We are back with Episode 104 of the Camerosity Podcast.  Unlike the last few shows where we didn't come prepared with a topic to discuss, this time we took a suggestion from our Discord server listeners and attempted to tackle all the new lenses that keep appearing from Chinese companies,  With ever faster maximum apertures and wider lenses selling for insanely cheap prices, are these lenses any good, and why suddenly is the market flooded with them?

Joining Anthony, Paul, Stephen, and Mike are callers Andy Howarth, Brendon Wilson, Fernando Villava, Mark "Cletus" Widhalm, Martin Olsen, Norris Liu, Pat Casey, Robert Rotoloni, and Will Pinkham.  We start off the show with a quick announcement that Fernando has started a Spanish language version of the Camerosity Podcast called "Camerosity in Spanish".  They've already recorded two episodes, and if you speak Spanish, it is worth checking out what him and his guests are talking about!

For this show, we briefly start off our lens episode talking about Retina Reflexes, but thankfully we don't stay distracted long as we move into the wonderful world of modern Chinese lenses.  We attempt to cover different brands of lenses and what kinds of options there are out there and which ones we've personally had experience with.

Stephen and Norris have a wealth of technical knowledge and historical perspective for how the Chinese manufacturing industry works, and we get into a bit of why you're seeing so many options these days.  While many of the new ultra-fast lenses are extremely affordable, they are built to be disposable and likely won't last nearly as long as the classic lenses many of us collect.  Paul shares with us one (non-Chinese) brand that he doesn't like and Stephen tells us what "onion ring bokeh" is.

Eventually we do move off from Chinese lenses to talk about extremely wide angle fisheye lenses and Stephen tells us about a clever use of his Olympus Air A01 and we briefly mention strange cameras like the Nikon KeyMission 360 Double Fisheye lens.

With Bob Rotoloni on, Paul asks about a Nikon M he is interested in buying and we get into a discussion about the Nikon M and different variants of that particular camera.  We keep meandering topics before finally ending up Mike's first purchase on the Japanese auction site, buyee.jp.

Come See Mike at the Chicago Camera Show: I will be heading up to the Sheraton Suites Chicago Elk Grove hotel for a camera show on Sunday, February 22nd.  At this show will be several callers from this episode, Bob Rotoloni, Norris Liu, Mark Widhalm, and past Camerosity guests like Vlad Kern and possibly others.  Mike won't have a table at this one, but I'll be walking around chatting with people so if you're near the area and want to stop by, come see us!

As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  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 into shooting or collecting cameras, no matter how long you’ve been doing it, 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, the Camerosity Discord server, 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.

We don't have a topic for our next show, but we at least know it will be Episode 105 and we will record it on Monday, February 23rd at 7pm Central Standard Time and 8pm Eastern Standard Time.  Make sure you set your calendars and look out for the show announcement at the usual locations and be prepared to join us!

In This Episode

Links

The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord! Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, Stephen, and Mike on our very own Discord Server. Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums. If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show! Check it out! https://discord.gg/PZVN2VBJvm.

If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group, Instagram page, or Discord server.

Order Your Very Own Camerosity Podcast T-Shirt! - https://www.zazzle.com/z/tbykl0hg

Chicago Camera Show on Sunday February 22 - https://www.facebook.com/events/sheraton-suites-chicago-elk-grove/chicago-camera-show/774123451683491/

Camerosity in Spanish - https://camerosity.es/

The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast

Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/

Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/

Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris - https://thisoldcamera.net/

Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/

In what turned out to be one of the more unhinged episodes of the Camerosity Podcast, for Episode 103 the gang didn't get the show announcement out until the day of the recording, but that resulted in a near record number of participants, and without a dedicated topic to discuss, we ran the gamut of topics from Theo's recent acquisition of a local lab's Fuji Frontier Scanner, to a very lively discussion about radioactive lenses and why you should not grind up lens glass and snort it.

Joining Anthony, Paul, Stephen, Theo, and Mike on this episode were A.J. Gentile, Dan Cuny, Doug Doyle, Fernando Villava, Greg McCreash, Ira Cohen, Jeremy Scott, Mario Piper, Norris Liu, Pat Casey, Ron Gee, Vlad Kern, Will Pinkham, plus a few others who didn't say anything.

