Throw a bit of advice my way please

WanderlustQueen

Hello all,

I invested in a Holga camera before christmas, and I absolutely love it. Its the first time I've owned a manual camera, I've always had digital cameras and know enough about them and pixels and all that stuff.

Seeing as I'm enjoying the Holga so much (expensive aul hobby to learn i might add) I was hoping to invest in a second hand manual camera. I've absolutely no clue about where to buy them, what SLR is, what film goes where, I'm really useless.

So I was hoping someone could suggest to me an idiot-proof starter manual camera that I could use colour and black & white film in, an all-rounder kinda camera that has focus-y stuff and perhaps even the option of getting a fisheye lense.I've seen a few for sale in the Camera Exchange on George's Street but like I said I know feck all about them.

any sugesstions from you camera-nerds would be greatly appreciated! Ta!

pullandbang

Shouldn't be difficult to find a Single Lens Reflex (SLR) as opposed to a DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex)....

There's any amount of them around.

Any 35mm SLR camera will take film....Canon, Nikon, Yashica, Olympus. Pentax...the list goes on.

In fact I'd be surprised if someone doesn't offer you one for free....nobody uses them any more, so there are loads lying under beds and in attics everywhere.

humberklog

Oooh Pullandbang I think you're out there. Film's coming back big. A bit slower in Ireland but the shift is there.
OP why not have a look on Adverts and see what's going on in the SLR dept and report back?
I picked up a Canon A1 a while back and got a Bronica from another site too for next to nothing...but prices are re-entering as peole are shifting towards it again.
Good move from the Holga. Hard not to like them but rather limited after a while. Nice SLR will bring a smile to your face when you realise how much the Holga teached you without realising it.

pullandbang

humberklog wrote: »

Oooh Pullandbang I think you're out there. Film's coming back big. A bit slower in Ireland but the shift is there

If only..............

I could climb up into my attic and dig up my old processing kit.

I used to delvelop B/W film in my wardrobe, hang the rolls out on the clothes line to dry, then print contact sheets before deciding which one to print!

This was back even before the Internet was black and white!

humberklog

You wouldn't have a camera you could throw the dudes way then?

I like buying cameras (then breaking them, losing them or having them robbed) and I keep an eye on the market it a little and film's going big across the world again...really. Seams to be a big pull towards by younger peole that've never had film. I've relations in the camera scene in Israel and all their previously easily accessed european suppliers (of quality used film cameras)are banging the price up as they're selling it in their own countries now. Asia and S.America are hoovering it up too apparently.

But the OP won't go too far wrong on Adverts. Better than ebay (imo) if you're willing to wait a little.

pullandbang

humberklog wrote: »

You wouldn't have a camera you could throw the dudes way then?

Would you believe, I sold my SLR and bought a gun!

That was back in '85 and I've been shooting ever since!!!!!

humberklog

Anything like this Pulland?
This is going for 250 although I'd say he'd take 150. But they're a 'mare of a camera OP. I wouldn't consider it...well I did for a little while but decided to pass on it. It weighs like a 3year old child. Works perfect though.

WanderlustQueen

pullandbang wrote: »

Any 35mm SLR camera will take film....

What exactly does 35mm mean? is that a lens thing? (sorry about the stupid questions)

Canon, Nikon, Yashica, Olympus. Pentax...the list goes on.

Would you recommend i keep an eye out for any one in particular? Are some better than others for not going arseways? Oh, and how much would I be looking at to buy one? I saw one for 95euro but I dunno if that's any good or not.

As for ebay, I was a bit afraid of buying one that didn't work (seeing as they're old) and I'd no one to explain to me how to use it! I will take a look an adverts.

I my holga. So much I hadn't a clue about and had to teach myself but its SO rewarding seeing photos printed out!

Thanks for the tips lads!

Schlemm

35mm film just means the film is 35mm wide. Film comes in different speeds - that's what the ISO is - basically the higher the speed, the more sensitive it is to light. When you get a 35mm camera try out a few different speeds to get the feel for different conditions and see what you like.

