's 25th Anniversary Nikon F2A / Was There Ever a Nikon Historical Society Commemorative Camera?Nikon Rangefinder Serial Numbers / What is the significance of 609 and 906 Serial Numbers?How Long Have Johnny and Robert Been Going to Central CameraJohnny Has a Back Log of 4 Years Worth of Film to Develop / Johnny Still Shoots Polaroid Pack FilmJohnny's Parents Both Worked at Polaroid so He Grew Up with PolaroidJohnny Tries to Shoot Half Used Packs of Polaroid Film When He Finds it / Polaroid 107 FilmPolaroid Created a Lot of Waste / Dr. Edwin Land Was the Steve Jobs of His EraPolaroid Was a Lifestyle Brand, Similar to Apple TodayWhich Polaroid Films Last Longer Than Others? / Polaroid SnotPolaroid Backs for Nikon SLRs / Asanuma Backs Came with Nikkor-EL Enlarging Lens InsideJohnny's Dad Used to Take Photo Finish Pictures at the Indy 500 / He Also Took Photos at Fermi LabPolaroid Revolutionized Photography in Ways Many People Today Don't Realize / It Was a Game ChangerPolaroid 20x24 / Polaroid Macro 5 Close-Up CameraRob Asks Bob About Nikon's Military Role During World War II / Yamato Battleship Rangefinder and PeriscopesJapan Didn't Have RADAR, They Relied on Nippon Kogaku's Superior Optics to See at NightNippon Kogaku Almost Disappeared After the War / Revere Was the Company's First Customer and Bought Tons of 8mm Cine Lenses "Nikon and the Sponsorship of Japan's Optical Industry by the Imperial Japanese Navy" by Dr. Jeffrey Alexander / "Nikon in America 1947 - 1952" by Wes LoderAndre Shows Off His Nikon Zfc / Nikon is Catering to the Retro Aesthetic and There's Nothing Wrong with That! / There is a Zfc Collector's GroupAdapting Bronica Nikkor Lenses / Bronica S2 / Why Did Nikon Make Lenses for Bronica?Rob's Hasselblad 500CM with 100mm f/3.5 / Andrew Shoots Kodak Ektachrome in Lomography Sprocket RocketTheo is Shooting More 4x5 and His Super Ikonta 6x9 / Anthony's Half-Frame GAS / Olympus Pen D2Anthony Still Loves His Fuji G617 / Mike Loves Photographing His Fingertips Using Panoramic CamerasRob is a Huge Fan of Diptychs when Shooting Half FrameAndre Heaps Praise on the Kodak H35 Half Frame Camera / Johnny's Tips For Shooting 72 Frames in a Half Frame CameraPaul is Knee Deep in Hasselblads Lately / Mike is Shooting a Certo Dollina III and a Fujica ST801Johnny Seeks Opinions on the Graflex XL Superwide / The Lens Mount Is BrittleNext Episode We Talk About Kodak with Todd Gustavson from the George Eastman HouseCocaine and Waffles: Episode 0 Links If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group or Instagram page, or email us at camerosity.podcast@gmail.com. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Camerosity Twitter - https://twitter.com/CamerosityPod Nikon and the Sponsorship of Japan's Optical Industry - https://mikeeckman.com/2019/01/nikon-and-the-sponsorship-of-japans-optical-industry-by-the-imperial-japanese-navy-1917-1945/ Classic Lenses Podcast Episode 51 - http://www.classiclensespodcast.com/e/51-the-mike-bob-show/ Johnny Sisson - https://www.flickr.com/photos/sissonphotography/ and https://centralcamera.com/ Andre Domingues - https://www.instagram.com/andre.on.film and https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/3mf4p-5fc4e/Negative-Positives-Film-Photography-Podcast Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/ Camerosity can also be heard on the following services: YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@camerositypodcast Google - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZGJlYW4uY29tL2NhbWVyb3NpdHkvZmVlZC54bWw Apple - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/camerosity/id1583252688 Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9d316c9e-5461-4fa5-9e04-24fd27fffc3f/camerosity Podchaser - https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/camerosity-1985806
Episode 49: The 35mm Half-Frame Gold Rush
May 20 2023
Episode 49: The 35mm Half-Frame Gold Rush
In the history of the 20th century photo industry, there have been countless cameras made by countless companies from countless countries.  Of all those cameras, one subset of film photography seems to appeal to a larger number than most, the 35mm half-frame camera.  Originally the only size for still photography on 35mm film, single frame fell out of favor after World War II, but saw a huge resurgence in the 1960s with half-frame models being released by nearly every company who made cameras. In this, the 49th episode of the Camerosity Podcast, Anthony, Theo, Paul, and Mike welcome first time and returning callers, Ray Nason, Brian Howard, Phil C., Keir Frei, Maxwell Whitaker, Richard Diver, Roger Coats, and Sean Mahan to share with us their favorite half-frame models. Mike can't help himself and gives a brief (for him) history of half-frame and why it was originally called 'single frame', we ponder what exactly qualifies as half-frame, should 4.5cm x 6cm medium format or 24mm x 24mm square format cameras count? A huge amount of time is spent on the Olympus Pen series and a huge number of 35mm half-frame models by Ricoh, Konica, Yashica, Ansco, Minolta, Pentacon, Canon, Taron, Petri, and others. As is the case with many episodes, we get off topic a bit and venture into square frame 35mm with the likes of the Berning Robot, Zeiss-Ikon Tenax, and Bolta Photavit cameras.  