The show starts off with Theo telling the tale of how a Frontier scanner is coming to him and that turned into a very lively discussion about all scanning options from using professional scanners, flatbed scanners, and then eventually to digitizing with a digital camera.

Returning guest Dan Cuny shares some vintage digital cameras he's been working on reviews for including the 0.3 megapixel Canon PowerShot 350 and the floppy disc Sony Mavica!  Continuing on the vintage digital discussion was the revelation that three of the five Camerosity hosts all have the 1990s Minolta RD-175 DSLR!

Vlad Kern from ussrphoto.com comes on and shares his recent pickup of a spy camera from a shot down Russian drone found in Ukraine which he recently acquired.  Vlad's crazy spy camera looks straight out of a science fiction movie and the hosts wonder how he managed to get that past European and American customs!

Of course, we get into a bit of GAS including a follow up to Episode 102 where Ron Gee had ordered an Aero-Liberator camera from John Minnicks, Ron came back to talk about receiving the camera and his initial impressions of it.  Other cameras discussed are the Tele and Wide Rolleiflexes, a rare Foth TLR, the 16mm KMZ Narciss SLR, a very strange and rare American camera called the Millfred Cand-O-Matic and I give an update on some leather I purchased for a Leica IIIa that needed to be recovered.

As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  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 into shooting or collecting cameras, no matter how long you’ve been doing it, 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, the Camerosity Discord server, 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 show, Theo will be vacationing in Japan, so he won't be joining us, and there still isn't a topic yet, but Episode 104 will be recorded on Monday, February 2nd at 7pm Central Standard Time and 8pm Eastern Standard Time.  Make sure you set your calendars and look out for the show announcement at the usual locations and be prepared to join us!

In This Episode

Links

The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord! Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, Stephen, and Mike on our very own Discord Server. Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums. If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show! Check it out! https://discord.gg/PZVN2VBJvm.

If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group, Instagram page, or Discord server.

Order Your Very Own Camerosity Podcast T-Shirt! - https://www.zazzle.com/z/tbykl0hg

The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast

Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/

Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/

Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris - https://thisoldcamera.net/

Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/

The end of the year has come.  As is the case every year, 2025 was filled with some ups and downs.  For the Camerosity Podcast, we reached the 100 episode milestone, saw a huge influx of Miranda cameras re-enter the used camera market, and a whole lotta pictures of manatees.

For Episode 102, the gang got together with some holiday themed alcoholic beverages and discussed what last minute bouts of GAS we had, and other bits of nonsense we were up to.  Joining Anthony, Paul, Stephen and Mike were returning callers A.J. Gentile, Leon Blankenhorn, Pat Casey, Will Pinkham, William Ponder, and first time callers Joao Gomes and Ron Gee.

In this episode we start right off with recent pickups, Paul is enamored with his Hasselblad digital back which he has almost permanently mounted to his 907x, calling it the best digital camera he's ever shot.  A recent pickup of a Hassy 65mm f/2.8 lens further cemented it for him.  Pat Casey talks about his love for 3x4 Graflexes and first time caller Ron Gee is excited for his new Aero Liberator camera he ordered from John Minnicks.

We discuss the shift of German cameras being made in countries other than Germany, why West German companies made so many leaf shutters and seemed to be reluctant to adopt focal plane shutters, and Mike (poorly) attempts to explain the confusing history of the Voigtländer Bessaflex, Zeiss-Ikon Icarex and SL706, Voigtländer VSL series and Rollei SL35 series SLRs.

Mike shares his two most recent pickups, the first is the brand new and recently released LOMO MC-A which is an impressive premium point and shoot camera and he feels is the best example we've seen so far of what a brand new premium 35mm camera should be.  His other pickup is a rather ordinary Vivitar XC-3 with the unordinary XC-A accessory which kinda sorta adds Aperture Priority Automatic Exposure to a camera which wasn't built with it.

Anthony talks about a $25 Nikonos III he recently picked up and used to take some of the best photos he's ever taken of manatees in the spring by his house.  He also shares with us his oddest camera, the Kirka Electronik Auto Hobby Emergency Car Camera Kit.

And right before we were about to sign off, Ron Gee drops not one but two of the largest 6x17 and 6x24 3D printed cameras any of us have seen.  With names like Sasquatch and Kracken, these large beasts are not to be taken lightly!

