Twenty Years of Random Camera Blog

My Nikon Df and a 50 yr old Nikkor lens. Bridging two worlds.

In 2004, blogging was becoming popular, and it seems like a lot of people were starting blogs to share their interests. Mind you, this was before social media and smartphones took over. It was also the start of Flickr, the long-time photo sharing site that I still use, 20 years later. It’s as much of an archive of my work as anything, and I am still happy with it. When I started Random Camera Blog, I was four years into my deep dive into photography, and have not wavered from that at all. Initially, I saw RCB as a way to share a few images and share my use of different cameras and films. My first post was on October 14, 2004, and 883 posts later, here I am.

Twenty years on the Internet IS a long time. A lot of things have happened in the photography world since 2004, one being the domination of the digital camera, which also led to the disappearance of new film cameras, the loss of many film stocks, the takeover by DSLRs among photographers, the rise of new and unexpected technologies -- such as the Apple iPhone, which caused a huge paradigm shift in how we interact and use photography. The rise of the micro 4/3 and mirrorless system cameras, which were at one time considered just an offshoot, are now a mainstream part of photography. Despite all these technological advances, one thing has been a bit of a surprise -- the rebirth of film photography. Some might say it never went away, and of course, it didn’t, but now we are seeing a younger generation interested in using film cameras, and discovering the creative possibilities that film and other alternative processes can offer. I should also add that digital photography has allowed millions of people to explore photography without the burden of dealing with chemicals, labs, and gatekeepers.  Many of them have never used film cameras, and some are now discovering that they are a whole new world.

My 10 year association with Mike Raso and The FPP has been a hell of a lot of fun

 I am someone that has shot with film since I first had a camera in the early 1970s. I lived in a rural part of upstate New York and did not know anything about the history of photography, nor much about the photographic world. In 1973,  I took my only class in photography, which was an after-school activity sponsored by my high school science teacher. I vividly remember the magic of cracking open the b&w Verichrome Pan 126 cartridge that I had used in my Kodak Instamatic, transferring to a developing reel and tank, and seeing my very first self-developed roll of film. You know what?  I still feel the magic of doing that to this day.  I think that if I had a mentor at the time, it’s quite possible that I would have chosen photography as a vocation, but I didn’t even know that you could make money being a photographer. In 1974, I received an Exa Ia SLR for Christmas, with a Kodak pocket photography guide as my only resource.  As clunky and limited as that camera was, I did learn how to photograph on my own.  

My first SLR.

Fast forward to the year 1999, and with the influence of a promised new world of digital imaging, I realized that my Apple QuickTake 200 just wasn’t getting the job done taking photos of insects. At 640x480 pixels, it was only good for making images for the web, but not much more than that. I had attended a presentation later that year, and saw how wonderful the presenter’s slides were of insect macrophotography using slide film, of course. That sparked my interest in using my Pentax ME to do similar things, and in 2000, I really started to delve into macrophotography.  The books by John Shaw were really useful, and also steered me towards the Nikon system. I also had a mentor -- William Brudon, who was tickled to share his knowledge, books, cameras and film with me. Bill was a well-regarded medical illustrator, painter, and very much a photography expert. It was his influence that turned me into a well-rounded photographer, and the only way I can repay him is to try and do the same for others.  Bill passed away in 2009, and I still have a lot of the books that he provided to me, as well as some cameras such as my Nikon F3HP that I use regularly.

By 2001, my kit was all-Nikon (Apple QT 200 photo)

Random Camera Blog arose from wanting to not just share my enthusiasm for photography, but also to educate others about cameras, the photographic process, and of course, the various film stocks. When I think about how cheap expired film was into the early 2000s compared to now, it’s a bit sobering. I could go into a local camera store (at one time, there were at least 4 camera stores in Ann Arbor, MI) and buy rolls of recently expired film for a buck a roll! Throughout the years, RCB has endured the demise of camera stores, the loss of cheap developing at a local lab, the sell-off of used film cameras for pennies on the dollar, and then the emergence of Lomography, the demise of Polaroid, the demise of much of Kodak, the sort of resurrection of Polaroid, the appearance of the Film Photography Project, and the gradual and significant rise of film photography. In this year, we have had two new 35mm film cameras arrive on the market.  The Pentax 17 has become quite a popular camera, and the new  Rollei  35AF will probably also be quite a good seller.  I wonder what next year will bring?

