Why do I like this 80’s ugly, plasticky fixed focus oddity from Pentax. Probably because it delivers the best shots of any fixed focus camera I own.
Continue reading Pentax Pino 35 Review : Honey I fixed focused the Kids
These 60’s viewfinder point and shoot cameras drew influences from the German models of the day. But how do they fare as a retro shooter today and compared to their 70’s successors the Halina 2000 & 3000 ?
Continue reading Halina Paulette Series Review : Vorsprung Hong Kong Technique
Minolta’s Hi-matic series of compact cameras span more than 20 years of production and were usually rangefinders such as the well-regarded Hi-matic 7sII. However the series also gave rise to a few Point & Shoot (P&S) most notably the Hi-matic G launched in 1974.
Continue reading Minolta Hi-matic G Review : Polished but Vanilla P&S
The Minister III is one in a long line of great Rangefinders from Yashica. This beauty in chrome popped up at the start of the 60’s and is good choice for an uncoupled rangefinder of the era
Continue reading Yashica Minister III Review : Back to the 60’s in Style
The Diana Mini has been one of Lomography Society International (LSI) best-selling products and is a gorgeous re-imaging of their simple 120 film Diana F+ in mini form taking 35mm film. But like its big brother, it is a camera of 2 halves good and bad. But do those halves balance out in this toy class manual shooter ?
Continue reading Diana Mini Review : Ultra compact abet challenging fun
The 1970’s were the heyday of the fixed lens compact rangefinder. Truth be told there can be little to pick from these beauties with the Konica C35 series leading the pack. The Ricoh 500RF and its posher brother the 500G manage to stand out from the crowd as they offer some of the best user control of exposure in the class. Continue reading Ricoh 500RF Review : The Control Freak’s Compact Rangefinder
The Agfa Isoly is perhaps one of the most influencial basic 120 point and shooters there has ever been, setting the scene for the Diana cameras and their more recent re-birth with LSI’s Diana F+. But how does this classic stack up ? Continue reading Agfa Isoly I Review : The camera that launched a 1000 clones
The 1970s were the heyday of consumer compact rangefinder. Many models such as the Konica C35 or the Olympus 35 RC are rightly hailed as classics but that means other models are often overlooked that were rivals at the time. The good news is that you can get crackers like the 35EE for a song.
Continue reading Chinon 35EE Review : Cheap as Chips Rangefinder Fun
Lomography’s plastic classic left me strangely disappointed when it arrived. I’d been impressed by its little brother, the Diana Mini, but this seemed a shoddier affair and worryingly idiosyncratic. However a few rolls later and I’m warming to it. Continue reading Diana F+ Review : Or How I Learned to love the Plastic bomb
Sadly last week my Boots Pacemaker 35 died. This basic camera is actually a re branded Franka 125 made by the long gone West Germany company in the 1960’s. But was it retro fun or rightly dated ?
Continue reading A fond farewell ? : Boots Pacemaker 35 / Franka 125 Review