As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  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 into shooting or collecting cameras, no matter how long you’ve been doing it, 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, the Camerosity Discord server, 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.

We don't yet have a topic for our first episode of the new year, but whatever it is, Episode 103 will be recorded on Monday, January 12th, 2026 at 7pm Central Standard Time and 8pm Eastern Standard Time.  Make sure you set your calendars and look out for the show announcement at the usual locations and be prepared to join us!

In This Episode

Links

The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord! Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, Stephen, and Mike on our very own Discord Server. Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums. If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show! Check it out! https://discord.gg/PZVN2VBJvm.

If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group, Instagram page, or Discord server.

Order Your Very Own Camerosity Podcast T-Shirt! - https://www.zazzle.com/z/tbykl0hg

The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast

Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/

Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/

Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris - https://thisoldcamera.net/

Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/

When it came time to decide what to follow up our 100th episode, the guys made a comment that we should interview a prominent podcaster and blogger in the vintage camera realm.  With a long list of guests already, we thought hard about who we've missed, who is one person who has helped grow GAS as much as any one single person can?  Anthony spoke up and said, "Hey, it should be Mike"!  While I had my doubts about how interesting a whole episode about me could be, I thought that I do like to tell stories, why why not?!

Joining Anthony, Paul, Stephen, Theo, and Mike this, our 101st episode are returning callers A.J. Gentile, David Palumbo, Fernando Villava, Ira Cohen, Mark Faulkner, Pat Casey, Rob Lattimer, William Ponder, and Will Pinkham.

Over the course of the episode, I field a variety of questions from how I got started, what is my while whale camera, what cameras never clicked for me, what was an example of a camera that I felt overwhelmed trying to shoot.  Paul gets me to revisit my 2023 trip to Los Angeles when I went through the collection of Kurt Ingham and what it was like going through such a large collection.  

We get into camera accessories, especially how difficult it is to adapt Kilfitt lenses and that the "Rear Window" Kilfitt lens was never made specifically with an Exakta mount, we talk about what is a good first camera is, and we get into how I am resisting the urge to collect carbon filament light bulbs and Nixie Tubes.

Amazingly, we make it through the nearly 2 hour run time without repeating too much of what's been covered before, and while doing so managed to cover a whole lot of GAS!

As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  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 into shooting or collecting cameras, no matter how long you’ve been doing it, 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, the Camerosity Discord server, 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.

We will be back shortly with our next episode, which is going to be two days before Christmas.  We'll call this one our "holiday eggnog episode" where we recap the year and open up the call in lines for whatever you all want to talk about.  Episode 102 will be recorded on Tuesday, December 23rd at 7pm Central Standard Time and 8pm Eastern Standard Time.  Make sure you set your calendars and look out for the show announcement at the usual locations and be prepared to join us!

In This Episode

Links

The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord! Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, Stephen, and Mike on our very own Discord Server. Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums. If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show! Check it out! https://discord.gg/PZVN2VBJvm.

If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group, Instagram page, or Discord server.

Order Your Very Own Camerosity Podcast T-Shirt! - https://www.zazzle.com/z/tbykl0hg

The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast

Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/

Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/

Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris - https://thisoldcamera.net/

Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/

Can you believe it?  The Camerosity Podcast is back with Episode 100!  From what started out as a spontaneous Zoom call on a random May evening during the midst of a global pandemic has turned into one of the most popular and still only open source film and digital photography podcasts!  While the hosts have changed since we started, its not really the hosts that make this show what it is, it is the guests and callers we have each episode which keep us on our toes with new and interesting topics.

For our centennial episode, the hosts sent out invites to some of our favorite guests and also kept the call in lines open for anyone to join us.  We received responses from Todd Gustavson from the George Eastman Museum, Dan Tamarkin from Tamarkin Camera and Auctions in Chicago, Marwan El Mozayen from Silvergrain Classics, Robert Rotoloni from the Nikon Historical Society, and returning for the first time in 50 episodes, Johnny Sisson from Central Camera in Chicago.  Joining these esteemed guests were callers A.J. Gentile, Alex Luyckx, Eric Risse, Greg McCreash, Nick Marshall, Pat Casey, Patrick Rapps, Wayne Scheipers, Will Pinkham, and William Ponder.  It was a star studded cast if I ever saw one!

