Zeiss-Ikon Contessa 35
Zeiss-Ikon Contessa 35

…the Contessa 35 was one of the last cameras Zeiss-Ikon produced that was created by Hubert Nerwin.  It was the Zeiss-Ikon equivalent to the Kodak Retina, supporting nearly the same features, in an equally well made and compact folding body with an excellent lens and shutter.

Voigtländer Vitessa L
Voigtländer Vitessa L

…the Vitessa was an innovative medium priced rangefinder with a folding bellows design with barn doors to conceal the lens and shutter when not in use.  Consistent with Voigtländer’s habit of not following established norms, the camera had a number of unique features such as a rear thumb wheel focus and a large metal plunger that both advanced the film and set the shutter before each exposure…

Voigtländer Superb
Voigtländer Superb

…first released in 1933, the Voigtländer Superb was the company’s entry into the medium format Twin Lens Reflex market.  Designed to compete with Franke & Heidecke’s successful Rolleiflex line, the Superb offered a number of unique innovations such as automatic parallax correction, horizontal film transport, and a bottom mounted focus control arm.

Anscomark M
Anscomark M

…many cameras made over the last century cross over between multiple companies.  The Anscomark M was an interchangeable lens 35mm rangefinder sold and marketed by the American company ANSCO, but was built by the Japanese company Riken, in exchange for photocopier technology owned by ANSCO’s German parent company, GAF.  The resulting camera turned out to be one of the most distinctive looking cameras ever!

Berning Robot
Berning Robot

…the Robot series of cameras by the Robot Berning Company remain one of the most highly sought after and unique cameras ever made.  Offering an extremely compact, but high quality body that shoots 24mm x 24mm square photos on regular 35mm film, all Robots featured a motorized clockwork film advance, a rotary shutter, interchangeable lens mount, and a series of high quality lenses, making them very interesting cameras to both collect and shoot.

Kodak Ektra
Kodak Ektra

…the Kodak Ektra was Kodak’s answer to a disruption of professional 35mm cameras from Germany at the start of WWII.  It was a top of the line camera with innovative features like an adjustable varifocal viewfinder, interchangeable film backs, and a lens selection made up of the best that the Eastman Kodak Corporation could offer.  It sold for $300 back in 1941 and remains a popular collector’s item today.

Miranda Sensorex
Miranda Sensorex

…at one point in time, the Miranda Sensorex was seen as a viable low cost option to pro cameras like the Nikon F and Topcon RE Super.  Although it shared a similar feature set, and an available selection of excellent lenses, quality control proved to be the company’s undoing.  The Sensorex was in production for nearly 6 years and was one of the company’s biggest successes prior to their failure.

Royer Teleroy
Royer Teleroy

…the Royer Teleroy was a folding rangefinder camera that shot either 6×9 or 6×4.5 images on 120 roll film.  It was made in France around 1950 and had a solid aluminum body and a high quality shutter and SOM Berthiort lens…

Nikon Rangefinders
Nikon Rangefinders

…Nikon was originally formed in 1917 as Nippon Kogaku K.K. or Japanese Optical Company in English.  Nikon’s earliest years were devoted almost exclusively to developing products for the Japanese military.  Their first consumer goods were not released until after WWII, and the company did not officially drop the Nippon Kogaku name until 1988.

Universal Mercury II
Universal Mercury II

…the Universal Mercury series was a very innovative and distinct line of cameras produced by the Universal Camera Corp of New York between 1938 and the early 1950s.  It featured a rotary shutter that had a top speed of 1/1000.  It had an interchangeable lens mount and a hot shoe making for a compelling low cost option for the professional photographer on a budget…

Bell & Howell Foton
Bell & Howell Foton

…the Bell & Howell Foton was the company’s first attempt at a still camera, and was aimed at the professional photographer.  It’s signature feature was a mechanical wind up film advance that could fire the shutter as fast as 4 exposures per second.  It came with a top of the line Cooke Amotal 50mm f/2 lens made by Taylor, Taylor, & Hobson of England and when it first went on sale in 1948, it had a retail price of $700 making it one of the most expensive cameras ever made.