Camera swaps were something, back in 2004.

I never thought about how long RCB would run. It’s now just something that I do, and I average 30+ posts/year. I don’t do a Vlog, or have a YouTube channel. The printed word is what I do, and an outgrowth of that would be the Monochrome Mania zine and whatever offshoots come from that. I am a sometime guest and contributor to the Film Photography Project, and knowing what Mike Raso has to do to put out a podcast, has certainly convinced me that I don’t have those skills, nor do I want to learn them. Writing for RCB is something that comes easily for me, and I enjoy doing the research that it often requires. It’s definitely a labor of love, and I hope that RCB has been helpful to many people.  I was watching one of my favorite YouTuber channels last night, and I thought,  I’ve been blogging about photography since you were in grade school 

A few statistics for Random Camera Blog:

• All-time views - 2,131,000+
• 884 posts (including this one)
• 414 followers

Most popular RCB Posts:

All-time most views -- The Argus 75- A toy or a tool? January 30, 2009 with 39,500 views. I still can’t believe how much attention that post has received. It also generated the most responses of any of my posts. 

Second most views -- a much more recent post - The Nikon Nikkormat -Today’s Bargain? It was posted on March 26, 2022, and currently has almost 10,000 views. If you haven’t figured it out yet, I like Nikons! I expect that it will overtake the Argus 75, that is, if in 5 years, it is still available.

Here are the top 10 posts:

I like researching my topics as much as possible, and thankfully, I have an excellent library on photo history and technology. Of course, there are various web sites, such as camera-wiki that are very helpful, but I consider them secondary to a publication.  For a while. I incorporated Google AdSense in my blog, and received about $100/year for the advertisements. However, I kept getting emails telling me that some of my posts violated community standards.  None did, and I am not going to let some faceless bot tell me otherwise.  So, I dropped AdSense. If you want to support Random Camera Blog the best way is to visit my Etsy store and purchase a zine or two. 

on sale in a week or two.

I have often thought about compiling a subset of posts from RCB into a book, but I haven’t forged ahead with it. Publishing Monochrome Mania is it, for now. If you have a favorite post or two on here, let me know which ones you liked the most.  

In closing, two decades of photography is a lot of photographs, lots of cameras, and lots of film and digital files.  You'll get a better idea of my photography on my Flickr site (mfophotos).  Thanks for reading and thanks for following me.

Film... lots of film!

some slow speed films

Last week I received a package in the mail containing some new (to me) films that I ordered. Three of them were Rollei-branded films, Ortho 25 Plus, RPX 25, Retro 80 S; Catlabs X Film 80, and Bergger Pancro 400.  I have previously reported on the Bergger film.  On top of that, I have an order of the Ilford Ortho Plus 80 coming to me.  All of these are b&w films, and I am totally amazed at the number of film stocks now on sale.  Even accounting for the re-branding of films by Kosmo, etc., it's obvious that we have more b&w film stocks available now than I can remember in the past 20 years.  The Darkroom has put up a handy guide to films that should be useful to the typical person shooting film.  The chart there shows 46 films, and those are all ones that The Darkroom can process.  It's obviously missing the Kodak Vision films (ECN-2 process), the odd emulsions that require special developers, and many of the b&w films that the Film Photography Project has brought to market.  So, when anyone asks "Can you still buy film?"  You can tell that person that there are over 50 different films available now.

We don't have the plethora of  positive color films that existed 20 years ago, and that can easily be explained by the fact that pro shooters accounted for the majority of E-6 and Kodachrome sales that were quickly taken over by the digital onslaught.  For the publishing industry, digital was a real boon, as the workflow no longer involved the darkroom as being the intermediate step.  For the art photographer, it was a more personal choice.  However, the mere fact that Kodak released Ektachrome once again last year is a good sign that a major gap was being filled. 