We get things started out with Marwan giving us an update on the all new Widelux-X panoramic camera prototype and where there at in its ultimate release.  While we don't expect to see the new model this year, its release is coming soon!  Todd chimes in with updates from the George Eastman Museum and what's new in their collection.  He shares what he knows about Eastman Kodak's recent announcement of them distributing their own film again and the new Kodak 100 and 200 films and a project to document the most important historical cameras in history.  Dan Tamarkin discusses getting married and the upcoming Tamarkin Camera Auction and gives us a preview of a couple cool Leicas which will appear in the show.

Robert gives an update on the state of the NHS Journey and Alex shares what he's working on for his site and an upcoming review of EFKE KB50 film.  Johnny Sisson is back at Central Camera and he shares some updates about what's going on there and what's new in his life.  While we don't expect to see Johnny resuming his hosting responsibilities, he should be more present in the camera collector community.

In addition to the guests already mentioned, other callers chime in with their favorite developers for black and white film, Will Pinkham opens Pandora's Box by asking for recommendations for a good rangefinder to use, and Mike shares his thoughts on the Nikon S3 re-release from 2000 and William Ponder shares his love for the Welta Weltini.

As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  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 into shooting or collecting cameras, no matter how long you’ve been doing it, 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, the Camerosity Discord server, 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.

As we hit this milestone 100th episode, we are taking a short break before our next recording.  As of this post, we don't yet have a date or a topic for Episode 101, but rest assured, once we know, it will be communicated via the normal channels!

In This Episode

Links

The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord! Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, Stephen, and Mike on our very own Discord Server. Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums. If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show! Check it out! https://discord.gg/PZVN2VBJvm.

If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group, Instagram page, or Discord server.

Order Your Very Own Camerosity Podcast T-Shirt! - https://www.zazzle.com/z/tbykl0hg

Official Widelux-X Website - https://wideluxx.com/

Tamarkin Camera Auctions - https://www.tamarkinauctions.com/

George Eastman Museum - https://www.eastman.org/

Central Camera - https://centralcameraco.bigcartel.com/visit

Alex Luyckx Blog - http://www.alexluyckx.com/blog/

The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast

Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/

Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/

Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris - https://thisoldcamera.net/

Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/

For the past several episodes, the Camerosity Podcast has covered a wide range of topics from tiny digital TLRs, to Exaktas, to death and while these were all riveting conversations, we realized it had been a while since the hosts could just talk about what we've been up to.  Camera shows, tropical vacations, and recent GAS abound, we decided to not advertise the recording of Episode 99.  Although this show was mostly about the hosts, that didn't stop two additional guests, first time caller Douglas Willoughby and returning caller William Ponder from jumping in!

We get things started with Paul's introduction to Doug who repaired his Nikon F4 and explains what went wrong.  William follows with a discussion regarding Miranda cameras and the tale of a Miranda Automex III that he bought from Mike.  We continue on with more Miranda discussion then pivot to Zeiss-Ikon Contax SLRs and other cameras from the Texas collection such as the KW Praktiflex and later Praktica cameras. Mike professes his love for the Contax SLRs shutter and the strange noises it makes.

Later we pivot to traveling with cameras, and Anthony, Theo, and Paul all give their tips and shared experiences traveling with cameras and how to get your film hand checked at the airport.  We talk about camera batteries, Stephen's journey of modifying his LEGO camera to look like a Leica which then of course turns into a discussion about actual Leicas including Anthony's crazy tale of how he acquired a Leica M2.

Finally, we chat about recent GAS pickups, Theo brings up the Mamiya 7 AGAIN and then Stephen shows off a very strange camera called the Olympus Air A01 which is the same size as a teleconverter, but is an entirely self contained micro 4/3s interchangeable lens mirrorless digital camera.

As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  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 into shooting or collecting cameras, no matter how long you’ve been doing it, 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, the Camerosity Discord server, 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.

Can you believe it?  The next episode will be number 100!  Since May 2021, the Camerosity Podcast has proclaimed to be the world's first and only, open source film and digital podcast.  Our show has kept that theme through most of those 100 episodes and the amount of feedback and engagement you all have shared with the hosts is humbling.

