Camerosity Mike Eckman

In the history of the 20th century photo industry, there have been countless cameras made by countless companies from countless countries.  Of all those cameras, one subset of film photography seems to appeal to a larger number than most, the 35mm half-frame camera.  Originally the only size for still photography on 35mm film, single frame fell out of favor after World War II, but saw a huge resurgence in the 1960s with half-frame models being released by nearly every company who made cameras.
In this, the 49th episode of the Camerosity Podcast, Anthony, Theo, Paul, and Mike welcome first time and returning callers, Ray Nason, Brian Howard, Phil C., Keir Frei, Maxwell Whitaker, Richard Diver, Roger Coats, and Sean Mahan to share with us their favorite half-frame models.

Mike can't help himself and gives a brief (for him) history of half-frame and why it was originally called 'single frame', we ponder what exactly qualifies as half-frame, should 4.5cm x 6cm medium format or 24mm x 24mm square format cameras count?
A huge amount of time is spent on the Olympus Pen series and a huge number of 35mm half-frame models by Ricoh, Konica, Yashica, Ansco, Minolta, Pentacon, Canon, Taron, Petri, and others.
As is the case with many episodes, we get off topic a bit and venture into square frame 35mm with the likes of the Berning Robot, Zeiss-Ikon Tenax, and Bolta Photavit cameras.  Of course we come back, only to get off topic again talking about Rapid and Karat film cassettes.  We start on a slippery slope of what Gen Z looks for in photography today and briefly touch upon why anyone would want to shoot the new Kodak H35 and similar cameras.
As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  We would love to hear from more listeners, especially those who are new to shooting film or collecting cameras.  Please don't feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don't consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining!
The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you'd like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance.
It is hard to believe, but the next episode of the Camerosity Podcast will be our 50th!  Way back in 2021, there was this crazy idea to create a Podcast in the style of an AM/FM Radio Talk Show in which listeners could call in during a live recording and ask questions or talk about whatever they wanted.  The first two episodes of this show were done with little more than an hour's notice and between those two episodes, spawned 47 more episodes, eventually making us not only the number one open source film photography podcast, but one of the fastest growing podcasts of any format.
We are trying to put something special together for our 50th episode, but haven't yet settled on the details, or even when we will record yet.  I can tell you it will definitely be in early June, but when I know, you'll know.  Hope to see you then!
This Week's Episode
Anthony reminisces about cheap AGAT 18s / A brief history lesson on the origins of half-frame all the way back to Thomas Edison
Anthony takes us back even further to the Lumière brothers and the Cinématographe
Olympus 18 / Pen revived the half-frame market in Japan in the 1960s / Half-frame is technically Single Frame
Medium format cameras, like 6x9 vs 6.45 are not considered half-frame
The Univex Mercury camera has a rotary shutter and very sharp lenses / Olympus Pen F also has a rotary shutter
Cynthia A. Repinski wrote a good book, The Univex

In this, the 48th episode of the world's most popular podcast, Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike shift their attention to one of the oldest camera makers in the world and one that had produced some of the most innovative, interesting, and high quality cameras ever made...except no one wanted to talk about them!