As far as C-41 films, there are enough choices out there to make most people happy.  While I shoot color film, it still represents a minority of my film usage.  I do use digital for a majority of my color work -- and my Nikon Df is one hell of a camera.   My first choice is b&w film, for a lot of reasons.  I like the moods that I can get with different films, I like being able to experiment with using low-ISO films and odd emulsions, and I like the way b&w film shows the world that I photograph.  In addition, film grain - the lack of, as well as the presence of, can really add another dimension to an image.  I think back to some early shots that I did with Kodak's high speed recording film - it had grain like nothing else, and I wish that I had used it in the right situations to make that grainy stuff work as an asset to the image.  On the other end of the grain scale, Ilford Pan-F and Kodak Tmax 100 are really excellent films.   To me, the allure of so many different films is that a film stock becomes part of my creative process. 

One other thing to note, is that I am working on a zine devoted to monochrome shooting.  I'll say more about it as I get closer to a final product, but I hope to have it ready by January 2020.  The first issue will focus on low-ISO films. 

As these November days move into December days, I am very happy that I moved to western North Carolina.  We have far more sunny days than cloudy ones this time of year, and those low sun angles represent more opportunities for shooting b&w film!

An apology to my readers

If you left comments and did not get a response from me, please accept my apologies. For some reason, I had not realized that Google had changed some settings that I did not fully understand.  This morning I saw that there were about 60 comments that I had not seen because the notification was not sent for them to be moderated.  I have fixed that, and sent away the spammers, and posted the real comments.  I am touched by the responses to my tribute to Marc Akemann.  I know that he influenced many people during his life, and he was always helpful to anyone that asked.  I still think of him regularly, and grief has given way to acknowledging that he would want us all to be happy with our lives, and to be good people.

I appreciate the comments on film and camera reviews -- I will try and answer those as much as I can, when I can.  Old cameras come our way, usually without a history attached to them.  If a camera isn't working properly, it may be why it was sold in the first place.  For others, it can sometimes be a simple fix, and others... a quagmire of possibilities and sometimes there is no fix.  My basic rule is, do no harm, and don't force anything.  But sometimes a quick bang on the bottom of the camera against my desktop can do wonders.  I am not a camera tinkerer, and certainly do not consider myself a repair person.  I have gotten bolder lately, as more people post fix-it solutions on the web. 

For film reviews, I am not doing extensive tests, but shooting/developing the film as I normally might.  A one-roll review is like that.  For films that I shoot a lot with, I use them because they satisfy my concepts of what I am looking for, whatever that may be.   They must also be easy to process.  If I have to resort to buying some special developer to get the optimum results, then it's pretty unlikely that I will use that film.  My usual developers are HC-110, D-76, Rodinal, XTOL, and Caffenol when I am so inclined.  For C-41 I use the FPP C-41 kit, and E-6 I usually send to The Darkroom because I don't shoot enough of it to fully utilize the E-6 kit. 

I am glad that you enjoy Random Camera Blog, and please keep the comments coming.  I'll reply to the backlog of your comments as soon as I can. Again, I apologize for not replying sooner.

Here is an image from a recently-developed roll of the FPP-spooled  Kodak Vision 50D.  I developed it in the FPP C-41 kit, and will have a film review of it soon.

