Fuji Beat Holga to market by 20 years....

[kuzano]

The Holga was introduced in 1981, but Fuji came to market with a plastic lens 120 roll film camera in 1957. The FujiPet 120 is a bit hard to find, but I have seen about 3 of them on eBay in the last year.

Here's one that sold for a price approaching a Bargain G690. The listing is here:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260540300627&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

The definition by the seller is Clearly Marketing oriented and quite revealing.... honest to say the least:

"This beautiful camera is in working condition.
I have used it for a few rolls of film, so it has been tested prior to listing it.
This camera with its plastic lens creates dreamy photos a notch cooler than those from your average Holga. 🙂
You get 12 square photos on a roll of 120 film.
Please note that the lens is inserted at a slight angle - a bit odd but nothing that prevents the camera from taking gorgeous photos. (ala Lens Baby precedent)
Three available apertures: f/11, f/16, and f/16.
Tip: Use 800 ASA film for best all-round performance.
Enjoy a break away from your DSLR and rediscover the simple joy of taking pictures with a camera like the legendary Fujipet! 🙂
The camera will be packaged carefully prior to shipping."(WHY?)


Love the part about the "slight angle" on the lens insertion, but not a problem prohibiting gorgeous photos.


Probably should be noted here that the "Diana" came out in the early 60's and also that light leaks on the Diana ran around 50% of the units sold.


Anyone here lucky enough to own one of these?

Oh Yes! And let's not forget to post the Fujipet website.

http://members.cox.net/sjrohde7/

 

[xayraa33]

a lot of money for a plastic camera.
I will stick to my original Diana and some black tape.
I found the Diana laying in a park covered with mud in 1979.
a quick wash at the drinking fountain uncovered its beauty and a roll of Verichrome proved to me she was a keeper.

 

[urban_alchemist]

I've got one. I bought it a while back simply for how it looked - and the rock-solid build quality for a toy camera. No light seal issues, and (apart from the lense-shade) feels really substantial in the hands. That, and the 1-2 rocker system is a real pleasure to use!

It's got great optics (far above the Holga and Diana for edge-to-edge sharpness) and is quite simply the coolest camera I've ever come across. i've used it mostly with 400ISO film, but that tends to underexpose in all but the brightest conditions. Will probably load up with 800 film next time...

The camera itself:

From the camera (400VC):

 

[oftheherd]

kuzano - No I don't have one, nor do I recall ever hearing of one. At the price that one sold for I wish I had about 20 or 30 of them.

urban alchemist - darned if it doesn't look like a decent shooting camera at that. Nice photos.

 

[kuzano]

Holy Cow!!!!!

Holy Cow!!!!!

I've got one. I bought it a while back simply for how it looked - and the rock-solid build quality for a toy camera. No light seal issues, and (apart from the lense-shade) feels really substantial in the hands. That, and the 1-2 rocker system is a real pleasure to use!

It's got great optics (far above the Holga and Diana for edge-to-edge sharpness) and is quite simply the coolest camera I've ever come across. i've used it mostly with 400ISO film, but that tends to underexpose in all but the brightest conditions. Will probably load up with 800 film next time...

I have to say that for a single element plastic lens MF camera, those pics are quite nice.

I've certainly shot a lot of 6X6 in "serious" cameras that weren't much better, if at all.

I've passed on a few of these on eBay, but your images may make me reconsider the last one that comes up. The one I posted started at a very low price and had a lot of bids from a few bidders. The others I've seen were priced high on the start and I thought they were too high. However this one has been an eye opener.