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The Revenant – Minolta XG-1 Restoration

Minolta XG-1 Restoration

The Minolta XG-1 was the second in the XG series launched in 1977 as a budget camera to complement the top of the line XD series. Unlike its predecessor the SRT series, the XG series was all electronic. By the time the XG series came to market the SRT series was looking tired but would…

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Film Camera Buyers Guide

Film Camera Buyers Guide

If you have read the previous articles about buying cameras on eBay then this quick film camera buyers guide will give you the essentials for the most common cameras for sale. This film camera buyers guide is not fully comprehensive, doesn’t cover every 35mm SLR ever made but is based on hard-won experience of cameras…

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So You Want to Buy a Camera on eBay?

So you want to buy a camera on ebay

If you don’t want to be on the receiving end of a camera that looks like the one above then read on and learn how to buy a camera on eBay. A quick look on google will find you hundreds of similar articles. However, on close review, they all describe how to best shop on…

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eBay Ate My Camera – eBay is so bad for cameras

Junk cameras from eBay

If you are reading this, it’s maybe because like me you started looking for good quality, fully working cameras and finally got tired of being part of the eBay lottery. In this article, I’ll relate personal eBay buying and selling experiences as well as purchasing from online dealers and hope that readers will get some…

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Olympus OM-1 Prism Foam Removal

Olympus OM-1 Prism

The Olympus OM-1 like some other cameras from the golden age of Japanese film cameras were fitted with foam around the prism.  The foam was there to protect the prism but paradoxically in the long run the foam has done more damage to old cameras than just about anything else.  Cameras susceptible to this include…

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Canon FTb Review

Canon FTb

Noticeable by it’s Absence Of all the cameras being hyped by today’s uber-trendy wunderkinds on the web like the Canon AE-1, the Minolta X-700 and the Pentax K1000, the FTb is noticeable by its absence. But, it is the forgotten wonder from the days when stuff was built to last. Manufactured from metal hammered out…

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Canon FTb Prism Replacement

Canon FTb Prism Replacement

This guide will show you how to check for decaying foam in the Canon FTb prism and how to manage its replacement. If you’re considering buying a Canon FTb why not check out our dedicated review Spanning Wrench Isopropyl Alcohol JIS screw driver set The Canon FTb is prone to deteriorating foam on its prism.…

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Guide to Replacing Light Seals

Guide to Replacing Light Seals

Really? You’re going to do light seals as a subject? Sheesh! This gets asked every week on camera forums. Yep! It does and rather than repeat myself, I wrote this guide to replacing light seals to help beginners out. This saves my fingers and the resulting RSI after typing the same answer out a few…

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Adaptall – Canon FD Dilemma

Tamron Adaptall

Tamron Adaptall Issues for Canon FD Mount Back in the used to be Tamron saw a market opportunity.  As the camera wars of the 1970s heated up keen photographers often had a dilemma.  The true cost of photography is seldom the camera body – more usually it’s the cost of the lenses.  A keen amateur…

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Whose got the Power? – A Guide to Classic Film Camera Batteries

High5Cameras Battery Power

A film camera batteries dilemma…. For lovers of old cameras, one of the biggest headaches is finding batteries for powering the electronics. Many classic 35mm SLRs were designed to use the very long lasting Mercury type batteries.  Mercury type batteries had some very attractive properties for camera manufacturers needing a stable power supply for sensitive…

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