Okay, that's not exactly accurate as three people did show up.  Returning callers Raymond Nason, Mark Faulkner, and Brian Howard answered the call and came to chat with us about their favorite Konica cameras.
Kicking off the discussion was Mike who gave a short history of Japan's oldest camera maker with early models such as the Cherry Hand Camera and the Rokuoh-Sha Pearlette.  We quickly moved onto the sexy Pearl folding cameras and the early Konica 35mm rangefinders.  Ray brought with the very rare Konica F, the company's first attempt at a 35mm SLR, and then we bounced around between the Koni-Omega Rapid models, the Auto-Reflex series, we spent some time chatting about the Konica Eye half-frame camera, and eventually some of the company's more memorable point and shoots.
In addition to 96 minutes worth of Konica love, Theo, Mike, and Brian learned all about the American craze for elaborate senior photos, Mike explained the difference between automatic parallax and automatic field correction, Paul shares with us his least favorite 1990s premium camera, Mike complained (again) about the Konica AiBorg, his least favorite camera ever made, we explore a huge range of strange cameras designed by F.A. Porsche, and Ray gives an update on the 4th and final Yarovsky camera auction, which we discussed previously in Episode 44.
As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  We would love to hear from more listeners, especially those who are new to shooting film or collecting cameras.  Please don't feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don't consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining!
The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you'd like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance.
For our next episode, we've decided to go half...half-frame that is.  If you ever thought that 24mm x 36mm images are too large, and found that 18mm x 24mm was the ideal size for your negatives, Episode 49 is the one for you!  Join us as we will no doubt cover many wonderful half-frame shooters like the Olympus Pen F, Canon Dial 35, the Yashica Samurai, and the Konica Auto-Reflex....wait, we talked about that already!  Be sure to look out for our next show announcement.  Episode 49 will be recorded on Monday, May 15th.  We hope to see you there!
This Week's Episode
Paul is Headed to Another Auction and Isn't Going to Buy Anything...SUUUURRREEE!!!!
A Short Early History of Konica / Rokuoh-Sha Pearlette / Contessa-Nettel Picolette / Zeiss-Ikon Cocarette
Konica Got Into 35mm With a Bunch of Scale Focus and Rangefinder Models / Konica I
Konishiroku Snappy is a 17.5 mm "Hit Style" Camera / Konica Konilette Shoots Non-Perforated 35mm Film
Anthony Tells A Story About Karl Havens Dropping His Konishiroku Pearl II / Theo Loves the Pearl II
Mark Shares his 1938 Semi Pearl, the Predecessor to the Pearl / Semi is Japanese for 4.5x6
Konishiroku Pearl IV (SEXY ALERT!)
Konica II and Konica III / Variants of the Konica III, the IIIA, and IIIM / Konica's First Half-Frame 35mm Camera
Konica's First SLR was the Konica F from 1960 / Wards am551 (Konica Auto S2) / Konica FS
Auto Parallax and Auto Field Correction in

Of all the accessories available for cameras, perhaps camera straps are the thing that people have the strongest feelings about.  A camera strap is something that most cameras come with, whether it's one with the company's logo on it, or a leather one attached to an ever ready case, straps are almost as synonymous with photography as cameras are.
Yet, I don't think in the history of photography podcasts, anyone dared devote an episode one...that is until now.  If there was any doubt that this is the nerdiest film photography podcast ever, wait until you hear our camera strap episode!
To be fair, we don't spend the entire time talking about straps, we also discuss the cameras that have them attached.  To have a camera with a strap already attached suggests it is ready at a moment's notice to go out and shoot.  And if you have a camera at the ready, it must be one you like quite a bit, so for a good portion of this episode, the hosts talk about our favorite cameras which always have a strap attached, ready to go.
Joining Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike are returning callers Alex Dietrich, Bill Smith, Bob St. Cyr, Mark Faulkner, Miles Libak, and Patrick Casey and first time caller, all the way from Ireland, Brian Mac Domhnaill.
Along with our favorite cameras and favorite straps, we talk about cheap vs expensive lens adapters, Mike brings up a new camera he's testing with a 15mm f/8 lens, Alex Dietrich shares his black painted Nicca III L and much, much more!
As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  We would love to hear from more listeners, especially those who are new to shooting film or collecting cameras.  Please don't feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don't consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining!
The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you'd like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance.
For our next episode, we are devoting an entire episode to Konica, makers of such fine cameras as the half frame/full frame Konica Auto-Reflex, the Koni Rapid Omega, and the thumb film advance Konica III rangefinder.  Be sure to look out for our next show announcement.  Episode 48 will be recorded on Monday, May 1st.  We hope to see you there!
This Week's Episode
Paul has two picks for cameras he always has at the ready / Fuji GS645 and Plaubel 69W Proshift
Patrick's go-to cameras are the Leica M4 and the Minox 35 GL
Theo's "zoo" camera is the Nikon L35AF, a reliable point-and-shoot to keep loaded and ready to go
Brian surprises everyone with the Chinon Auto 3001 / Chinon Bellami
Mike sees your Pentax MX and raises you the Pentax LX
Miles surprises us with his choice of the Leica MA kitted out with a vintage 1930s Summar lens / L39 to M-mount and M42-K-mount adapters
Theo's more committed choice for a go-to camera / Leica M2 with a Hyperion strap
OK, Boomer: Mike and Paul wax poetic about hippie straps / branded straps from the 1980s
Alex goes strap shopping in Hong Kong
The original Minox chain is also a measuring tool for macro photography
Anthony raves about his Contax ST with the always-attached red Hyperion strap
Bob goes large format for his choice of a Gibellini GP810Ti, a stunning field camera with a big leather strap for a handle
Beware the metal rope straps...
Mark's current go-to camera is the Bessa R2A with the Skopar 35mm lens
A digression about the Secure Strap with braided stainless steel straps that help prevent cut-and-run theft
Mike blows up the di

