As I sit munching the last of the mince pies and watching Bond on the telly (Spectre – not bad if a tad formulistic), it is the traditional time to start to reflect on 2017. A year that has seen both and highs and lows for film shooters.
So where to begin ? Continue reading The annual Canny Camera review of the Year 2017
yup I got another of Ricoh’s YF-20 series. A full review will be coming for this later model that adds a distance focus but this one came with the Data back. Although you can see the standard manual online, I couldn’t find any info about the data back. Having almost wrecked the camera in trying to replace the battery, I click it was quite easy and hopefully this will be of help
Continue reading Battery Replacement in the Ricoh L-20/YF-20 Super Date
I’d never been convinced that Car boots are always work outs great for camera hunters. Sure you’ll find late AF zoom compact for the same price as you’d pay on eBay less postage but IMHO til then true bargains are rare and balanced by someone trying to sell a Knackered Praktica for 50 quid. All that changed when I spotted this grubby number.
How much ? Three Quid – I didn’t stop to haggle.
Continue reading The Car Boot £3 Classic – The Olympus XA Review
Not exactly the pinnacle of Ricoh’s output, this little cheap ‘n’ cheerful fixed focus compact actually was surprisingly good despite my review one being half knackered. But it actually still managed a better run than the Olympus AM-100. Continue reading Fixed focus runner – Ricoh YF-20 Review
I’m a bit of a sucker of Olympus’s overlooked fixed focus shooters from the legendary PEN EE to the Supertrip. But how does this 1987 budget number measure up and does it match its predecessors despite newer bells and whistles ? Continue reading Blacksheep Radio – Olympus AM-100 Review
2017 has become one hell of a good year for film. With various artisan launches and the imminent return of Ektachrome., much of the buzz has focused on not just one but 2 films hailing from Ferrania’s plant. What better way to test them out than shooting on a Vintage Ferrania Camera !! Continue reading Ferrania on Ferrania – Ciao Italia !
Think your mighty compact focuses seamless ?
Well think again ! Even high end models focus in a series of zones called focusing steps, Not that most manufacturers let you know. But in 1991, Olympus were only too keen to tell us with the μ[mju:] (aka mju-1 or Stylus) a camera that changed the face of the AF compact market. Continue reading Step Class – The compact AF camera’s hidden secret (or How the mju won the compact war)
FILM Ferrania relaunch finally bore fruits earlier this year with arrival of P30, a panchromatic B&W film based on the legendary P30 movie film. I was lucky enough to be able as a backer to buy and try out some of the alpha release version. But how well balanced is it ? Continue reading Colour Testing Ferrania P30 Alpha
Want a step up from a zoom compact but don’t want to commit to a SLR ? Well the Olympus IS-1000 might be for you. Costing hundreds at launch this 1990 bridge camera now can be bought for a tenner or less. But how does it compare to other compacts and modern cameras ?
I type this while on my Summer Trip to the Yorkshire Riviera namely Whitby. But wasn’t the Dracula links or the stunning scenery that gave me a shock. It was the fact that I’d loaded up with Lomography Lady Grey only to find out it isn’t DX coded !!! Continue reading Trouble int’ Yorkshire – The problem with Lomography Lady Grey/Fomapan 400