Of course we come back, only to get off topic again talking about Rapid and Karat film cassettes.  We start on a slippery slope of what Gen Z looks for in photography today and briefly touch upon why anyone would want to shoot the new Kodak H35 and similar cameras. As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  We would love to hear from more listeners, especially those who are new to shooting film or collecting cameras.  Please don't feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don't consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you'd like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. It is hard to believe, but the next episode of the Camerosity Podcast will be our 50th!  Way back in 2021, there was this crazy idea to create a Podcast in the style of an AM/FM Radio Talk Show in which listeners could call in during a live recording and ask questions or talk about whatever they wanted.  The first two episodes of this show were done with little more than an hour's notice and between those two episodes, spawned 47 more episodes, eventually making us not only the number one open source film photography podcast, but one of the fastest growing podcasts of any format. We are trying to put something special together for our 50th episode, but haven't yet settled on the details, or even when we will record yet.  I can tell you it will definitely be in early June, but when I know, you'll know.  Hope to see you then! This Week's Episode Anthony reminisces about cheap AGAT 18s / A brief history lesson on the origins of half-frame all the way back to Thomas EdisonAnthony takes us back even further to the Lumière brothers and the CinématographeOlympus 18 / Pen revived the half-frame market in Japan in the 1960s / Half-frame is technically Single FrameMedium format cameras, like 6x9 vs 6.45 are not considered half-frameThe Univex Mercury camera has a rotary shutter and very sharp lenses / Olympus Pen F also has a rotary shutterCynthia A. Repinski wrote a good book, The Univex Story / Mercury IITheo brings in the Ansco Memo, which uses cartridges you can make yourselfMaxwell shoots his AGAT 18K a lot with enlarged prints / Canon Demi / AGFA MemoBerning Robot and Zeiss-Ikon Tenax II are square format, are they considered half-frame?Theo considers is 35mm full frame is half-frame compared to XPan format / Bolta PhotavitHalf-frame was hated by photo finishers and tended to have a whole year pictures on one roll / Ilford created a double length filmTheo shows the AGFA Optima Parat / Mike has the AGFA Parat IUnderstanding all the Olympus Pen models / Olympus Pen F / Pen FT / Pen FVDouble wind on a half-frame camera is strange / The Pen FT has a bespoke metering number system / EV Couplings are terribleThe Olympus Pen EE and EE-S /  Pen D series with faster f/1.9 and 1.7 lensesOlympus Pen-W is well sought out, Olympus Pen-S is a great small mechanical half-frameRicoh Auto-Half / Ricoh Drive / Italian Ducati / Konica IIIMOther Half Frame Cameras by Nikon, Pentax, and PolaroidThe Pentacon Penti is a fashion accessory cameraKodak Single Use camera can give you a Rapid Cassette replacementWhy was half-frame so popular in Japan? / Photography for Everyone is a good book on the rise of photography popularity in JapanHow Japan became a powerhouse in photography industryThe Yashica Samurai / Yashica Rapide / Yashica Sequelle / Taron Chic / Canon Dial 35 /  Ricoh CaddySean’s AGAT 18 with a Nikkor 8mm lens attachedAdapted lenses for the Pen F / Mike Loves the BeLOMO Chaika 3Keir does not have a half-frame, but may soon! / The Fed Mikron is a copy of the Konica EYEMamiya made a half frame with the MyrapidHalf-Frame cameras which have two different taking lenses / Canon Multi-Tele / Fuji TW-3 / Konica RecorderThe Lomo LC-A Wide can switch between formatsThe Kodak H35 and it’s clone / Why do Gen Z like half-frame?Can you modify a camera to be half-frame?Original Olympus Pen made by third party and was very popularThe podcast descended in chaos with a debate on what half-frame means Links If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group or Instagram page, or email us at camerosity.podcast@gmail.com. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Camerosity Twitter - https://twitter.com/CamerosityPod Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 48: No One Wants to Talk About Konica
May 6 2023
Episode 48: No One Wants to Talk About Konica