It has taken us 46 episodes of seemingly non stop film camera discussion to finally devote an entire episode to the cameras that in the late 1990s and early 2000s, many photographers thought were a fad.  That's right folks, Camerosity has gone digital!  Before anyone protests and demands their Camerosity Season Pass™ membership be refunded, enough time has passed since those early film-less cameras that the early digital cameras are now vintage themselves.
In episode 46 of the Camerosity Podcast, the guys and I go all digital.  With us are callers Andrew Smith, Atabak Taghizadeh, Brian Howard, Greg McCreash, Mark Faulkner, Michael Gossett, Phil Clark, and Stephen Grasso.
Anthony and Brian start things off with one of the earliest true digital cameras, the Apple QuickTake.  This 0.3 megapixel monster was first released in 1994 and came in two distinct designs, one created by Kodak and the other by Fuji.  Moving onto the Sony Mavica and it's 3.5" floppy disc storage, the rest of the gang has some familiarity of these cameras, and Anthony reminisces about his large collection of floppies.
We continue to traverse the late 90s and early 2000s, going around the room recalling our first digital cameras that really made us realize that cameras which write in 1s and 0s were here to stay.  Mike discusses the differences between CCD and CMOS sensors, we dabble into digital IR photography and a couple Sony models which make disabling the visible light filter extremely simple.  Mark prefers a more difficult way though, by opening up his Panasonic Lumixes and permanently removing the filter.

We cover digital mirrorless, and which mounts we all love adapting film lenses to, why some people didn't like EVFs compared to optical viewfinders, Mike heaps praise on the Nikon Z5, and we dabble into some of the more strange digital camera designs like the Pixii and Lytro.
This was a loaded episode with a ton of information, so whether or not you're interested in older digital cameras, or are interested to know what a (Zoom) room full of a dozen collectors shoot when we don't feel like dealing with analog emulsion, you definitely do not want to miss this episode!
As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  We would love to hear from more listeners, especially those who are new to shooting film or collecting cameras.  Please don't feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don't consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining!
The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you'd like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance.
For our next episode, we plan on going back to the analog realm, but now that the digital Pandora's Box has been opened, will we forever be changed?  The theme of our next episode is "cameras with a strap" meaning those which are permanently in shooting configuration, ready to fire off some exposures at a moment's notice.  What are your favorite cameras of all time, and which are the ones that someone will have to pry from your cold dead fingers, on the day you reach your expiration date!  Be sure to look out for our next show announcement.  Episode 47 will be recorded on Monday, April 17th.  We hope to see you there!
This Week's Episode
All hosts shoot digital, arguments on better medium are silly
Anthony’s intro into digital, the Apple QuickTake / Brian’s Apple QuickTake 150, 100 and 200
Anthony has lots of floppies / Mark and Theo both have Sony Mavica Cameras
Peopl

On Episode 45 of the Camerosity Podcast, the guys and I return to a brand specific discussion for everyone's favorite bellows-TLR, 6cm x 4.5cm medium format SLR, 35mm leaf shutter SLR, f/1.5 lens rangefinder, half frame pistol camera making company, Mamiya!  If that seems like a wild range of cameras, you're right!  As makers of pretty much every style of camera conceived, Mamiya has done it all!
Joining Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike on this episode is Bill Rogers from mamiyarepair.com who has a literally grocery store size storage room full of spare Mamiya parts acquired from the company before they went bankrupt.  Bill has experience with and can repair nearly every Mamiya camera ever made, even the compact 35mm point and shoot Mamiya U.
In addition to Bill's expertise, we also welcome current Mamiya employee Ray Nason.  Ray has many decades of experience working with Mamiya cameras, selling them for many years to professional photographers and consumers alike.  Together, both Bill and Ray offer a 1-2 punch of Massive Mamiya Madness!
Along for the ride are returning callers, Robert Rotoloni, Mark Faulkner, Nick Marshall, Cheyenne Morrison, Andrew Smith, Bob St. Cyr, Ira Cohen, Marcy Merrill, and Larry Effler, and first time callers Brian Howard, Mike Ahmadi, and Steven Lederman.
With a total of 20 participants, the most we've ever had on an episode of the podcast, we cover a HUGE array of subjects, including some history of the brand, the state of the Japanese optics industry immediately after the war, the origins of the Mamiya-Sekor name, trivia on a rare Canon lens made in the Exakta mount for Mamiya, and how Mamiya was able to use Nikon's bunny ears for the meter coupling on the lenses for the M645 cameras.  Ira shows off his half frame Mamiya Pistol camera, Marcy brings with her a very strange accessory made for the Mamiya U, and Steven Lederman shows off a totally bizarre stereo camera made with Mamiya lenses.
As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  We would love to hear from more listeners, especially those who are new to shooting film or collecting cameras.  Please don't feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don't consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining!
The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you'd like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance.
For our next episode, we are finally entering the digital era, with an entire discussion on film-less cameras.  Point and shoot digicams, DSLRs, digital mirrorless, vintage digital, and digital backs are all topics we may or may not get to!  If you'd like to learn more about the history of digital photography, or why Gen Z is so smitten with Japanese digicams, be sure to look out for the next show!  Episode 46 will be recorded on Monday, April 3rd.  We hope to see you there!
This Week's Episode
Introducing Bill Rogers from mamiyarepair.com
The History of Mamiya / First Japanese Camera Maker After WWII / Made in Occupied Japan Cameras
Mamiya Sixes Can Be Found with Fuji, Nikkor, and Zuiko Lenses / Nikon Almost Made a TLR
The Mamiya Six Had a Movable Film Plane and a Strange Film Pressure Plate
In 1948 Mamiya Released Both the First Mamiyaflex and Mamiya 35mm Camera / Early Mamiyaflex and Mamiya C-Series TLRs
Anthony Knew a Guy Who Used the Mamiya C to Shoot Crime Scenes and Dead Bodies
Mamiya C TLRs Were Popular with Wedding Photographers
Ray Nason Works for Mamiya and has a Couple Photos of Mamiya Pr

