manila camera style - a conversation about cameras

Honeywell Pentax Spotmatic F

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:56:54 +0800

Just sent in: A Honeywell Pentax Spotmatic F. Honeywell was the US importer of Pentax so they re-labelled everything from Asahi Pentax to Honeywell Pentax.

Its caretaker says:

I was looking for a decent and affordable film slr with metering capabilities which I could use during times when I find it hard to manually meter by myself. While researching on the internet I stumbled the Pentax Spotmatic and the legendary takumar lenses. I quickly fell for it. So I bought one last Christmas and I’ve been very happy with it. It was built like it could last forever.

To date, I now have a meager lens kit:
super-multi-coated takumar 28/3.5
super-multi-coated takumar 50/1.4
Jupiter-9 85/2

…and a sample photo:

We sure hope it does last forever, dude!

Gold not good enough? How about PLATINUM?!? Check out this...

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 14:55:58 +0800

Gold not good enough? How about PLATINUM?!?

Check out this Leica M6 Sultan of Negeri Brunei Darussalam Silver jubilee Leica M6, made in all Platinum-plated finishing on both camera and Summilux lens. Plus grey leather covering. YEAH! The lens has the same Malay engraving as the GLOD edition, which says SAMBUTAN JUBLI PERAK.

PHOTO CREDIT: Mr. Peter Coeln from LEICA Shop®, Austria who also operates a popular Westlicht Auction House.

Another gold one for ya! Here’s the Leica M6 Sultan of...

Sun, 07 Mar 2010 15:17:00 +0800

Another gold one for ya!

Here’s the Leica M6 Sultan of Negeri Brunei Darussalam Silver jubilee GOLD edition!

The top plate has two royal emblems engraved. The first one is the Royal Crest while the other was written in Jawi and arranged in a pattern.

Image courtesy of MATSUMOTO Camera Japan®.

This week we feature “Limited Edition” Leicas that...

Sat, 06 Mar 2010 14:54:00 +0800

This week we feature “Limited Edition” Leicas that we wished were never made! Up first is the Green Bay Packer Limited Edition.

According to this website:

After twenty-nine seasons of not being in the Super bowl, The Green Bay Packers finally made it back to the championship game after the 1996 NFL season and won Super Bowl XXXI on January 26, 1997. Leica jumped on the merchandising bandwagon and released this special edition M6 with 50mm Summicron. With its golden cheese metal and green jersey-like covering, it was to be the greatest Green Bay Packer collectible ever. However, Leica made one poor design decision in this M6. They neglected to included either a Brett Favre #4, or a Reggie White #92 anywhere on the camera which resulted in a severe lack of interest. Sales were poor and most copies were eventually destroyed. A handful still exist, and I found one such in a camera shop in Wausau, Wisconsin a few years back and was able to get this photo of it.

“Most copies were eventually destroyed!”

Thank God! :-)

Makes you wonder what a Tiger Woods limited edition Leica would look like… ;-)

The "I thought the only use for food containers in photography would be limited to those flash diffusers that look like instant noodle bowls" post.

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 19:23:52 +0800

Could this possibly be our first NSFW entry?

Thu, 04 Mar 2010 08:56:00 +0800

Maybe! But it’s definitely a hot one!

A Seagull TLR, sent in!

What caretaker Jameson has to share:

Been a while since my last contribution; have been busy adding to my collection. :) This is my first TLR. I use this to get “Lomo” style photos. I get better control plus multiple exposure too.

I love using this in low light.

And here comes (and now you’ll know why), my favorite part:

I really dig those double exposures (and yes, I do read Playboy for the articles).

Playboy DOES have good articles.

Oh Baby, Baby!

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 18:06:51 +0800

A Nikon F4, sent in!

Boy are we lucky to have this, and I’ve been waiting for one! In terms of SLR design, this one ranks up there for me alongside the Canon T90. This beast is just sexy, and a delight to use.

This body was designed by the famous Giorgetto Giugiaro, the same designer of the Back to the Future DeLorean and 007 Louts Esprit - all stuff I find too cool!

In the words of this F4’s current possessor:

No, this isn’t about F4 the Korean boy band. It’s about the tank of a camera Nikon made in the 80’s. Here’s a great specimen coupled with a great walkabout lens of the same era. Everything works great on this cam and the AF is surprisingly quick. Or perhaps I just had low expectations.

Holding this baby makes me wish Nikon released a DSLR in this body. I prefer its ergonomics over the F5 or current DSLR bodies.

Sadly, this isn’t mine and is on the selling block. I’d love to have to one someday. The idea of being able to use any Nikkor on it (save probably for G lenses) is very appealing.

Sorry, no sample pics as the roll that was in it was so old it was cracking. At least I know there are no light leaks. :p

Two Medium Format Cameras, Sent In!

Mon, 01 Mar 2010 10:47:57 +0800

MCS’ friend, Miguel, who sent us both the Nikon FG and the problematic Yashica, now sends us a couple of MF beauts!

In his words:

Aside from the 35mm films i have, i also bough a Yashica Mat EM and a Mamiya M645 fitted with 2 lenses! The yashica mat was full of problems. I had to find a replacement lens because the lens was full of fungus and it was really foggy even after CLA. it was plain dirty so i had to spend a few more bucks for it to be really useful. For the Mamiya M645, the only problem i had with it is with the lenses. The lenses had fungus so i had to get them cleaned. No shots from these guys yet. but they’re all good now so i cant wait to shoot with them.

