It's official, vintage digital compacts are trending (Petapixel)

[bcostin]

"The little camera batteries won't last much longer I don't think and replacements are practically as old as the originals at this point, if you can find one."

I was surprised how many older battery types are still available new from third-party manufacturers, or even still used in much more recent cameras. For example, the Ricoh GR2 (APS-C) uses the exact same battery as my old Panasonic LX3. Which is handy, since I have quite a few spares.

A couple of old DSLRs from Pentax and Olympus (and maybe other manufacturers) use a generic cell that is interchangable and still available.

But, yes, AAs were a future-proof choice. Especially with modern rechargables.

 

[bcostin]

FYI, the YouTube Snappiness dude has built a new reference site for older digitals. It's just getting started but looks like it will be a good resource.

https://www.classiccameradatabase.com/

 

[JeffS7444]

I purchased Kaster-brand NP-20 batteries and a charger for my Casio Exilim EX-S500, and they seem to work fine. Charger is slow, but seems to be safe, as the batteries never get warm.

 

[aw614]

Correct. Praise be to those manufacturers who chose AA for their cameras.

.

Except when the batteries are left for years and they've leaked out acid. Currently trying to fix my mom's old SX120IS and yeah two duracells were left inside from 10 years ago and it now longer powers on.. Luckily it seems they are cheap on ebay still

 

[raydm6]

Saw this today at an antique mill I frequent. $5.00. Nikon Coolpix L20: 10 megapixels CCD sensor. Runs on 2x AA’s. Fully boxed with manual and CD.

Tempting. But I already have a Canon S90.




...

 

[Tim Murphy]

Dear Board,

While cleaning the man cave, I found a dust ball behind the TV stand.

Lo and behold it was an Olympus C-2040 that a dear friend gifted to me back in 2004. I had given it my wife when I met her. She brought it down from New Hampshire in 2010 when she came here.

It wasn't used much and eventually we sort of lost sight of where it even was. I found it today in a dust ball as i was rearranging the cave.

I decided to try to see if it worked. I dusted it off and put fresh batteries in it. And I prayed.

Imagine my surprise when my prayers were answered! The camera is old enough to drink in any State in the USA and it still works.

I was so inspired I even bought a smart media card reader and an Olympus C-3040 so I can see for myself the breakthrough in 50% more mpegs.

Seriously, I think it's kind of fun to slow down, but I'm just a hobbyist.

IMG_20221216_223132_HDR by Tim Murphy, on Flickr

Regards,

Tim Murphy

Harrisburg PA 🙂

 

[luuca]

my 2008 panasonic LX3 still is a nice original metal piece of gear, with its "native" 16:9 ratio.

I love it.

 

[David Hughes]

Dear Board,

While cleaning the man cave, I found a dust ball behind the TV stand.

Lo and behold it was an Olympus C-2040 that a dear friend gifted to me back in 2004. I had given it my wife when I met her. She brought it down from New Hampshire in 2010 when she came here.

It wasn't used much and eventually we sort of lost sight of where it even was. I found it today in a dust ball as i was rearranging the cave.

I decided to try to see if it worked. I dusted it off and put fresh batteries in it. And I prayed.

Imagine my surprise when my prayers were answered! The camera is old enough to drink in any State in the USA and it still works.

I was so inspired I even bought a smart media card reader and an Olympus C-3040 so I can see for myself the breakthrough in 50% more mpegs.

Seriously, I think it's kind of fun to slow down, but I'm just a hobbyist.

IMG_20221216_223132_HDR by Tim Murphy, on Flickr

Regards,

Tim Murphy

Harrisburg PA 🙂

That lens at f/2 has a lot going for it. I had a C-3xxx (forget which) and now a C-4000 and they are very pleasant cameras to handle and use.

As for batteries, I have a Leica Digilux Zoom and bought a Fuji MX-1700 to compare as it was only a few (3 or 4) pounds and got it in the box with the charger and a Fuji NP-20 battery and that camera dates back to 1998 or '99.

