Episode 83: Spontaneous Contax

The end of the year is almost here, and the guys and I were getting that itch to record something, so on a dreary Boxing Day, we all got together for a spontaneous episode to catch up on what we’ve been doing. We did not post the join link this time, but we managed to coerce our friends Dan Cuny and Ray Nason to join us for some post-Christmas camera discussion.

To help us find things to talk about, we decided to tackle a request made earlier this month in the Camerosity Facebook group, asking for more detail about Contax cameras which we were happy to do. We get into some history, some real world reviews, advice, and other Contax nonsense. Everything from the pre and post war Contax rangefinders, the East German Contax SLRs, and the Yashica/Kyocera Contax cameras were discussed.

In addition to Contax discussion, Mike gives an update on what became of the Detrola 400 he “borrowed” from Roberts Camera, Dan shares his thoughts on his most recent review of the Ansco Memo and we talk about Memo cameras. Anthony shares his photographic adventures he went on traveling to New Zealand, and Paul confesses his love for adapting Contaflex 126 lenses!

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.

We will welcome in the new year with Episode 84 in which we will be inviting Jeff and Gabe from I Dream of Cameras. There is a high chance we will spend some time on Alpa SLRs, but there’s no telling where the discussion will go with what will effectively two podcasts recording at the same time! If you’ve ever wondered what it is like to have “too many cooks in the kitchen”, this is the episode for you! We will record on Monday, January 13th 7pm Central Standard Time and 8pm Eastern Standard Time.

In This Episode

Mike’s Update on the Detrola 400 / Other Premium American Rangefinders / Ektra, Bell & Howell Foton, Clarus, Perfex
Allen Wade is Ray, Paul, and Mike’s Source for Camera Repair
Mr Zhang Modifies Hasselblad Backs / Mike Didn’t Like the Hasselblad SWC
Paul Wishes for a 6×9 Mamiya 7 / Fuji 6x9s / Texas Leicas
Dan Cuny Talks About His Review Process / Ansco Memo and Agfa Memo Cameras
Dan is Curious About the Beier Beira / Voigtländer Prominent
Paul’s Friend Made a 240 Degree Panoramic Mamiya RB67
Tim Floyd is Contax Curious / Camerosity Presents: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Contax Cameras
- Pre-War Contax I
- Pre-War Contax II and III
- Post-War Contax IIa and IIIa
- East German Contax SLRs
- Yashica / Kyocera Contax SLRs and Other Cameras
Comparing Shooting a Contax and Nikon Rangefinder / Dan Has Never Liked Shooting Contax Rangefinders
What are the Differences Between a Contax / Pentacon / Hexacon SLRs
Preset Lenses / Contarex Bullseye and non-Bullseye
Contaflex 126 / Instamatic Cameras
How Did Yashica Come to Use the Contax Name?
Kyocera Made Great Knives and Golf Clubs / Contax T and G Series Cameras
Theo is Shooting a Pentacon Six, KMZ Horizont, and Canon 7
Gallus Derlux and Foth Derby / Theo Has a Jolly Look from Antony Hands
Mike Picks Up a Taron Supra V18 / Ray Picks Up an Exakta with an Ansco TLR Lens on It
Anthony Just Got Back from New Zealand / Voigtländer Bessa and Perkeo II / Anthony Gets a Clip-On Meter
Zeiss-Ikon Ikoflex TLRs / What’s Next

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.

The Camerosity Podcast is now on BlueSky @camerosity.bsky.social. This modern, and clean replacement for Twitter is a nice alternative to cluttered social networks out there. Follow us there for show announcements and other content.

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 – https://thisoldcamera.net/

Anthony Rue – https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/

Camerosity can also be heard on the following services:

YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@camerositypodcast

Google – https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZGJlYW4uY29tL2NhbWVyb3NpdHkvZmVlZC54bWw

Apple Podcasts – 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

Listen Notes – https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/camerosity-mike-eckman-3BShwKyvbO0/