(Photograph © Alfred's Camera Page) I first became interested in photography at an early age. My parents eventually gave me a camera of my own and encouraged me to take photographs. Contents
Bilora BellaMy first camera was a Bilora Bella, like the one depicted at the top of this page. It was given to me by my parents when I was a child, in the 1950s. It used the now obsolete roll film type known as 127, with a format of 6x4.5 cm. I still have photographs that I took using my Bilora Bella, and have enjoyed using and owning cameras ever since.
Agfa Isolette IMy interest in photography really blossomed during the the early 1960s, when I was permitted to borrow my father's old Agfa Isolette I , which used 120 type roll film. He always encouraged my interest in photography and I am now the proud owner of that slendid old camera. The B&W photographs that I took, and then developed and printed myself taught me a lot about photography.
Robot JuniorSometime between the years 1965-1968, I bought a used Robot Junior camera from a work colleague and switched from using B&W film to using colour reversal slide film. The Robot Junior used 35mm film and had a clockwork motor drive, but the format was 24x24mm which was rather inconvenient because it meant that my slides could not be mounted when the film was processed. Instead, I used to buy slide mounts separately and rotated one half of the mount through 900, to produce the square frame required. The Robot Junior had a good quality lens and so produced excellent photographs. Later, during the late 1980s, when I began using kites fitted with radio controlled servo motors to take aerial photographs, I wished I had kept that camera. It would have been ideal as it's sibling, the Robot II, was used as a gun camera by the Luftwaffe during WWII.
Zenit BI eventually sold the Robot Junior and bought a used Russian 35mm single lens reflex (SLR) camera called the Zenit B. Like much of the Russian equipment sold in the West during the Cold War period, the Zenit B was a good camera for the price, very robust. However, it was quite heavy and had a rather noisy shutter which left the user in no doubt when it was released! Also, the Zenit B didn't have a built-in lightmeter, consequently another item of photographic equipment had to be carried around. Whilst none of the other cameras that I had owned up to that time had built-in lightmeters, I was gradually becoming a bit more discerning. I remember buying a close-up lens so that I could do what nowadays is called macro photography.
Praktica LLCSo, later during the 1970s when I had more disposable income, I upgraded to a new East German 35mm SLR called the Praktica LLC. It had a built-in lightmeter, weighed a less than the Zenit B and was quieter in operation. It was more expensive because it was more sophisticated. During the period that I owned the Praktica LLC, I became enamored with the idea of using interchangeable lenses and bought a telephoto lens.
Canon EOS 630Sometime during the late 1980s, I upgraded again, trading in my Praktica LLC for a used Canon EOS 630 35mm SLR. This was and still is a really excellent camera which I used for many years. I bought various lenses for it, but eventually settled on just two, a Sigma 70-300mm zoom and a Sigma 17-35mm wide-angle lenses.
Yashica Mat 124G
Having previously used my father's old Agfa Isolette I, and having used 35mm cameras and colour slide film for a number of years, I wanted to return to using B&W in medium format, but using a more modern camera. So, I looked around at what was availabl and eventually bought a used Yashica Mat 124G that took 120 roll film to shoot 6x6 cm square format photos (same as a Hasselblad). This was a really excellent camera which I greatly enjoyed using, but I eventually found the fixed lenses rather too restricting. I wanted a medium format camera with interchangeable lenses, much like those used the 35mm SLR cameras that I had been using.
Bronica ETRSSo, I eventually sold the Yashica (mistake!) and bought a used Bronica ETRS SLR which also used 120 roll film, but produced a 6x4.5 cm format. I still have that camera together with two lenses, a 50mm and the standard 75mm (ie equivalent to a 50mm lens on a 35mm camera). Whilst it is a good camera and I have enjoyed using it very much, nevertheless I have often regretted selling the Yashica Mat 124G.
Canon Ixus Z90Sometime during the period 1997-1999, while on holiday in Ireland, I bought a Canon Ixus Z90 (APS format) to take colour prints. I wanted something that was more suitable for 'point & shoot' situations, when I didn't want to lug a heavy bag full of camera equipment around. I didn't want to load my SLR with print film, as it was being used it to take colour slides.
Pentax ME SuperMeanwhile, I bought our son a used Pentax ME Super which unfortunately he didn't really like very much, so I eventually ended up lending him my Canon Ixus Z90 instread. I really liked the versatile Pentax ME Super, because it was a smaller, lighter SLR than those I had used.
4x5 Pinhole cameraI first became interested in pinhole photography early in 1998 and built myself a wooden pinhole camera that took a standard double-darkslide 4x5 filmholder.
MPP 4x5 view cameraMy interest in pinhole photography eventually developed into an interest in large format photography. Consequently, I bought an old 4x5 Micro Technical Camera, that was made by Micro Precision Products (MPP), which I used briefly for some landscape and architectural photography. The price didn't include bought a lens so I had to buy one separately. I eventually found 150mm lens for it (ie equivalent to a 50mm lens on a 35mm camera). Here is a photograph of two Canadian war photographers using similar cameras (probably Speed Graphics) in 1945.
120 Pinhole cameraSometime later, I bought an eraly verson of the Zero 2000 pinhole camera that takes 120 roll film. The present version is somewhat more sophisticated than mine.
Fujifilm MX-1700 Zoom digital cameraI bought my first digital camera in January 2000, which was a 1.5 mega pixel Fujifilm MX-1700 Zoom. After years of lugging heavy camera bags loaded with expensive equipment, this little camera that could easily be slipped into a pocket and produced instant results, was absolutely wonderful. It produced excellent results and was so ideal for taking pictures for this website. Certainly the resolution was more than adequate for most of the computer displays used at that time.
Contax G2Later, I bought a Contax G2 rangefinder camera which I used extensively with Agfa Scala 200x reversal film to produce many B&W slides. Having for many years used colour reversal film to produce slides and given my longstanding interest in B&W, the idea of being able to produce B&W slides appealed to me. I particularly liked the fact that this film could be pull-processed to ISO 100, or push-processed to ISO 1600, enabling me to emulate with the camera (by exposing the film at different ISO speeds) things that previously I had only been able to do when processing film in the darkroom. The Contax G2 is a superb camera, but sadly it hasn't been used much since I bought my digital cameras.
Nikon CoolPix 8800During 2005, I upgraded my digital camera from the old Fujifilm MX-1700 Zoom to a new Nikon CoolPix 8800. This is the camera that I now use on a daily basis. It is an excellent camera, which still I enjoy using very much. My only criticism is that by today's standards it is pretty slow, when saving images and the screen is rather small.
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