Chicago's Central Camera - They Do Film Right

Last weekend, my wife and I visited Chicago together for the first time in many years.  We stayed at the Palmer House Hilton, a most fantastic classy hotel that has been in operation longer than any other hotel in the USA.  While I didn't plan the trip, it just so happened that Central Camera is a block away on Wabash.  Central Camera is equally as qualified for a longevity award as Palmer House.  I last shopped there in 2002, and bought a Tamrac backpack, which I still have.  Since then, I have been able to photograph the front of the store during quick Chicago visits, but it was always on Sundays, so it was closed.  This time, I stopped by on a Friday afternoon and a Saturday morning.  They open at 8:30, which is when I stopped by after breakfast Saturday. The nice thing about getting there early - is to be able chat with the folks behind the counters.
First of all, Central Camera is the photo store that is so archetypical of  the genre. Old-school, with glass cases filled with used gear (and new) that will induce a severe case of GAS.  All kinds of delectable cameras and accessories.  Of course, they have digital gear, too. If they don't have it, you can have them order it.  They have film. Lots of film. I haven't seen that much film in a store -- ever.  They also process film.  Vivian Maier used to buy her film there, too.   I am sure she didn't chat up the folks at the counter, though.
I bought s bunch of Kentmere 400 b&w, and some C-41 film while I was there. I don't NEED any more cameras, and it's a good thing I don't live in Chicago, or they would be getting a lot more of my money.
Speaking of film -- Yes they DO film.

Katherine Greenleaf and Charles Ezaki at the film counter.

I had a good time talking with the folks there, and told them about the Film Photography Podcast.  I hope they listen in.  Stores like Central Camera are few and far between these days, and to walk into the store is to feel like it's a place that is welcoming and also a bit like a piece of history.  Yes, you can buy the latest digi item, but I'll bet that they have a lens hood that will fit that vintage Contaflex in your bag, too.   I know that if I were doing photowalks in Chicago, Central Camera would have to be a stopping point -- or maybe a starting point.   Anyhow, it was fun to shop there and talk photography.  It was just a year ago that I visited another iconic place -- Looking Glass Photo in Berkeley, CA.  Definitely a difference between the two locales, but no difference in their love of film photography.  You have to be passionate and knowledgeable about what you sell, and they have the right folks there.
So, if you are in Chicago, check out Central Camera. It's a destination, and a shrine to all things photographic.

2017...The Film Strikes Back

With the recent, head-spinning announcement by Kodak to produce Ektachrome this year, I was not prepared for the release of a new (actually, old) monochrome film from Film Ferrania.  The sample images I have seen that were shot with it are really luscious, with a pleasing richness that you'll never get from a digital.  The 80 ISO is a nice speed, as not all of us want 400 ISO films for everything.


Then, Bergger anounced that they will be releasing a 400 ISO b&w film, Pancro 400, which will be available in 35mm, 120, and 4x5! I am less familiar with Bergger, but I did know of their paper.  I wondered if the Bergger film the same as  the JCH Street Pan, which has had very good reviews, but the JCH film was made by Agfa.  I confess that I have not yet purchased any myself.

So, with these announcements, is 2017 the year when film strikes back?  It is no secret that more people have come BACK to using film, for a multitude of reasons, but I believe the most obvious reason is that film is a creative medium.  In terms of market, digital has a large hold over traditional film. However, film remains strong among those that appreciate the art of photography, the sheer joy of the process, and being in control of your image.  Not to mention, that in a world where just about everyone takes photos, film remains a tangible, physical reality that transcends time and digital resources.  I got thinking about this when I scanned in some slides from the late 1970s that I had taken with my Exa 1a SLR.  Mind you, I was using slide film, sunny-16, and never had a meter of any sort. Yet, I have some pretty decent shots from then. I didn't need any software to view them in their plastic sleeves within the binder to appreciate them.  Scanning went well, and also allowed me to do a bit of color correction. Yet, the originals are safely tucked away.

South Beech Street, Syracuse, NY Feb. 1978.

Dave Rosher with his Spotmatic, summer, 1977.

Adrienne, fall of 1978.

 I am not here to bash the digital realm -- it is a necessity of every-day communication, consumption, and path of ideas.  Without the internet and the invention of the magic of HTTP and its subsequent eruption of the web as we now know it, we would be back to using something like CompUServe (for those of you who do not know of a world without internet -- we got along just fine.)  We are a visual culture, and photography is an extension of that.  We can still use film and share online, share via printed works, share via exhibitions, and yes, share via Instagram if we so choose.