But my oldest is 1997 and is an Olympus C-1000L that I bought (boxed etc for a few pounds) because it came with the wrong ERC and I wanted the ERC. Anyway, powered it up with 4 AA's and Smartmedia card from the 1999 Leica Digilux ZoomZ and away it went. Great but only 1024 x 768 pixels, meaning about ¾ of just one megapixel...

What I used to call my routine gym session was winding and firing the shutters of all my mechanical film cameras a few times and then putting them all back after double checking the shutter was fired; now I add checking all my electronic cameras and taking out the batteries and charging them if needed.

I just hope no one reads this post as it will start prices rising; OTOH January is a good time to hunt for cameras...

Regards, David

 

[Dogman]

my 2008 panasonic LX3 still is a nice original metal piece of gear, with its "native" 16:9 ratio.

I love it.

I have the LX5 version. 10mp CCD. Rediscovered it earlier this year and took it for a walk. Pretty nice results from the little camera.

 

[ptpdprinter]

I am guessing that most members posting here didn't read the article OP linked to, and so this turned into yet another much needed thread about what cameras members own.

 

[Dogman]

Yeah, I went to the article and immediately realized it was mostly about what nitwit celebrities were using to document their vacuous lives. Didn't stick around for the final act.

You can't control where a conversation goes after it starts.

 

[JeffS7444]

For me, much of the fun is seeing what a new generation of enthusiasts does with this "old junk", and whether they inspire me to look at the things in a new light, too.

Nikon Coolpix S01 is one of the tiniest digital cameras that I'm aware of which isn't a toy. It produces photos which look reasonably crisp at first glance, but not so detailed as to ruthlessly reveal bloodshot eyes or imperfect complexions.

 

[Ko.Fe.]

celebrities were using to document

And they still have some points in common. With film P&S they have picked up some time ago, it showed as something valuable, gear wise, which resonates with most photo forums were we are lonely gearheads at most. 🙂
So, if celebs have eye on some "vintage" digitals, why not?


BTW, IMO, LCAG officielle have nothing left but some sort of second fresh celebrities to expose.

 

[x-ray]

I was going through a drawer today looking for a monitor cable and ran across this. I thought I’d given it to a friend years ago but guess I hadn’t.

It’s a little Fuji Finepix F10. It has a pretty good zoom and 6.3mp. In the case was the charger and 2 batteries that seem to be ok and 5 XD cards. After charging the first battery I gave it a try and it seems to work just fine. We’ll see what the pictures look like tomorrow.

 

[KoNickon]

From today's New York Times (so, it's official!): https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/07/...odule=Well&pgtype=Homepage&section=Technology

 

[dmr]

I am most definitely not Gen-Z (I am old enough to be your mother, if not your grandmother, although I am in denial) but I still semi-regularly use my old Kodak DX4530. It has a real viewfinder and is a good performer within its limitations.

It was handed down to me several years ago and was my first digital camera, not including the phone, of course.

 

[KoNickon]

About eight years I found at a dump/recycling center in Maine where we used to have a house, in the "take it or leave it" barn, a Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S700. Don't know if the previous owner, apparently a teenage girl from the pictures on the card, meant to pass it on or what, but it's a decent machine -- 35-105mm equivalent f2.8-4.8, 7.2 megapixels, powered by two AAs. Introduced in 2007; MSRP then was $150. Very compact, the size of the proverbial deck of cards. Just kind of fun. No viewfinder, so the LCD screen is hard to see in bright sunlight, but you can't have everything.

 

[randolph45]

alas,my old Canon 2 megpixl drowned in a small stream in Montana while trout fishing.RIP!! Twas my first digital bought in a thrift store

 

[JeffS7444]

A now familiar theme echoed this time by the BBC:
Digital cameras back in fashion after online revival

 

[dkreindler]

There's a nice little CCD Sensor Compacts thread here on RFF:
https://www.rangefinderforum.com/node/4768956

Thanks for this. I adore these little compacts.

Haven't touched my Leica Q, GR II etc in months

MINI UK Trip-12 by Derek Kreindler, on Flickr

Ilan Becky Wedding by Derek Kreindler, on Flickr

Dufferin Mall by Derek Kreindler, on Flickr