Thanks, Miguel! Keep ‘em coming!

8x10 Deardorff, Sent In!

Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:45:52 +0800

A 8x10 Deardorff with a Hermagis Eidoscope 1920 Soft Focus Barrel Lens, sent in!

It’s Hu-yoooooj! Check out the comparative size of the camera and film!

A Nikon FE, with a great story and photos- sent in!

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 18:44:52 +0800

Our friend Migs sent in this Nikon FE, with a great story:

Sending you a photo of my FE and some samples shots. The FE was my dad’s which I now use. I learned the basics on photography on this little tank and still shoot with it from time to time inspite of going digital. This cam has filled several albums with photos of family vacations, graduations, get togethers and what not.

Though the FE can shoot aperture priority (Auto), its quite kooky and I seldom rely on it. Never really had to anyway. The shutter speed dial is perfectly situated so that I can adjust it on the fly without taking my finger off the shutter release.

It’s also kinda cool that the FE does not indicate what it is overtly on the body. Simple and practically anonymous.

Thanks for putting up manilacamerastyle. It’s great browsing and reading about old film cameras. As they say, they don’t make ‘em like they used to. ;)

Thank you too, Migs… for sending this in and continuing to support our site!

And, as you guessed, here comes my favorite part - the photos!

A frame in a frame in a frame! Nice!

An Olympus OM-1, Sent In!

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 11:50:00 +0800

I’ve always been a fan of the Olympus OM series. Small, great lenses, awesome design, and reliable - what’s there not to like? So naturally, I was thrilled to have this sent in!

According to Benjamin, it’s caretaker:

I’m benji, and been recently addicted to film cameras. i bought this OM-1 because the owner won’t sell it if its just the lens. (my primary idea was to get the 50mm OM lens and fit it with my olympus E-520). after acquiring, i purchase a film just to test my photography skills with film… and i’m very much irritated with the results. with that, i begin researching and learning the sunny 16. at first i thought that the metering system of my OM-1 doesn’t work. but when i insterted an SR44 battery, it worked! Attached with this mail is a photo of my OM-1, and some shots with black and white film. thanks for the time reading this!

More power to manilacamerastyle.com!

Thanks, Benji! More power = more cameras and photos, so keep ‘em coming!

Here are some photos Benji shared using the OM-1 + Zuiko 50 combo:

Nice!

Something we already knew! :-)

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 10:28:00 +0800

Something we already knew! :-)

Olympus Pen EES! Sent in!

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 10:26:05 +0800

Sent in! A beautiful half-frame Olympus Pen EES!

According to Norman, it’s caretaker:

Although I only paid $20 for this beauty, I was lucky enough to get an almost mint condition copy. Everything, including the selenium meter is working well.

The Olympus Pen EES was launched in 1962. The camera has a 30mm f/2.8 zone focusing lens, equivalent to 45mm on a full-frame camera. It only has two shutter speeds; 1/40 and 1/200 second. Exposure is fully automatic, controlled by the selenium meter around the lens.

No batteries needed. I like to use the camera for series of diptychs and triptychs, two to three frames combined together.

More proof you don’t need to plunk down the big cash for a film jewel like this EES.

And you knew this was coming, my favorite part, the photos!

Nooooooooo!

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 10:24:57 +0800

Nooooooooo!

A Welcome Mistake

Sun, 21 Feb 2010 10:24:00 +0800

Just sent in: 1991 Olympus Stylus (µ[mju]: in Japan).

Its caretaker says:

The ad for this on Amazon said that the owner was selling an Olympus Stylus Epic (μ[mju:]-II) for USD40. I naturally pounced on it the first chance I got. I had shipped to me here in Manila via JAC. When I opened the package, I got the Olympus Stylus, which was an earlier model of what I wanted.

I complained to the seller of course. He refunded my credit card the next day and never asked for it back! Took it out for a spin and hey, I think I like it!

Sample photos:

Here at MCS, we love free cameras!

Dude, whenever I see a Mju I, I’m tempted to buy one and complete an “Oly XA Family Tree”. If only I could get one for free as well to kick start the line! Haha!

MCS [hearts] free cameras!

A 1982 Nikon FG

Sat, 20 Feb 2010 11:36:52 +0800

Miguel, owner of the the problamic Yashica 35, has also submitted his very well cared for Nikon FG. A good review on the Nikon FG here.

And of course, sample photos:

Miguel surely loves his cameras and his dogs, yeah? :)

Yet Another Yashica Electro 35!

Fri, 19 Feb 2010 11:22:00 +0800

Just sent in.

Miguel says:

Although i got the yashica with a bit of a problem, i got it repaired and is now working smoothly. The yashica is in permanent Aperture priority mode. im currently thinking whether i should sell the yashica or not and use the money for films hehe

Whattya think, J? Should he sell it? I say keep it.

Keep! Definitely keep! Never sell a film camera! (Except to me!) :-)

Want the Biggest?

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 12:16:00 +0800

…then this Sinar F2 is the one for you! Sent in!

Like it Bigger?

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 23:10:54 +0800

Then perhaps you can check out this Mamiya RZ67 - sent in!

Like it Big?

Tue, 16 Feb 2010 14:00:55 +0800

Then try out this Nikon FM2n + Sigma 600/8 mirror lens, sent in!