In this, the 48th episode of the world's most popular podcast, Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike shift their attention to one of the oldest camera makers in the world and one that had produced some of the most innovative, interesting, and high quality cameras ever made...except no one wanted to talk about them! Okay, that's not exactly accurate as three people did show up.  Returning callers Raymond Nason, Mark Faulkner, and Brian Howard answered the call and came to chat with us about their favorite Konica cameras. Kicking off the discussion was Mike who gave a short history of Japan's oldest camera maker with early models such as the Cherry Hand Camera and the Rokuoh-Sha Pearlette.  We quickly moved onto the sexy Pearl folding cameras and the early Konica 35mm rangefinders.  Ray brought with the very rare Konica F, the company's first attempt at a 35mm SLR, and then we bounced around between the Koni-Omega Rapid models, the Auto-Reflex series, we spent some time chatting about the Konica Eye half-frame camera, and eventually some of the company's more memorable point and shoots. In addition to 96 minutes worth of Konica love, Theo, Mike, and Brian learned all about the American craze for elaborate senior photos, Mike explained the difference between automatic parallax and automatic field correction, Paul shares with us his least favorite 1990s premium camera, Mike complained (again) about the Konica AiBorg, his least favorite camera ever made, we explore a huge range of strange cameras designed by F.A. Porsche, and Ray gives an update on the 4th and final Yarovsky camera auction, which we discussed previously in Episode 44. As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  We would love to hear from more listeners, especially those who are new to shooting film or collecting cameras.  Please don't feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don't consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you'd like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. For our next episode, we've decided to go half...half-frame that is.  If you ever thought that 24mm x 36mm images are too large, and found that 18mm x 24mm was the ideal size for your negatives, Episode 49 is the one for you!  Join us as we will no doubt cover many wonderful half-frame shooters like the Olympus Pen F, Canon Dial 35, the Yashica Samurai, and the Konica Auto-Reflex....wait, we talked about that already!  Be sure to look out for our next show announcement.  Episode 49 will be recorded on Monday, May 15th.  We hope to see you there! This Week's Episode Paul is Headed to Another Auction and Isn't Going to Buy Anything...SUUUURRREEE!!!!A Short Early History of Konica / Rokuoh-Sha Pearlette / Contessa-Nettel Picolette / Zeiss-Ikon CocaretteKonica Got Into 35mm With a Bunch of Scale Focus and Rangefinder Models / Konica IKonishiroku Snappy is a 17.5 mm "Hit Style" Camera / Konica Konilette Shoots Non-Perforated 35mm FilmAnthony Tells A Story About Karl Havens Dropping His Konishiroku Pearl II / Theo Loves the Pearl IIMark Shares his 1938 Semi Pearl, the Predecessor to the Pearl / Semi is Japanese for 4.5x6Konishiroku Pearl IV (SEXY ALERT!)Konica II and Konica III / Variants of the Konica III, the IIIA, and IIIM / Konica's First Half-Frame 35mm CameraKonica's First SLR was the Konica F from 1960 / Wards am551 (Konica Auto S2) / Konica FSAuto Parallax and Auto Field Correction in a RangefinderKoni-Omega Rapid Cameras / The Konica F Has a Moving Film Pressure PlateThe Koni-Omegas Were Horrible for Frame Spacing / The Koni-Omega TLRs Were Even StrangerWhat the Heck is Senior Photography? / Studios That Specialize in Nothing But Senior PhotographyAnthony's Favorite Konica is the Auto-Reflex / Shooting Full and Half Frame On the Same Roll is Super Cool / Dedicated Half Frame Lenses for the Auto-ReflexThe Konica Eye is a Nice Half-Frame Camera with an Interesting LogoKonica Autoreflex T-Series Have TTL Metering and Shutter Priority AE / Autoreflex T3 Was the Last Good BodyKonica's First SLR Lens Mount was the F-Mount, the Konica AR-mount came out in 1966 / Konica FT-1 Wasn't Very GoodKonica C35 AF Was the First Point and Shoot with AF / Paul Had One of the First Konica Hexar AF Cameras in the USWhen Konica and Minolta Merged, Who Bought Who? / The Merger Was the Only Reason Both Companies SurvivedMike's Number One Least Favorite Camera He's Ever Shot is the Konica AiBorgSamsung ECX-1 / Rollei QZ35W and T /  Olympus O-Product / Minolta Prod 20s / Olympus ÉcruPaul's Least Favorite Premium 90s Camera Was the Nikon 35TiKonica Hexanon Lenses Are Great / Konica 40mm f/1.8 Lens / Mike Loves 40mm LensesKonica's Colored Point and Shoots / Konica Tomato and Pop Series / Konica RecorderKonica Even Made APS Cameras / Konica Revio CL with Selfie MirrorKonica Genba Kantoku Rugged Cameras / Fuji HD Job Site CamerasRay Bought Cameras from the 4th Yarovsky Auction We Talked About in Episode 44 / More of the Same Links If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group or Instagram page, or email us at camerosity.podcast@gmail.com. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Camerosity Twitter - https://twitter.com/CamerosityPod Theo's Review of the Pearl II - https://photothinking.com/2022-02-23-konica-pearl-ii-the-queen-of-gems/ Mark Faulkner - https://thegashaus.com/ Mike Eckman - https://mikeeckman.com/ Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
