Concise History of the 35mm SLR

I've squeezed 50 years of 35mm SLR history into 19 short segments, with an interface that's fun to use. You click squares around the outside to go from page-to-page, from the 1936 Kiné Exakta to the 1985 Minolta Maxxum 7000.

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Pop Photo's 1954 Single-Lens Reflex Cameras "Camerette"

This long, wonderfully illustrated, article (12+ pages), which appeared in the September 1954 issue of Popular Photography, explains everything important to know about SLRs—as of 1954, that is.

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The Catalog

Here's the whole array of my 60-plus classic cameras. Click on a thumbnail to go to the detail page, or use the navigation links at left.

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Costliest and Cheapest Cameras

In 2009 dollars, the most expensive camera I own is the Contax S, at $4222. The cheapest is the Kodak Vest Pocket Model B at $92. Here's the complete ranking.

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New: Leica M3 brochure, Nikon F review

Just got an extremely detailed Leica M3 brochure. I've also posted the August 1959 Modern Photography review of the Nikon F, which is much more enthusiastic than the Popular Photography review.

Nikon F page...

Leica M3 page...

How to Buy a Camera on eBay

Now that I've bought most of the cameras I want, or that are available, I'm willing to share my eBay secrets, captured in four rules.

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Japan 16, Germany 1, Game Over

The 35mm rangefinder and SLR business was all Germany's before World War II, and mostly through the 1950s, too. But by 1960 photographers wanted SLRs, and that part of the business was taken over by Japan. By 1970 Germany hardly had a camera industry at all.

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Disassembling a Minolta SRT201

I bought this functioning (near as I can tell) Minolta SRT201 on eBay for $5.50 for one purpose only: To take it apart. Here are the photos.

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