Camera Reviews

Hands On with the Prototype Mint InstantKon RF70 Instax Wide Rangefinder Camera
2400 1350 James Tocchio

MiNT Camera has quickly established itself as a unique player in the instant camera market. While Fujifilm has long been happy to sell vast quantities of instant point-and-shoot cameras, and Polaroid Originals (formerly Impossible Project)…

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One Roll, Five Countries, With the Half-Frame Agat 18K Film Camera
2000 1125 Jeb Inge

“I brought you a gift.” my friend said simply upon arriving in Europe, and I knew that the gift would be one of two sorts; either it’s one of the many small things I miss…

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We Review Maitani’s Masterpiece, the Olympus XA Rangefinder Camera
5316 2991 Josh Solomon

The Olympus XA is a compact 35mm film rangefinder camera, and the best of the Olympus XA series of compact cameras. Sample shots and details here.

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We Review the M-A, Leica’s Newest 35mm Film Camera
2198 1236 Chris Cushing

In 1968 Mercedes-Benz introduced the world to the pinnacle of the luxury sedan. Up to that time, the 300SEL 6.3’s combination of engineering, ambition, and sheer bloody mindedness had never been matched. While others had…

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Our Favorite Fanboys Swap Camera Systems – Nikon F3 Versus Canon F-1
2400 1350 Chris Cushing

As objective as we are when reviewing unfamiliar cameras, our biases show when it comes to the cameras that remain with us permanently. My FD mount Canons have always been my benchmark, the cameras I…

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Contax IIa – Zeiss Ikon’s Best Classic Rangefinder Reviewed
2400 1350 James Tocchio

In 1944, Allied invasion forces stormed the beaches of Normandy in France. With the first wave of troops was a young combat photographer named Robert Capa. In his hand was the Zeiss Contax II, then…

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The Olympus O-Product is a Beautiful and Unusual Point-and-Shoot Film Camera
2400 1350 James Tocchio

Holding and shooting the Olympus O-Product, I get the feeling its designer didn’t give a damn about what other camera companies were creating. A little research confirms my intuition. In a 1989 interview in Popular…

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FED 5b – The Joys and Pains of Shooting the Soviet Union’s Beer Can Rangefinder
1956 1100 Jeb Inge

For those who argue that the third part of a trilogy is typically the worst, The Godfather Part III is People’s Exhibit A. The political intrigue of financial malfeasance in Vatican City was destined to disappoint…

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The Nikon FM is All the 35mm Film Camera You Really Need
2200 1237 Josh Solomon

My eyes drifted from one storefront to the next, my stomach grumbling in the late spring heat. For days I’d been craving a taco, a dish so common in my home city that they may…

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Diving Deep with Nikonos – A Brief History of Nikon’s Underwater Cameras
2200 1238 James Tocchio

I watched with helpless horror as my camera fell, seemingly in slow-motion, fumbled from the uppermost point of a rough stone jetty. It tumbled and bounced from rock to rock on a plummeting course to…

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The Mamiya Press Camera – With Great Weight Comes Great Versatility
2200 1238 Chris Cushing

I like things to be small, light, and simple, and these preferences apply equally to nearly any product. My favorite car since the close of the Second World War is the original Golf GTI, and…

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Leica CL Mirrorless Digital Camera Review
2200 1238 James Tocchio

James Reviews the Leica CL, a compact mirrorless interchangeable lens digital camera that’s a throwback to the Leicas of old.

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The Alpa 10D – Hand-Made Mechanical 35mm Film SLR from Switzerland
2200 1238 James Tocchio

I’ve been shooting an Alpa 10d for a year now, and every camera geek I’ve shown it to has asked the same question. “What’s that?” This is no great surprise. Today Alpa makes cameras that…

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Canon’s Canonet Rangefinder Does the Impossible – A Canon Camera That’s Not Boring
2200 1238 Chris Cushing

Canon makes boring cameras. Sometimes they make really boring cameras. I have an F-1 and I love shooting it, but like many Canons, it simply cannot be name-dropped. It’s a bit like trying to impress your coworkers…

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