Olympus XA2
Olympus XA2

…Designed by famed Olympus designer Maitani Yoshihisa the Olympus XA2 is a camera whose reputation precedes itself.  This is a very well known and very highly regarded camera for a reason.  Perhaps the best characteristic of the camera is that it offers some of the simplicity of a 1980s point and shoot camera, in a very small package, with an excellent lens and meter, but with the control and speed of a manual focus camera.  The entire XA series are highly sought after by collectors and photographers alike for good reason.

Kodak Retina
Kodak Retina

…the Kodak Retina was developed by a man named Dr. August Nagel after the Eastman Kodak Company purchased Nagel’s own Nagel Camera-Werke company in 1931.  Nagel was one of the most successful German camera designers of the time, previously working for Zeiss-Ikon and Contessa-Nettel.  The Retina was the world’s first camera designed for Kodak’s then new format of 35mm ‘miniature’ film.

AGFA Flexilette
AGFA Flexilette

…the AFGA Flexilette was one of a small number of 35mm Twin Lens Reflex cameras that had a separate viewing lens for the viewfinder and one for taking the picture.  The advantage was an extremely quiet shutter sound and lack of any sort of viewfinder blackout when the shutter was open…

Olympus Pen F
Olympus Pen F

…Olympus re-introduced half frame 35mm cameras with the original Pen in 1959.  This started a huge trend of half frame cameras released by almost every manufacturer in the 1960s.  Despite the competition, Olympus topped them all with their Olympus Pen F SLR.  The smaller size of the exposed image meant the camera could have a sideways mirror and pentaprism inside of the body decreasing the overall size, while still maintaining all of the benefits of an SLR.

Asahiflex IIa
Asahiflex IIa

…the Asahiflex was the first Japanese SLR and was the predecessor to the Pentax.  Featuring a fixed waist level viewfinder and interchangeable M37 lens mount, the Asahiflex was a well built and capable camera that opened the door to later Japanese SLR dominance…

Kodak No. 3A Folding Brownie
Kodak No. 3A Folding Brownie

…the Eastman Kodak Company was one of the most influential photographic companies of all time.  Pioneering the earliest forms of photographic film, they introduced the world to a dizzying array of inexpensive folding and box cameras like this No. 3A Folding Brownie from 1909.  Despite their vast number of cameras, Kodak was always a film first camera, selling new models as a means to get more people to buy film.

Sawyer’s View-Master Personal Stereo Camera
Sawyer’s View-Master Personal Stereo Camera

…the View-Master Personal Stereo Camera was a purpose built camera by Sawyer’s that show 13mm x 17mm stereo pairs, intended to be mounted in circular View-Master reels.  Instead of buying premade reels from the store, you could make your own with this camera…

Welcome

Mike Eckman

Welcome to Mike Eckman dot Com.  This is a site dedicated to collecting and using vintage film and digital cameras.  This site first went live in December 2014 and since then has featured hundreds of camera reviews and articles about cameras of all makes, shapes, and sizes.  I am not loyal to any one particular type of brand, if it has a lens and can make an image, chances are I’ve written about it.

In addition to reviews and articles, there are over 100 posts in the Keppler’s Vault series which feature high resolution scans of articles published in the mid to late 20th century in Modern and Popular Photography magazines, I have every single issue of the Zeiss-Historica newsletter, plus this is the home to the Camerosity Podcast.

This site is a passion project of mine and nearly 100% of the content here was written by me, and no one else.  I have no staff, editors, or people doing the work for me.  I welcome feedback of any kind, even when I get something wrong.  If you’d like to get in touch, you can use the Contact Me form at the top of the page, or use the Comments section on every post.  

I hope you enjoy the site, and if something here has interested you, or helped you in your journey, I accept donations through PayPal and Zelle.

