This is a Zenobia C a compact folding camera made by Daiichi Kōgaku in Tokyo, Japan around 1954. It is a compact folding camera that uses 120 roll film and makes 4.5cm x 6cm exposures. The history of Daiichi Kōgaku and the Zenobia is a bit confusing, but what is…
This is a Zenobia 35 F2, a 35mm rangefinder camera made by Zenobia Optical Co.,LTD of Japan between 1957 and 1958. This version of the camera has an upgraded f/2 lens compared to a second model, simply called the Zenobia 35 that has a 46mm f/2.8 Zenobia O-Hesper lens, but…
This is Toko Tone, a subminiature camera made by Tōyō Kōki Seisakusho in Tokyo, Japan starting in 1948. The Toko Tone is part of a class of cameras often called “Midget” cameras, named after a simpler model called the Misuzu Shōkai originally released in 1937. All “Midget” style cameras use…
This is a Gelto DIII, a collapsible lens viewfinder camera made by Tōa Kōki Seisakusho starting in 1937 and produced until at least 1952. The Gelto DIII shoots 3cm x 4cm images on 127 format roll film. A large number of variations exist for the Gelto, some with leather covered…
This review is part of the Cameras of the Dead series which I have been publishing every year on Halloween and “Halfway to” Halloween, featuring three cameras that I’ve wanted to review that either didn’t work, or was otherwise unable to shoot. I am republishing each of those individual reviews…
Ernie Kaltenbrunner: Why do you eat people? 1/2 Woman Corpse: Not people. Brains. Ernie Kaltenbrunner: Brains only? 1/2 Woman Corpse: Yes. Ernie Kaltenbrunner: Why? 1/2 Woman Corpse: The PAIN! Ernie Kaltenbrunner: What about the pain? 1/2 Woman Corpse: The pain of being DEAD! Ernie Kaltenbrunner: It hurts… to be dead.…
This is an Epson R-D1, a 6.1 Megapixel APS-C digital rangefinder camera designed by the Seiko Epson Corporation and built by Cosina of Japan between the years 2004 and 2007. The Epson R-D1 is historically significant as it was the first ever digital rangefinder camera and features a body with…
This is an Adox 300, a 35mm viewfinder camera produced by Dr. C. Schleussner Fotowerke GmbH in Frankfurt, West Germany starting in 1956. The Adox 300 is a pretty unique camera in that it supported interchangeable magazine film backs, a feature not commonly found on 35mm cameras. In the Adox…
We’re back! The gang and I are fresh off a mandatory 28 day rehab cleanse from all our GAS afflictions! To help us get back on the wagon, we only invited one guest to catch up on what we’ve all been up to since our last episode. From Fort Dodge,…
Screw Mount Leica II and IIIs were the most copied camera design in history, perhaps even the most copied THING in history. While counterfeit versions of Coach handbags, Rolex watches, and Nike shoes have been extremely common for decades, what makes Leica copies unique is that unlike most other luxury…
This is a Minolta Super A, an interchangeable lens 35mm rangefinder made by Chiyoda Kogaku Seiko K.K. starting in 1957. The name Super A suggests it’s part of the Minolta A-series of cameras which first debuted in 1955. Unlike the other A-series cameras, the Super A is much larger and…
This is a Walz Envoy 35, a 35mm rangefinder camera made by Walz Company, LTD of Tokyo Japan from 1958 to around 1961. The Envoy was an up-level model of the earlier Walz 35 and came with an excellent 7-element Kominar lens, built by Nittō Kōgaku of Japan. Walz was…
