# So many camera, so little time...



## LYFELINE (Oct 23, 2013)

Thank you in advance for reading this post. Grab some snacks and use the restroom before reading because this is gonna take awhilelol!

I have acquired a number of cameras and I am trying to figure out some things. This is what I need help with:

1.     Determining exactly what type of camera I have and a rough projection of value based on its current condition.
2.     Based on its current condition, would it be worth it to fix the camera?
3.     If I decide to fix a camera, what would be the best way to go about doing it (i.e. local repair shop, online, etc.).
4.     What would be the best camera/equipment to keep based on your experiences and expertise?
5.     What would be the best avenue to dispose of them (No, Im not throwing any of them away. I would just like to know if it would be worth my while trying to sell them on ebay or craigslist, trade, or sell for parts).

You are probably wondering how I ended up with so many cameras so I will elaborate. My father used to cruise a lot of garage sales and acquired the majority of the stuff I have. He had an interest in photography but never really followed through. I think he saw some of this stuff and thought it was a good deal so he bought it. He has never used any of the stuff he purchased. He is in his seventies and decided he couldnt be bothered so he gave the cameras to me. The remainder of the stuff I picked up after cleaning out my mother-in-laws apartment that she lived in for almost 40 years. She wasnt into photography but from what my wife tells me, she used to find stuff on the train or bus when she commuted so I believe this was one of her finds. She doesnt remember anything about it (she is 83 and has Alzheimers so its understandable).

About me:

I have always had an interest in photography. When I was in high school, I used my fathers camera (which is one of the models in the list of stuff I haveIll elaborate later) to take pictures occasionally. When I was in the Air Force, I purchased my first camera, an Olympus OM-77 AF, around 1989-90 from the BX/PX (the on-base store for my non-military folks). Unfortunately around 2001-01, coming home from work early one morning, I forgot it at the bus stop in a camera bag with two extra lenses.

I used to read photography books occasionally and tried to improve on my technique but to be honest, I never really took any of the information I read seriously or understood most of what I read. I loaded film in the camera, pointed it and shot pictures. When I would get the film developed, the pictures would look good about 85% of the time. I never really understood how the settings on my camera worked or how it would affect the final outcome.

That being said, I have wanted to get back into taking pictures again. One of the main reasons is because I am a fashion designer and I would like to add fashion photography to my list of skills. I would like to become proficient in composing good photos and applying any techniques I learn to produce catalogue, print and digital media quality pictures. I am currently trying to enroll in a photography program at a local college. I also have been doing a lot of reading of online posts, reviews and looking at YouTube videos. The Internet has a wealth of information and I am trying to take advantage of it. I will also be visiting my local library to borrow books on the subject (any book suggestions would be helpful). At this stage of my life (Im 43), I have the discipline to take the time to read, understand and to execute what I read.

But enough about me

Here is the list of items I have. I will try to describe each one and include as much information as possible. I included the serial numbers (or what looks like serial numbers) as it may help in distinguishing more specifics about the cameras and equipment in question.

*CAMERAS*

Canon AE-1 s/n 1050918

No noticeable exterior damage. No missing exterior parts. Oxidation (green) on silver parts. 

Canon T70 s/n 1685597

No noticeable exterior damage. Missing small cable release cover (not sure if it should have one or not), broken latch for battery door. Looks like some old batteries were left in it and corroded (deposits and rusty contacts on battery cover).

Pentax K1000 s/n 6779270

Noticed a few exterior scratches on the base. Broken film rewind lever.

Nikon FM? s/n 2222590

No noticeable exterior damage. Some brown (possibly rust?) stains at the base of the camera. Some oxidation on the contacts on the base of the camera. Slight oxidation on some of the silver parts.

Yashica J? s/n N 818488

This camera was actually given to my father by his father. He purchased it abroad (Japan I think) when he was a merchant seaman. It took fairly decent pictures back in the day, from what I remember. I will get some film and test it out. No exterior damage and it comes with its own form-fitting hard case.

Walz Envoy M-35 s/n 25496

No noticeable exterior damage.

Ricoh FF-90 s/n 91 253336

No noticeable exterior damage. Installed 2 AA batteries and the display came on. I will buy a roll of film and test it out.

There were also some additional lens, flashes and accessories that came with the cameras. I will try my best to list the information for each piece and what camera it fits.