Newest Posts

Everything from the latest vintage camera review, a Keppler's Vault blast from the past, or some other camera related article, it's all here in reverse chronological order.
Argus Autronic II (1962)
This is an Argus Autronic II, a 35mm rangefinder camera made by Argus in Ann Arbor, Michigan starting in March 1962.  The Autronic II was a slight upgrade to the...
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Episode 94: Camera Shopping at Roberts Camera and Blue Moon
We are back with Episode 94 of the Camerosity Podcast.  For this episode, we decided to revisit a topic we covered all the way back in Episode 30, which is...
Read More "Episode 94: Camera Shopping at Roberts Camera and Blue Moon"
Tomioka Lausar (1937)
This is a Tomioka Lausar, an interchangeable lens roll film camera made by Tomioka Kōgaku Kenkyūjo in Tokyo, Japan in 1937.  The Lausar has a focal plane shutter and a...
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Episode 93: John Wade, Wrayflex and Clockwork Cameras
We're back with Episode 93 of the Camerosity Podcast!  This time, we've altered our recording time to better suit those of our listeners across the pond who are normally sleeping...
Read More "Episode 93: John Wade, Wrayflex and Clockwork Cameras"
KMZ Zenit-6 (1964)
This is a Zenit-6, a 35mm SLR camera made by Krasnogorski Mekhanicheskii Zavod (KMZ) in the former Soviet Union between the years of 1964 and 1968.  The Zenit-6 was part...
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Minolta V3 (1960)
This is a Minolta V3, a 35mm rangefinder camera made by Chiyoda Kogaku Seiko K.K. starting in September 1960.  The Minolta V3 was the follow up to the earlier Minolta...
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Episode 92: Apparecchi Fotografici Italiani
In Episode 92 of the Camerosity Podcast, we needed to promote every caller to "host status" to tackle the topic of the Italian camera industry.  While a huge number of...
Read More "Episode 92: Apparecchi Fotografici Italiani"
PCA Prismat V-90 (1961)
This is a PCA Prismat V-90, a 35mm SLR made by Mamiya Camera Co. Ltd. for the Photronic Corporation of America of Takoma Park, MD starting in 1961.  The PCA...
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Featured Guides

These how-to guides were written in an attempt to help the novice collector start a collection, use it, and what to do when things go wrong.
Camera Repair Worldwide Directory
Every single year, every one of our beloved film cameras gets another year older.  Cameras that were 50 years old 10 years ago are now 60 years old, and that...
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How to Spot a Fake Leica
There's a saying that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and when it comes to prestige products like handbags, watches, and cameras, there are whole industries of companies looking...
Read More "How to Spot a Fake Leica"
Reloading Instamatic Film (The Better Way)
The Eastman Kodak Company's daylight loading 35mm film cassette made it's debut in 1934.  With the release of the first Retina camera, Kodak's type 135 film format took the world...
Read More "Reloading Instamatic Film (The Better Way)"
What Is My Camera Worth?
As a member of the Vintage Camera Collectors group on Facebook, the most common "new member" post is from someone who in one way or another, has acquired an old...
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Articles

This site isn't just all camera reviews. Following is a selection of articles I've written that cover all facets of cameras and camera collecting.
Chi L.D. Meter – An Exposure Meter and Laser Rangefinder
I was contacted by the manufacturer of this meter and was asked if I would be willing to give it a review in exchange for a free sample.  While I...
Read More "Chi L.D. Meter – An Exposure Meter and Laser Rangefinder"
Carl Zeiss Jena Contax
This is a Jena Contax, a 35mm rangefinder camera made by Carl Zeiss Jena, in Saalfeld, Germany under direction of the Soviet government after World War II.  In the time...
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10 Years of Camera Reviews
10 years of camera reviews... I could just end this post here and I'll have said all that I probably need to, but if there's one thing that writing camera...
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A Better Way to Load Your Leica
When Oskar Barnack completed the first Leica prototype in the mid 1920s, his goal was to make a high quality compact camera that could make high quality images using double...
Read More "A Better Way to Load Your Leica"
Five Cameras I’ll Take With Me to the Grave
Earlier this year a group of film photography bloggers had the idea where each of us would write an article discussing our five favorite cameras, and sharing them all together...
Read More "Five Cameras I’ll Take With Me to the Grave"
2023 Year in Review
Another year is over, which means another year end wrap up!  The best news this year was that 2023 seemed to be the first year post COVID that felt like...
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Ranking Every Japanese Camera Maker’s First 35mm SLR
The 1950s camera industry was known for two major events, the first was the rise of Japan's dominance in the market.  What was just a curiosity in the years before,...
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2022 Year in Review
A couple of weeks ago, this site celebrated it's 8th anniversary since I started writing camera reviews, and like the passage of the entire year, I can't believe how fast...
Read More "2022 Year in Review"