After a stream of back to back to back episodes covering specific brands of cameras and talking to a huge number of listeners, the guys and I decided we would take a short break from our "open source" concept to catch up on the things we all have been doing.
We thought it would be a nice change to have a smaller, more intimate discussion and invite someone we all thoroughly enjoy talking to and wanted to catch up with.
After a painstaking "Hunger Games" style of elimination rounds, the guys and I picked none other than Dan Tamarkin as our special guest host this week.  As he always does, Dan brings with him a lifetime of knowledge of Leica and camera retail experience.
With that experience, we decided it would be fun to talk about some recent auctions, including a rather infamous one that recently closed in Northern Ohio which Paul and I participated in, and a large number of our listeners did as well.  We've heard some of the stories from that auction and have a few of our own, so we talk about that, along with Tamarkin Auctions, and everything that goes into making one run smoothly, and what might make them run "not smoothly".
In addition to auctions, Anthony thought it would be fun to announce in the presence of a well-known Leica dealer that he sold every single Leica he owns, and traded it for a viewfinder camera.  What kind of viewfinder camera is equal to a perfectly working Leica M3 and a IIIf you ask?  Listen to the show.

In addition, Mike's not dead, Robot Theo is pining for his job, Human Theo bought some stuff from Paul, Paul is bringing out the bling with his golden cameras, and Mike is shooting one of those Japanese "Hit" style miniature cameras.
As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  We would love to hear from more listeners, especially those who are new to shooting film or collecting cameras.  Please don't feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don't consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining!
The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you'd like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance.
For our next Episode, we will re-open the call-in lines and talk about Mamiya and their very diverse line up of roll film TLR and SLRs, along with their many different iterations of 35mm cameras.  Episode 45 will be recorded on Monday, March 20th.  We hope to see you there!
This Week's Episode
Besides Leica, What is Dan's Favorite Camera to Shoot? / Fuji GS645 / Zeiss-Ikon ZM Rangefinder
Fuji GF670 Folders / Plaubel Makina 67 and 67W
Anthony Sells All His Leicas To Buy a Fuji G617 / Theo Sells Anthony A Voigtländer Superb and it Gets Lost / Anthony Hates the Gainesville USPS
How Do You Properly Frame for a Panoramic Photo? / Anthony Sees Things in Panavision
Noblex 135 S / Mamiya 7 with Pano Adapter
What Percentage of Tamarkin Camera is Film vs Digital?
Leica M8 and M9s Come in and Go Straight to Leica / Faulty Digital Sensors
Mike Really Wants to Try a Leica M5 / Front Hanging Shutter Speed Dial / Canon EF
Behind the Scenes at Tamarkin Auctions / Live Auctions vs Online Auctions
Confusion About A Recent Large Camera Auction in Ohio / Bid Multipliers
Shipping Items from Online Auctions / Pickup of Items at the Ohio Auction
Dan and Paul's Stories About the Voncabbage Collection / The Most Amazing Collection
What Other High Profile Auctions Are Out There?
Buying Cameras from Estate Auctions / The Thrill of the Hunt / Mike Buys a Very Poorly Listed Olympus Six
M