Old School Cool!

This is my first 35mm camera. (well actually A & I shared a beirette before this but sharing doesn't count!)

Previously I had a plastic 110 camera but that must have died. So BillyGoat spotted this second hand in a camera shop in the town near where we lived. I was about 9 at the time and this camera cost a whole 10 pounds! (was a lot of pocket money). Despite leaking a bit of light at first, which was easily fixed with some new sticky backed velvet, it took amazingly good photos.

I remember not long after getting it, we went on a school trip to a nature reserve, a lot of the other kids who had modern (plastic ugh!) compact cameras poked fun, asking if it squirted water etc.. I got the last laugh when our photos were printed and we took them in to school and the picture quality from my old camera was leagues ahead of theirs.

It was also really good in low light and always got a great crisp image.

I used it regularly for about 12 or 13 years until we arrived in Fiji on the first leg of a year long round the world trip and the light meter had packed in. Sadly i replaced with a modern (plastic ugh!) compact from Pentax, which was good enough, but died a couple of years later on a mountain bike trip.

Last year, before I made the switch to digital, I tried to resurrect it, I found internet instructions describing the problem with the light meter failing - the very fine battery wires corrode and fall off. So I attempted to fix it. Problem is the battery wires have come off both ends and I couldn't work out how to get to the other end! Maybe one day!

I also found out during my internet search that Konica made loads of accesories for this camera including a very cool underwater housing!

Here endeth the lesson. (rangefinder's rock!)