This is the Beauty Canter 2.8. It is a 35mm rangefinder camera manufactured in 1957 by Taiyodo Koki. Interestingly the Canter has a tinted viewfinder lens and a diamond-shaped rangefinder patch. Make Taiyodo Koki Model Beauty Canter Year c 1957 Format 35mm Shutter Copal-MXV Speed B,1,2,5,10,25,50,100,250,500 Lens FC Canter f2.8 45mm Focus 2.7ft – ∞ Aperture f2.8…
Pentax ME Super
I consider the Olympus OM-1n as one of my favorite recent acquisitions to shoot, but a friend recommended I try the Pentax ME Super. It has a similar form factor and feel to the Olympus. It also feels lighter in hand, a fact borne out by the specs. The ME Super is roughly two-tenths of a…
Ihagee Exakta Varex IIa
Since starting my collection, I have always liked the look of Ihagee cameras. In fact, I have nine of them, eight working. Oddly I have never shot with one until now. Which one did I pick? The Varex IIa. Despite some quirks, this camera is a joy to use and is perhaps the prettiest in…
Graflex Compact
Though it appears anything but by most standards, this is the Graflex Compact. I acquired this camera, the largest in my collection, the same weekend as I got my smallest (the Riken Steky model II). I can’t find the minimum focussing distance anywhere. If you do, please let me know. Make Graflex Model Compact…
Olympus OM-2n
Like the OM-1n, the Olympus OM-2n is a great camera in a compact package. With a body measuring 136x83x50mm, the OM-2n is smaller than many modern mirrorless cameras. It is very similar to the Om-2 with the addition of having auto exposire to 120 seconds as oppossed to 60 second for the OM-2. While very…
Found Film: Vietnam Edition
My Futura Standard was an eBay acquisition. It had a roll of undeveloped film inside which, with the amazing fillm developing and scanning skills of Adam Paul, were brought back to life. They are from Vietnam sometime between 1955 and 1975. Through some internet sleuthing I have been able to identify some of the pictures….
Found Film: German Edition
Flea markets are wonderful things. Not only are they great havens for cheap camera finds, but all sorts of other camera bric-a-brac. In this case, I bought an unknown (at least to me) piece of E. Leitz Wetzlar equipment. UPDATE: Thanks to members of Vintage Camera Collectors and Vintage Film Shooters, I have been made…
Riken Steky Model II
The Steky is unusual among subminiature cameras due to its full feature set. The camera came with an interchangeable three element fixed focus Stekinar Anastigmat f3.5 25mm lens, fully variable stopped down to f16. Shutter speeds for B, 1/25, 1/50, 1/100. Both telephoto, with viewfinder correction, and wide angle lens were manufactured. This example is…
Ansco Memo Half-frame
Introduced in 1927, the Ansco Memo is a beautifully crafted 35mm half-frame camera that was one of the first America 35mm cameras to sell in any quantity. Despite its boxiness the Memo’s weight feels right in the hand the the action on the shutter release minimizes camera jitter. Make Ansco Model Memo Year c. 1927…
Olympus OM-1n
A lot has been written about the Olympus OM system cameras, particularly the OM-1. This camera arrived in the same box as an OM-2n and is sporting an Olympus F.Zuiko Auto-S f1.8 50mm lens that came originally attached to an OM-10. At the time it was introduced, the Olympus OM-1 set new standards in a…
Kaufmann Posographe Exposure Calculator
The Kaufmann Posographe was not something I was looking for. In fact, I had never heard of it before buying. The opportunity to purchase it came from a contact at a local antiques mall, and I couldn’t pass on it. Designed and manufactured in the early 1920’s, the Posographe uses a collection of seven interconnected…
Robot Junior
One of a long line of clockwork cameras, the Robot Junior is a solid, well-crafted viewfinder camera produced between 1954 and 1960 by Robot Foto und Electronic of Düsseldorf, Germany. The Junior is similar to the Robot IIa, though it lacks the right-angle viewfinder and ability to rewind in the camera. The Junior was offered…