Episode 47: The Camera Strap Episode
Apr 26 2023
Episode 47: The Camera Strap Episode
Of all the accessories available for cameras, perhaps camera straps are the thing that people have the strongest feelings about.  A camera strap is something that most cameras come with, whether it's one with the company's logo on it, or a leather one attached to an ever ready case, straps are almost as synonymous with photography as cameras are. Yet, I don't think in the history of photography podcasts, anyone dared devote an episode one...that is until now.  If there was any doubt that this is the nerdiest film photography podcast ever, wait until you hear our camera strap episode! To be fair, we don't spend the entire time talking about straps, we also discuss the cameras that have them attached.  To have a camera with a strap already attached suggests it is ready at a moment's notice to go out and shoot.  And if you have a camera at the ready, it must be one you like quite a bit, so for a good portion of this episode, the hosts talk about our favorite cameras which always have a strap attached, ready to go. Joining Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike are returning callers Alex Dietrich, Bill Smith, Bob St. Cyr, Mark Faulkner, Miles Libak, and Patrick Casey and first time caller, all the way from Ireland, Brian Mac Domhnaill. Along with our favorite cameras and favorite straps, we talk about cheap vs expensive lens adapters, Mike brings up a new camera he's testing with a 15mm f/8 lens, Alex Dietrich shares his black painted Nicca III L and much, much more! As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  We would love to hear from more listeners, especially those who are new to shooting film or collecting cameras.  Please don't feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don't consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you'd like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. For our next episode, we are devoting an entire episode to Konica, makers of such fine cameras as the half frame/full frame Konica Auto-Reflex, the Koni Rapid Omega, and the thumb film advance Konica III rangefinder.  Be sure to look out for our next show announcement.  Episode 48 will be recorded on Monday, May 1st.  We hope to see you there! This Week's Episode Paul has two picks for cameras he always has at the ready / Fuji GS645 and Plaubel 69W ProshiftPatrick's go-to cameras are the Leica M4 and the Minox 35 GLTheo's "zoo" camera is the Nikon L35AF, a reliable point-and-shoot to keep loaded and ready to goBrian surprises everyone with the Chinon Auto 3001 / Chinon BellamiMike sees your Pentax MX and raises you the Pentax LXMiles surprises us with his choice of the Leica MA kitted out with a vintage 1930s Summar lens / L39 to M-mount and M42-K-mount adaptersTheo's more committed choice for a go-to camera / Leica M2 with a Hyperion strapOK, Boomer: Mike and Paul wax poetic about hippie straps / branded straps from the 1980sAlex goes strap shopping in Hong KongThe original Minox chain is also a measuring tool for macro photographyAnthony raves about his Contax ST with the always-attached red Hyperion strapBob goes large format for his choice of a Gibellini GP810Ti, a stunning field camera with a big leather strap for a handleBeware the metal rope straps...Mark's current go-to camera is the Bessa R2A with the Skopar 35mm lensA digression about the Secure Strap with braided stainless steel straps that help prevent cut-and-run theftMike blows up the discussion with the Zeiss Hologon, a 15mm fixed lens viewfinder camera that costs as much as some used carsBob talks about the demands of finding a strap to tame the Mamiya C330, a beast of a TLRAlex almost one-ups Mike's Hologon with a custom paint Nicca III L / Strong Opinions about repainting camerasThe problems with tripod socket wrist strapsThe weirdness and beauty of the Ansco Anscomark M and its removable strap lugsThe Mamiya 7 and the odd cameras that have both strap lugs on one edge / LOMO Voskhod / Agat 18KDigital Episode errata and corrections / Wait, what? Nobody brought up the Nikon FM2 or FM3?! Show Notes If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group or Instagram page, or email us at camerosity.podcast@gmail.com. The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/ Camerosity Twitter - https://twitter.com/CamerosityPod Bill Smith - https://funwithcameras.blogspot.com/ Alex Dietrich - https://www.instagram.com/awdietrich/ Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/ Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/