For this, our centennial episode, we are opening the doors for anyone to call in, but we've extended invites to some of our favorite previous guests.  I'd won't give out any names here, but I would be willing to bet if you were to guess, you'd get at least a couple right!  We will record Episode 100 on Monday, October 20th at 7pm Central Daylight Time and 8pm Eastern Daylight Time.  Be sure you mark your calendars and hit up the Zoom link when it is posted and join us!

In This Episode

Links

The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord! Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, Stephen, and Mike on our very own Discord Server. Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums. If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show! Check it out! https://discord.gg/PZVN2VBJvm.

If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group, Instagram page, or Discord server.

Order Your Very Own Camerosity Podcast T-Shirt! - https://www.zazzle.com/z/tbykl0hg

The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast

Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/

Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/

Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris - https://thisoldcamera.net/

Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/

It has been a couple of weeks but the gang finally got back together to devote an entire episode to one of our favorite, and longest lived camera brands, the Ihagee Exakta.  If you are familiar with the Exakta name, you probably know them as a maker of high end, but very quirky 35mm SLRs, however there were far more Exaktas produced in the 20th century using three different forms of film and nine different lens mounts.  In Episode 98, the Camerosity Podcast hosts do their best to try and corral all those models and history into a single episode.

Joining Anthony, Stephen, Paul, and Mike are returning and first time callers Daniel from Chicago, Eric Lorenz, Fernando Villava, Howard Sandler, Ira Cohen, Michael Boudreau, Mike Toppo, Pat Casey, and Phil Clark.

We were unable to find an expert who could speak intelligently on the history and wide range of Exakta models made, so Mike did his best to cover the history, starting with how the company formed, and we go (mostly) in chronological order from the first 127 Vest Pocket Exaktas, the Night Exaktas, the early Kine Exaktas, into the Varex models, the redesigned VX1000 and Elbaflex models, and into the weeds with uncommon cameras like the Exakta Real, Exakta Twin TL, and some other Japanese and Chinese made models.

In addition to the Ihagee Exakta, we also dedicate a bit of time to the Exakta's little brother, the Exa, covering that models strengths and weaknesses.  We attempt to explain how the shutter on early Exas work, and Mike tells a story of a hard to find "System Exa" that's not even made by Ihagee at all.

Many questions were asked with varying levels of good answers, including how many lens mounts can be found on an Exakta camera, how many different companies produced Exakta cameras, what is the best introduction to the Exakta lineup, and whether or not Exaktas are good for shooting or just for collecting.  We even spend some time on the infamous Exaka with 400mm Kilfitt lens found in the Hollywood classic movie, Rear Window.

And just to round it all off, we spend the end of the episode on the Topcon SLRs which use the Exakta mount, including whether all lenses are fully compatible between the two company's models.

As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  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 into shooting or collecting cameras, no matter how long you’ve been doing it, 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, the Camerosity Discord server, 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.

The last several episodes of the show have been wonderfully exciting and informational.  We've had a huge number of guests, many of whom are first time callers who joined a long list of people who have contributed to this show.  And while all the hosts enjoy chatting with all of you, we haven't had an episode to ourselves in a while, so for Episode 99, we are not taking any callers.  We want to spend this time to get caught up on what we've been doing, share with you some of the private discussions we have behind closed doors, but mostly, we're looking for an episode that's easier to edit.

Don't worry though, for the next, next episode, we hit triple digits, episode number 100.  It gives me chills just typing that here.  We will be looking for something special for our centennial episode and once we know what that is, and what date we are recording it, we will be sure to let you all know!  Until then, Episode 99 will be recorded sometime in early October.

In This Episode

Links

The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord! Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, Stephen, and Mike on our very own Discord Server. Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums. If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show! Check it out! https://discord.gg/PZVN2VBJvm.

If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group, Instagram page, or Discord server.

Order Your Very Own Camerosity Podcast T-Shirt! - https://www.zazzle.com/z/tbykl0hg

The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast

Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/

Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/

Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris - https://thisoldcamera.net/

Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/

An epidemic has swept Camerosity HQ along with a large swath of the camera collector groups.  It seems a cheap Chinese toy camera has made its way into the homes of all of us and resulted in us sharing images from it online.  Have we gone mad?  Do you dream of tiny TLRs at night? 

In Episode 97 we tackle the controversial Chuzhao mini-TLR digital camera.  This $35 camera available worldwide through Amazon and Alibaba is selling like crazy now and each of the hosts ask our listeners what their thoughts are on it.