I think it would also behoove the primary SLR manufacturers to rethink their marketing strategy.  While sales of DSLRs have dropped due to the smaller size and capabilities of the mirrorless cameras, smartphones have decimated point and shoot sales.  If Nikon, Canon, and Pentax were to release at least a decent 35mm SLR again, it would be a great thing.  All Nikon has to do is manufacture the F100 again-- certainly the best AF SLR that wasn't an F5 or F6.  Canon could produce an EOS film camera (not the plastic Rebels, please), and Pentax ought to have a K1000 made once again.  Do you know how many people think the K1000 is the best student camera ever?  It amazes me.  Yes, there are a lot of used film cameras available, but having a new model would certainly not be a bad thing.

 Look at what people will pay for a cheap plastic Lomography camera.  If Joe Blow spends $500 on a 120 Lomo LC-W, he'll spend $1200 for a new Nikon film camera.

So, maybe it's time to have people petition the camera makers for new film cameras.  I don't know what more digital can offer anyone that it doesn't already.  Meanwhile, we have some new films to try out!

Edit: After writing this post, I found this post by Zorki Photo, which is a very good article.

What to buy for the film photographer?

Well, as I sit here on a rainy Thanksgiving morning, I am thinking about the coming buying avalanche that the stores are waiting for.  Adrienne and I now just exchange small gifts at Christmas, because we really, really, don't buy into the "go buy shit" for the holidays, and we also really don't need anything.    Booze and socks are always useful, but what does one buy for a film photographer? It's not like there are inexpensive items they can use except for film, right? And, hell, where does one even buy film?

Film photographers love to show that they love film, sort of like sticking up a certain finger to the all-digital crowd.    So, we love t-shirts, hats, pins, stickers, etc. to show off our passion about film.  I have put together a short list of small businesses that cater to EXACTLY people like me. And you, if you are another analog camera user.

Asilda has cute pins

I am a fan of the Asilda Store, as the small enamel pins sold featuring cameras and slogans are really well-made, subtle, and classy.  The pins are wonderful small gifts for any photographer. They look good on a lapel, camera strap, or hat.  Asilda also sells photography-themed patches.   I found their prices to be very reasonable, so check them out!

from ShootFilmCo

Mike Padua, owner of ShootFilmCo, has a wonderful array of patches, stickers, and other items for the photographer. You may want to check out his photo memo books, which are a recent addition to his store. I have several of his stickers on my car, and I love the smart designs he comes up with. The patches are well-made, too. The photo memo books are ideal for recording your exposures, notes, etc. while out shooting.  It may be a chore for some to write this stuff down, but if you want to know what you did on frame x,  they will prove to be quite helpful after you process your film and wonder what you did shooting away all day.

Nick Mayo, out in western Michigan, started up  Two Stops Apparel this year. I like his choice of items, and I am sure that he will continue to produce humorous and well-appreciated t-shirts, etc. for us folks.  As illustrated by T. Paul Wrobel, if you wear this shirt, you will never forget the order in which to process your roll of film.

T. Paul with a shirt from Two Stops Apparel

The Film Photography Project Store also has a number of stickers, as well as a classy T-shirt that photographers will like -- and their prices are very good.  You may also want to check out some of the films and other items that are offered.  Nothing beats a few rolls of film in the stocking!

Of course, there are other on-line places like Photo Jojo that cater to all photographers, and you will find something if you just Google it!    I like to support these smaller businesses, and they produce quality products, and their niche fits in with those of us already in a niche - analog photography.

As for me, I pretty much have all I need, except for that Bronica SQA. Okay I don't really need it, but you know how it is.

To the Looking Glass.

 Last Sunday, I flew to Oakland, California with some colleagues from work to attend a workshop at UC-Berkeley.  It's been about 30 years since I was last in California, and that too, was a work trip.  I have a friend on Flickr (Therese Brown) that used to live in El Cerrito, just N of Berkeley, and she gave me a "Film Is Not Dead" T-shirt from Looking Glass Photo (LGP) about a decade ago.  In advance of the trip, I promised myself that I would visit LGP and wear the T-shirt if I had the time during my 3 days in Berkeley.  The store used to be much closer to campus, but now is about a 3 mile walk.  So, on Tuesday afternoon, I had an opportunity to do just that.  The nice thing about going anywhere today, is that one can look on Google maps and see just about anything.  A place that is new to me, is much more familiar after looking at street view, etc., to plan a route.  I walked through some interesting neighborhoods and really enjoyed seeing green and flowers, and considering how mucked up our spring weather has been in Michigan this year, visiting California could not have come at a better time!