*LENSES*

These lenses fit the Canon AE-1 and the Canon T70

Sakar Auto Teleconverter 2X for (CAF)
Sakar Automatic  SC  1:4.5  f=80-200 mm  55  No. 823074
Sakar Zoom Macro 1:4.5 f=85~210 mm  No. 681153
Sakar M.C. 1:2.8  f=28  52  6010296
Canon Lens FD  50 mm 1:1.8 (a Sakar UV 52 mm filter is attached)
Canon Lens FD  50 mm 1:1.4 S.S.C
Vivitar Macro Focusing Zoom  28-70 mm 1:35-4.8 MC 52 mm  C/FD97602070

These lenses fit the Nikon FM

NIKKOR 200 mm 1:4  760410 (a Vivitar 52 mm polarizing filter is attached)
Micro-NIKKOR 55 mm  1:2.8  277252 (a Vivitar 52 mm Skylight 1A filter is attached)

This lens is mounted on the Pentax K1000

Ashai Optical Co. SMC Pentax-M 1:2  50 mm 5360765

I didnt list the lenses on the Yashica or the Waltz. Those seem to be permantely mounted to those camera bodies.

*FLASHES*

Quantaray QA 25  I believe this was intended to be used with the Canon T70 but may be able to be used with other cameras. It takes 2 AA batteries. I installed 2 AA rechargeables but could not get it to turn on. A sticker on the camera says For best results use fresh alkaline batteries regularly. Im not sure if this is why it wont work but I will buy some alkaline batteries to try it out.
The other flash I have is missing the manufacturers markings on it due to age. There is the number 80 or 90 (hard to tell which) on it and another marking that says computerized. I believe it may be a Vivitar flash. It takes 4AA and I installed them in the flash. It would not turn on and I had a hard time putting the cover back on with the batteries installed due to a lot of corrosion on the battery cover contacts.
The silver reflective material inside the bulb area is flaking off. Im gonna go with my gut and say its probably worthless but Ill let the experts guide me.

*EXTRAS*

The Canon AE-1 came with a screw in cable release. Im gonna go out on a limb here and say it works.

Power Winder for CA-1 (works with the Canon AE-1 and models A-1, AL-1, AT-1, AV-1 and AE-1P). I loaded batteries in the unit and when I first tried it out, I got nothing. I thought that the red led light would come on. After I tried mounting it to the camera, when the connectors on the unit made contact, the motor started to work so I think its okay.

I recently purchased a Nikon D3200 so I have my DSLR needs covered but I wanted some opinions on what camera(s) I should keep. Here is my take on the cameras and why I would want a particular model.

I was leaning toward the Canon cameras, mainly because of the variety of lenses available. The toss up here is if I should keep the AE-1 or the T70. I would love to hear the pros and cons of each and why one would be better than the other.

I thought about keeping the Yashica because of the family history behind it (being that its my fathers camera) but I feel that it is very limited in terms of lenses and options to improve the final photographic outcome. It would probably just be put away or displayed around the house. Am I being too sentimental to consider keeping it or should I just let it go?

The Pentax K1000 seems to be the beginner/training standard so I felt that this would be a good choice if the rewind lever was the only issue it had (and the repair was reasonable).

Since I have a newer Nikon, I felt that keeping one of its predecessors would be a good idea. I think I read somewhere that you can use some manual lenses on the D3200 but Im not sure if these would fit or work. I really would like some opinions on which camera (Canon AE-1, Canon T70, Nikon FM, Pentax K1000) is the most viable contender to keep in my arsenal of cameras and would help me to sharpen my manual camera operating skills.

The Pentax K1000 seems to be the beginner/training standard so I felt that this would be a good choice if the rewind lever is the only issue it has (and the repair was reasonably priced).

The Waltz M35, and the Ricoh FF-90 dont really excite me. Like I said previously, Im very new to this so I may be overlooking a good camera due to my inexperience. Please tell me if Im making a hasty judgement call. I actually have photos of all this stuff but the files are large and I don't feel like taking the time to resize right now. I may have time to do it in the next few days.


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## compur (Oct 24, 2013)

Old cameras/lenses must function fully and properly to have any value. Good appearance is a definite plus but non-working equipment is usually worth very little to nothing in most cases. Lenses must also have clean optics with no fungus or scratches.  This is the important information that a potential buyer would be interested in. 

It's similar to selling a car.  Does it run well and does everything work? If not, the price plunges.

If you are unable to determine the functionality of an item you can list it on eBay and state that you don't know and sell it "as is" for highest bid but I  wouldn't expect much.


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## LYFELINE (Oct 24, 2013)

Thanks for your reply.

I didn't really expect to get rich by selling them but I did want some guidance on how I can go about getting them checked out. I also wanted to keep one, possibly two of them to practice my technique and brush up on skills. Any suggestions based on your personal experience would be helpful.


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## compur (Oct 24, 2013)

Perhaps a local camera store can help you or direct you to someone who can.


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