Reloading in the Disposable World – The New Yashica MF-1 Review

So I’ve been playing around with the new Yashica MF-1 “art” camera for a few days and have started to get a grasp of this plastic 35mm fixed everything camera. But is it indeed a tweaked single use camera as many speculate and more importantly is it any good ?

Continue reading Reloading in the Disposable World – The New Yashica MF-1 Review

A Very British Mistake – The Kodak Brownie Cresta 3 Review

Weirdly this camera sums up a lot of the UK’s current political & economic situation. A rehashed plastic version of a 1950’s British number pushed out by a global corporation that misses the zeitgeist and lags behind it’s European counterparts. But hey it’s British made and we might be able to sell it to the Yanks.,,,

Continue reading A Very British Mistake – The Kodak Brownie Cresta 3 Review

August KickStarter Madness – First Thoughts on RETO3D And More

This week has been like Christmas for a film shooter & Kickstarter addict like myself. Just before the weekend the Yashica MF-1 arrived and on Monday the postie left 2 new packages for me. First up the RETO3D 3D film cameras, a 21st Century take on the Nimslo. The second box was a slightly late Ars Imago Lab Box.

Continue reading August KickStarter Madness – First Thoughts on RETO3D And More

Houston We Have a Problem – The New Yashica MF-1 – First Thoughts

How bad could it be ? I mean the Y35 wasn’t that awful….

When the new start up version of Yashica launched the Y35 Digi-film camera, the knives were rapidly out before it even launched and many thought it would be sayonara once more.

But they came back promising both film and film cameras and this morning a package arrived from Hong Kong containing both. I’m rapidly wishing they hadn’t come back on the basis of the camera…

Continue reading Houston We Have a Problem – The New Yashica MF-1 – First Thoughts

Resurrection Blues- The Yashica MF-2 Super Review

As I sit and type this the first Film Camera to bear the Yashica name in over a decade is winging its way to me from Hong Kong. Whether the New MF-1 is any good or more likely not remains to be seen. But the new Yashica are also hinting at 2 new cameras. In the long term a 35mm version of the Yashica-44 TLR but perhaps more imminent is the MF-2. Turns out the MF-2 is based on the 1980’s MF-2 Super a fixed focus flash cam.

So you know, I decided to test the original.

Continue reading Resurrection Blues- The Yashica MF-2 Super Review

Americana Compacted -Le Mini By Le Clic Review

In 1987 Concord Camera Corp launched another 110 camera on an unsuspecting American Public under the Le Clic brand. Concord were not unfamiliar with 110 cameras having launched a fair number of low end run of the mill minox style numbers with and without flash under their various brands.

But Le Mini is something very different even more Lo-Fi and with Cult Appeal.

Continue reading Americana Compacted -Le Mini By Le Clic Review

A Petite Love Affair – Konica EYE Review

Although Olympus dominated the Half Frame market, they didn’t have a free run. Many a Japanese rival producing their take on the format. But only one is arguably one of the most beautiful cameras ever made. And that camera was the only half frame compact of that era to be copied by the soviets

But what made the Soviets copy her ? And why has it partially usurped my PEN EE-2 from being my favourite half frame ?

Continue reading A Petite Love Affair – Konica EYE Review

Dirty Diana Goes To the Fair

Recently I got my grubby hands on the American Windsor and took her to the our local music Festival. Before you get worried that I’ve a Summer run in the Tower coming up, I am of course talking about a Diana Clone called the Windsor Camera.

I loaded it up with the new Kosmo Foto Mono 120. But all did not go to plan thanks to the camera,

Continue reading Dirty Diana Goes To the Fair

The Fun From Bao’an – Le Clic FS30 Review

This Year’s Poundland Challenge has flung up some excellent high end cameras for erm… a pound (or less). This is not one of them. Any Poundland Challenge always features a few from the lower end of the market. But that does that necessarily mean awful ?

Today’s plastic lo-fi comes courtesy of Concord Camera Corp. Also known as the Vivitar IC 100. It has attracted the tag of being the Poor Guy’s LC-A but is that deserved ?

Continue reading The Fun From Bao’an – Le Clic FS30 Review

You Get What You Pay for – Minolta F25 review

After a run of not so cheap cameras, I thought I’d better get back to basics with another Poundland challenge 2019 camera. In brief that challenge set out to find what you could buy for a quid and although we’ve had several high end cameras including the MZ-5 SLR, I’d rightly assumed that we’d be faced with several fixed focus plastic numbers.

But this no frill plastic flash camera doesn’t hail from Haking, Hanimex or Concord. This one’s a Minolta and it’s not good.

Continue reading You Get What You Pay for – Minolta F25 review

Shooting Film on the cheap on the Border in Credit Crunch Britain