Lots of Film...

I did bring a couple of film cameras - my Minolta XG-M and Olympus Trip 35, along with my digital Fuji X-100S.   I'll have some photos up after I process the film.

Arriving at the store at 1035 Ashby Avenue, I was a bit sweaty from the long walk in the warm, sunny afternoon. I was immediately impressed at how many people were working there, and the store's size was much larger than I anticipated.  A real, full-service store with photo paper, chemicals, FILM, darkroom accessories, and all of the other digital and types of equipment one might need. It looked like they have a darkroom, too.    A couple of women that work there were immediately making comments about my old LGP t-shirt, as it has not been available for some time.  I didn't mind being a photo geek at all.  I bought some film, a Looking Glass Photo coffee mug, and a tripod mount for a cellphone.   It was fun stepping into a store that had everything that a photographer may need, and especially catered to the analog community.  If you need a Holga, they had plenty of them in stock, too.  There are also used film cameras and lenses for sale, along with all of the cool digi gadgets you might like to see.

Kodak Ektar and Portra films

FINALLY! Ann Arbor Gets a Real Camera Store!

They are still stocking the store, but stop in, anyway.

A few months ago,  I had heard a rumor about someone opening a camera shop in Ann Arbor, but the details were somewhat vague.  Then a few weeks ago, I found out that a store with the name Camera Mall was going to open soon.  A week ago, I walked over to the store on East Washington, less than a block from N. State Street.  A few other fellow crappy camera club folks had already been there.  I walked in, and was greeted by the manager, Desmond Kolean-Burley, and it seemed a bit surreal to be standing in a store with lots of shiny new cameras and gear.  In Ann Arbor.  It has been a few years since we have had that opportunity. I had a great chat with Desmond, and he was busily getting the store stocked and ready for business.  Today, I went back down, and I wasn't the only other person in the store, and the stock was being shelved as quickly as they could do it.  You can bet I had a case of lens lust, seeing so many lovely new lenses in the glass case.  I bought some packs of film (and yes, they will be carrying Impossible Project film), and chatted for a while.  It's obvious that Desmond knows his stuff, and the location is great - close to campus, close to the heart of downtown, and parking is nearby.  I can only hope that folks go and buy their stuff their and support Camera Mall's effort!

Camera Mall is located at 518 East Washington Street, Ann Arbor.  You can reach the store at  734-997-5031.  Desmond indicated that the stock is still coming in, and I suspect that by the end of April everything will be in place.  However, you can certainly buy lenses, bodies, film, used film cameras, digital cameras, etc. right now.  I think the store will also be operating a photo lab.

To Desmond and the other Camera Mall folks (out of Muskegon, MI) -- Welcome to Ann Arbor, and thanks for taking a chance on us!

Meyer Optik Dompilan 50mm f/2.8 in M42 mount

I bought this lens at the local Recycle-Reuse store for a buck.  It's an M-42 version of the lens that was on my very first SLR, an Exa1a.  The Meyer-Optik Domiplan 50mm f/2.8 is a Cooke Triplet design, with a minimum aperture of f/22, and a close focus distance of only 75cm.  Relatively easy to find, it is a low-cost lens in M42 and Exakta mount.  Now, I shot many rolls of film with my Exa back in the 1970s, and the Domiplan 50mm was all that I had at the time.  Is it a great lens?  No, but on average, stopped down it is still pretty darn good.  Besides, if all lenses were absolutely perfect, the world would be a boring place.