In addition to Chuzhao talk, we spend a good portion of the show on a completely unrelated topic, which is what to do with your cameras when you die.  Mike and Paul both share their stories of picking up large estates of vintage cameras and what we ended up doing with them.  If you think the prospect of being asked to tackle a 4500 piece collection sounds awesome, you should definitely listen to this episode as we have some thoughts on what its like.

Joining Anthony, Paul, Stephen, Theo, and Mike are returning callers A.J. Gentile, Ed Gabe, Greg McCreash, Ira Cohen, Larry Effler, Pat Casey, Phil Clark, Will Pinkham, and first time callers Doug Doyle, Rob Latimer, and William Ponder.

In addition to Chuzhao and Camera Estate talk, Ira shares some selections from his tiny TLR collection including a couple rare Hit film models, Paul shares his thoughts on what you should do in preparation for what happens to your collection after you die, Mike briefly talks about an uncommon 1950s 35mm SLR called the Tokiwa Seiki Pentaflex, and Rob shares his thoughts on the Zeiss-Ikon Super Nettar.

Meet Paul and Mike: If you are in the vicinity of Cincinnati, Ohio on Saturday, September 6th, come to the Ohio Camera Swap at the Hilton Garden Inn Cincinnati/West Chester and say hi to us.  Both Paul and I will have a lot of Miranda cameras to sell!  Who knows, maybe even some other Camerosity Podcast regulars will show up as well.  While you’re there, maybe you can buy something from us!

As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  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 into shooting or collecting cameras, no matter how long you’ve been doing it, 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, the Camerosity Discord server, 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 a whole show to the Ihagee Exakta and Exa cameras.  As one of the earliest 35mm SLRs and also one of the most successful, millions of Exakta cameras were made over several decades of the 20th century, so there are a great deal of them to talk about.  As usual, we'll cover some history about the brand, go over their use, and cover some of the more interesting or collectible models.  If we have time, we will even cover the "other" Exaktas like the Exakta Real and the Pentacon produced RTL1000.  Will we stay on track or end up finally discussing large format?  You'll only know if you turn into Episode 98 which will be recorded on Monday, September 8th at 7pm Central Daylight Time and 8pm Eastern Daylight Time.

In This Episode

Links

The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord! Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, Stephen, and Mike on our very own Discord Server. Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums. If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show! Check it out! https://discord.gg/PZVN2VBJvm.

If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group, Instagram page, or Discord server.

Order Your Very Own Camerosity Podcast T-Shirt! - https://www.zazzle.com/z/tbykl0hg

The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast

Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/

Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/

Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris - https://thisoldcamera.net/

Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/

If there ever was an episode that epitomizes the concept of the "first and only open source film and digital photography podcast" it is this episode!  We started off with the idea of devoting a large part of it to AGFA, makers of Rodinal, Karat film, and a large number of really cool cameras from the mid 20th century.  From the moment we got started, we immediately got off topic and wouldn't come back to AGA until an hour into the recording.  Never fret, but in the shortened time we covered Germany's version of Kodak, we covered a lot of ground.

Joining Anthony, Paul, Stephen, Theo, and Mike are returning callers A.J. Gentile, Fernando Villava from Germany, Mike Litwin, Pat Casey, Will Pinkham, and first time callers David Palumbo and Zack Lothamer.

From the moment the show got started, we feel down the Kodak Instamatic (type 126) wormhole, discussing a large number of Instamatic cameras, what kinds of films can be used in 126 cameras today, the Fakmatic 3D printed adapter, and other oddball cameras.  We meander around, somehow winding up on the Ricoh GXR Interchangeable module digital camera, and Anthony's love for Kodak 5220XT Film.

When we finally get into the world of AGFA, we discuss some of the group's favorite films like AGFA Professional Pan 25, APX25, HDC 100, Scala, and AGFA's original AGFAColor film from the 1930s.  Eventually, we get into AGFA GAS with some really cool cameras like the Parat and Optima Parat half frame cameras, the cool twin lens Flexilette and Optima Reflex, the large orange button AGFAs like the Optima 1035 and 1535, the Optima Electronic Flash, Ambi Silette, and the Selectaflex SLR.  By far, the most time is dedicated to the postwar AGFA Karat rangefinder with the split image viewfinder, which Mike says is the best rangefinder camera for people with terrible vision.

