When wandering around in a national park, one sees a lot of people taking photos. Over the last three decades, my wife and I have observed that the equipment used by the photographers has changed. In the latter part of the 1900s, the cameras seen most often were those that used film, particularly 35mm film, but occasionally a camera using 126 or 110 film might be seen. On very rare occasions a medium format camera using 120 roll film might be seen. In recent years, a great shift to digital cameras has taken place and in the last few years phones have become the dominant photo mode.
Being something of a retro type, film photography still holds a fascination for me. For one thing, I still like the looks and feel of a solid “brass and glass” camera that works with film. Among my cameras is a Mamiya 645 that gives 15 exposures measuring 6X4.5 cm on a roll of 120 film.
During our most recent trip to Yellowstone National Park, we met a young couple and the young man was carrying one of the latest mirrorless digital wonders. During our brief chat on the walkway, he became very interested in my Mamiya so he asked when it was made. In the case of my Mamiya, it was made in 1970s, and he was so impressed that he asked multiple times “And it still works?” Of course it does or I would not have been carrying it. The accompanying photos can attest to its usability.
Among my older cameras is a Welta Weltax folding camera that uses 120 roll film to give 12 exposures that measure 6X6 cm in size. That camera always leads to onlooker curiosity and frequent questions. When was it made? What type of film does it use? Can you still get the film? Does it still work? My specimen was produced in the late 1940s. Models were made with various types of lenses and shutters, but the one that I have has the f3.5 Zeiss Tessar lens and Compur Rapid shutter.
When I am carrying my Welta Weltax I frequently get questions about the quality of the results. For those who are interested, the Welta Weltax took the photo of the root system. When using that camera and many other vintage folding cameras, focusing is done by turning the front lens element so it is necessary to estimate the distance to the subject carefully. This camera has the highly regarded Zeiss Tessar lens, but of course, the camera has no exposure meter so it is also necessary to set the shutter speed and aperture manually. However, when used carefully, such cameras can produce excellent photos and when closed they can literally be carried in a pocket.
Good equipment lasts a long time. An enormous number of cameras that use film are still fully functional. They can often be found for bargain prices, but over the last few years I have noted that the prices of film cameras has risen markedly as a new generation of photographers discovers their charm and capability for doing photography with film. You may even have noted that some big box stores are once again carrying 35mm film and have shelves holding vinyl records.
If you do not have a film camera and want to give film photography a try, usable cameras are not difficult to locate. Of course you need to make sure that the controls work properly before you put in the film, but an amazing array of perfectly usable cameras are collecting dust. I have a rather extensive range of vintage cameras and almost all still work very well.
There are other ways to take photos, but there is satisfaction in using a vintage camera. If you are using such a camera, it is sure to get attention and spark a conversation with the “phone photo” crowd. So, get some film, take some pictures and let Brooktree do the rest
-Jim House