After I purchased this lens I realized that the aperture was stuck open.  Hmm.  Maybe some sticky oil?  I merely whacked the base of the lens flat against a cushioned pad, and the diaphragm blades came unstuck. Since I paid only a buck fior the lens, I had nothing to lose.  The Domiplan aperture control ring is on the very front of the lens...like an Argus Cintar.  It's also automatic aperture control only, so the aperture pin need to be engaged for stop-down metering, depth of field examination, etc.  Not necessarily the easiest lens to use, but I got around fine with it when I was a teenager.

I attached the Dompilan to my Mamiya 1000DTL M-42 camera.  To make it easier to adjust the aperture AND use a light shade, I attached an old 49mm metal lens shade and it works perfectly. It's not a fast lens with a maximum aperture of f/2.8, but it will do.  I loaded up a roll of Eastman Kodak Hwakeye 400 ISO color film and shot away with it while I was on Drummond Island back in mid-June. The results were fine, and this cheap lens certainly did the job.

Comparing the two lenses - one on the Exa 1a, and the other on the Mamiya, the only difference is the shutter control button on the Exakta-mount lens. This is not the Exa 1a that I was given in 1973.  That one was sold long ago after I got seriously back into photography.  This one is a display model that I picked up cheaply on eBay.  I have no desire to go back to shooting with a crappy-waist-level 35mm viewfinder...

Sunset on Drummond Island with Ultrafine 125 BW film

An unusual triangular building at Point Detour.

Edwin - a cemetery on Drummond Island

The Tee Pee -- a landmark on Drummond Island.

On the Maxton Plains alvar.

A cozy place.  I love photographing these small rural POs.   Looks like a small light leak somewhere
.

Fujica DL-20 - Pocketful of 35mm Fujifun

Back in January, I picked up a used Fujica DL-20 point and shoot that had been languishing in the local camera shop.  Fuji cameras have been known to have excellent optics, and the little 35mm camera intrigued me as to its abilities.  It had been sitting in Huron Camera's bargain bin for quite a while, and I finally bit.

pop-up flash

As you can see in the first photo, the lens cover is also a viewfinder cover. It rotates to the left, revealing the lens and  allowing use of the camera.   It uses 2 AA batteries to power the auto-winder and pop-up flash.  Film is easy to load- simply release the back catch, and the back opens up from the bottom, and you simply slide the roll of film and leader into place.  Shut the back and the film loads to frame 1.  There are only two manually-set ISO settings - 100 and 400.  Not the best selection, but this isn't a camera for the picky.  The two film speeds are also ones most likely to be found at the drugstore back in 1983, when the camera was released.    There is a pop-up flash that is manually set.  The focus is zone, with icons for portrait, group, and landscape.  The default is group, which is also the flash setting. The shutter button is large and easily found, and next to it there is also a recessed connector for a standard remote release cable, as well as a tripod socket on the bottom of the camera.  This is a pretty basic, yet functional and sturdy camera.  It can fit easily into a big pocket.

top deck of camera

The camera specifications are:
38mm focal length, f/4 Fujinon lens
1/100 sec shutter speed at ISO 100
1/300 sec shutter speed at ISO 400.
dimensions - 121 x 72 x 55 mm; 300 g
Anticipating today's trends, the camera was available in black, white, and red! It has clean lines,  a brightline viewfinder, and a raised grip on the right side, providing good ergonomics for the user. Okay, enough of that, how did the camera perform?    First of all, the roll of film I tested it with was fresh Kodak Tri-X, not a C-41 film.  Here are a few photos from that roll, ranging from a snowstorm in January, to a bit of snow in mid-March.

Snowstorm in Dexter, second shot on the roll.

Jiffy in Chelsea

March reflection

not yet picnic time

cactus club

monstera leaves

The optics appear to be quite sharp. It's not a bad camera, and surely a sturdy camera to keep handy for any adventure!   Two things I recommend you do -- make sure that the zone focus is set properly before shooting, and make sure that you don't inadvertently change the ISO setting.  Other than that, the camera is quite easy to use.  Like many Fuji cameras from a few decades ago, they seem to be uncommon here in the US.