I borrowed my Dad's old 35mm just before Christmas and I am addicted! I had borrowed his point and shoot digital back in September and I couldn't stop taking pictures, but I wanted to use something a big nicer, so I use the 35mm all the time now since he doesn't. I literally didn't know the first thing about it, like how to put in the film and wind it on and wind it back, and which film to use, and what the focus was and the aperture and the film speed and the light meter and AARG! But fear not, if you stick at it you will figure it out. I have finally figured out depth of field and aperture and how to work the light meter and what all those numbers on the lens and the focus ring mean And I know that sounds simple but getting the hang of these basics is a great skill. It just takes time and perseverance. It's a konica autoreflex tc, which is a very basic slr, but I really like it and it takes nice pictures!

Read articles on the internet, and invest in a book (I bought a second hand copy of the Basic Book of Photography by Tom Grimm on Amazon - highly reccomended). And if you get a camera make sure you have access to its manual! I found the one for the camera I use on the internet.

I got a Diana+ shortly after I started using the 35mm and I found that knowing a bit about how to use a manual camera with a lot more settings than the Diana is a huge advantage. Sure Dianas and Holgas are basic - there is no depth of field control or lightmeter - but don't be afraid to use trial and error! The first couple of rolls of 120 that you shoot will prob have a high percentage of crap images, mine certainly did!, but the more you shoot the more you learn. And it is definitely rewarding to get back a roll of film! I'm new to using cameras and film too, but defo invest in a 35mm and do a lot of reading about how to work it. It will take time but you will see the results in your pictures as you shoot more and more.

Fajitas!

There's a few roads you could go down, depending on what you liked.

If you wanted something small, you could go for a rangefinder, even one with a fixed lens, such as the Canonet GIII 1.7 or Olympus Trip 35 - They'll fit in a jacket pocket and take 35mm film. Simple to use once you get used to the focusing system! They're quiet too, which is nice for walking about.

Next up is a 35mm SLR, which is a bit bigger and louder, but still, good quality, interchangable lenses and probably a bit more robust than the rangefinders.

Then there's medium format, which is the film used in the Holga, so you get nice big negatives. The cameras are big and bulky, but it's a lovely system to work with when you get used to it - Look at both SLR's and TLR's for these.

Anyways, keep an eye on eBay and Adverts.ie and see what comes up. Set yourself a budget, and do some googling on the cameras you like the look of.

CabanSail

Here's one on Averts.ie

Sleepy

I've seen Canon 300's (an entry level film SLR) on eBay for €20 or so...

duffarama

Wow, a lot of film threads here this week.

I've bought film cameras online and in shops. €100 will get you something decent with a nice normal lens on it most likely (generally a 50mm f1.8)
I'd recommend getting something with as many manual controls as possible, I love how much more in touch you feel with things on older cameras. Aperture ring, selecting shutter speed, selecting ISO with wheels and levers.

As for Ebay, I've bought an obscene amount of lenses there and everyone has been in great condition.

Gunn's have an OM-10 on the shelf and it'd be a great camera to start with.

As for fisheye lenses, most of the big players in 35mm cameras will have a fisheye lens available but they won't come cheap. The Olympus 16mm fisheye, for example, can be used on digital cameras with an adaptor so can fetch a high price.

Calina

OM 10 is aperture priority, not fully manual.

duffarama

Calina wrote: »

OM 10 is aperture priority, not fully manual.

Hence why I said "as many manual controls as possible"

Aperture priority is how I prefer to shoot so it suits me perfectly, not that I use it anymore. The OM4Ti I got seems to have retired the OM-10 but I'm keeping it anyway!

cnocbui

35mm is the size of the film the camera takes.

One of the nicest to use manual 35mm film cameras ever made is the Olympus OM1.

It is not hard to find them on eBay. The are a totally manual camera and are small and compact in comparison to most other 35mm SLRs. They have an in-built meter, but for every shot, the photographer has to set the aperture, shutter speed and do the focusing. The only caveat is that the meter was designed to be powered by a mercury battery and these have not been available for some time. The mercury battery had a different voltage to most others, so the meter will be slightly out with any modern battery. However, there are adapters that change the voltage so that the meter reads correctly.

There are some excellent wide angle Olympus Zuiko lenses available, and in terms of fisheyes, the 16mm is the most common, but such a lens will cost more than the camera.