Sprinkled throughout the show we answer questions about how long expired film can be used when refrigerated, what is a recommendation for a good entry into 6x9 cameras, and some warnings about not trying to repair the Zeiss-Ikon Contaflex SLR.

As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  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 into shooting or collecting cameras, no matter how long you’ve been doing it, 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, the Camerosity Discord server, 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, the entire Camerosity Podcast crew went crazy over a $35 Chinese digital camera.  Each of us bought the same camera and played with it for a couple of weeks in an effort to see what happens if expectations are low enough, can you really enjoy a toy camera?  In addition, Mike has now gone on two treks across the country to move large collections of cameras, and he has some thoughts (here is a preview, if you are a collector, don't die!)  Of course, if anything is certain, is that nothing is certain and Episode 96 is a perfect example where we might plan on talking about one thing and end up on something else.  Will we stay on track or end up finally discussing large format?  You'll only know if you turn into Episode 97 which will be recorded on Monday, August 18th at 7pm Central Daylight Time and 8pm Eastern Daylight Time.

In This Episode

Links

The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord! Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike on our very own Discord Server. Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums. If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show! Check it out! https://discord.gg/PZVN2VBJvm.

If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group, Instagram page, or Discord server.

Order Your Very Own Camerosity Podcast T-Shirt! - https://www.zazzle.com/z/tbykl0hg

The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast

Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/

Reloading 126 Instamatic Film - https://mikeeckman.com/2020/03/reloading-instamatic-film-the-better-way/

Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/

Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris - https://thisoldcamera.net/

Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/

Over the past several episodes. we've covered a wide range of topics and had some excellent guests on the show.  While we love predetermined topics, the original concept of the Camerosity Podcast was that any topic is always on the table, so from time to time, we like to "wing it" and start recording without any idea of what we're talking about.

Episode 95 was one such episode where Anthony, Paul, Stephen, and Mike logged into Zoom, hit record and let everyone in!  As always seems to happen, the show fills up quickly with GAS discussion.  Guests sharing their recent pickups and anything they're shooting now.  For this episode, we were joined by AJ Gentile, Darin Cozine, Jeremy Scott, Kyle Liu, Nick Marshall, Robert Coates, Shane Pacheco and Will Pinkham.

We start out the GAS discussion covering Bronica and Mamiya SLRs and TLRs.  A discussion about the S2 and S2A and issues with foam seals which need to be replaced on pretty much all Bronica S-series cameras.  Anthony shares his experience on a new (to him) Contax D SLR he picked up and that spawned a lengthy discussion on the Contax SLR's shutter and the unique sounds it makes.

Jeremy shares the pickup of a lifetime at a recent estate sale in rural Oklahoma where he bought a Zeiss-Ikon Hologon Ultrawide, Canon f/0.95 "Dream Lens", and other highly sought after wide angle lenses.

Mike discusses an upcoming storage locker of cameras in Texas he will be picking up soon, along with his pickup of a very early Contax S and an Orion Miranda T with the rare Zunow lens.

As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you!  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 into shooting or collecting cameras, no matter how long you’ve been doing it, 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, the Camerosity Discord server, 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 going to cover AGFA.  As the German equivalent of Kodak, AGFA has a long history of making both cameras and film stocks, so our intent is to do their history some justice and cover their most memorable models and emulsions.  We will record Episode 96 on Monday, July 28th at 7pm Central Daylight Time and 8pm Eastern Daylight Time.

In This Episode

Links

The Camerosity Podcast is now on Discord! Join Anthony, Paul, Theo, and Mike on our very own Discord Server. Share your GAS and photography with other listeners in the Lounge or in our dedicated forums. If you have questions for myself or the other guys, we have an “Ask the Hosts” section as well where you can get your question answered on a future show! Check it out! https://discord.gg/PZVN2VBJvm.

If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group, Instagram page, or Discord server.

Order Your Very Own Camerosity Podcast T-Shirt! - https://www.zazzle.com/z/tbykl0hg

The Official Camerosity Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast

Camerosity Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/

Reveni Labs Lumo - https://www.reveni-labs.com/reveni-labs-lumo

Theo Panagopoulos - https://www.photothinking.com/

Paul Rybolt - https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris - https://thisoldcamera.net/

Anthony Rue - https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/