Point and Shoot AF Classics - post yours

[Greyscale]

The Konica MT-11 has a fantastic lens that rivals any Canon, Nikon, or Pentax of its generation. This camera is a very pleasant surprise:

A set from the MT-11:

http://flic.kr/s/aHsjuJDYqd

 

[Greyscale]

The Fujica DL-100, the first compact AF camera to use DX coding, and Fujica's first "drop-load" camera, it even has "stealth" mode, but can only use 200 and 400 ASA film:

A set from the DL-100:

http://flic.kr/s/aHsjuNCQCE

 

[bobby_novatron]

Greyscale -- yeah I like the set from the MT-11 better than the DL-100. The Konica lens seems to have nice image quality.

 

[bobby_novatron]

Here we go ...

As promised, my contribution to this thread.

First up, the Pentax PC35AF.

A very good camera, for a simple P&S of its generation. The lens is decently sharp. It has a self-timer and back-light correction. The film is thumb-wound using a ratcheted plastic wheel, but this makes it relatively quiet, unlike the Canon AF35M that I once owned -- a very loud camera by comparison.

 

[bobby_novatron]

Next in my parade of retro goodness, the famous Olympus Stylus Epic / Mju-II.

This is one of my favourite P&S cameras. It's impossibly small. In fact, it's so diminutive that I can throw it into a jacket pocket and hardly know it's there. The Olympus lens has excellent rendering -- crisp images, nice colour, and excellent flare control. The AF is very hard to fool. Additional bonus -- you get at least 2 or 3 extra frames per roll of 24 or 36, because the leader doesn't have to travel far in the tiny body when you pop in a new roll.

In summary, this camera justly deserves its name. It's not just legendary -- it's 'Epic'. 🙂

 

[bobby_novatron]

Continuing in my dysfunctional love of unloved cameras ... I present the Pentax Zoom90 and Zoom105 siblings.

I purchased these at a thrift store for a few dollars. They're quite impressive cameras -- loaded with features! Big zoom, flash, fill-in flash, backlight correction, macro, custom intervalometer, bulb setting, the list goes on and on.

They are fun cameras to use, but they have a couple of drawbacks. First, they're big. Clunky and big. Maybe that was cool in 1990, but if I want awkward and clunky, I'll dig out my medium format gear, thank you very much.

Secondly, the image quality is only so-so. The lenses give nice contrast and saturation, but there's a disappointing softness to the final image -- mostly due to the pedestrian nature of the glass.

 

[bobby_novatron]

Next up -- the Canon Sure Shot Classic 120 extra-long name camera!

A real sleeper, this one. Everything that you've read online about this camera is true -- the aspherical lens makes a huge difference in this consumer P&S. It's easy to use, looks like a very sedate 1990's film camera (which it is), and takes fantastic photos. The AF is fast, and the metering is always spot-on.

 

[matthewm]

Pretty good actually.
AF seems at least as fast as on the stylus and the 32mm gives an interesting FOV, with good sharpness.
Nevertheless I'm going to sell it, as I now have the Contax TVS and I decided to have only one camera of each kind 😀

Sent you a PM. Let me know if you do decide to sell it. 🙂

 

[bobby_novatron]

Another camera I rescued from the discount bin ... the Yashica Samurai X3.0!

Quite possibly one of the strangest and most unique cameras I have ever owned. It's a point & shoot film camera! No wait -- it's an SLR! Umm ... it's a videocamera! (People have mistaken the Samurai for a videocamera more than once...)

I think the engineers at Yashica definitely threw their cares to the wind when they designed this lovable beast. Or maybe they had consumed a bit too much saké. Those salarymen can get pretty stressed-out.

It's actually one of my favourite Japanese autofocus cameras, just because it's so weird. It's an auto-everything SLR, with true TTL focusing, metering, and flash. Plus it's half-frame! So now, instead of it seemingly taking AGES to finish off a roll of 36 exposures, it now takes a freaking ETERNITY to polish off a roll of 72! But hey -- you're saving at least $2 or $3 by packing so many photos onto one roll! Hope you don't mind a bit of grain on those half-frames. Well, maybe more than a bit. Shooting ISO 400 on this baby makes your photos look like one of those coloured sand-sculptures they sell at the mall.

In its defense, it's a very ergonomic camera, and very fun to use. The lens is reasonably sharp, but the magical Yashica lens coatings give your photos a deep colour saturation that is definitely unique.

 

[bobby_novatron]

Next up, the Fuji Klasse.

Yes, the legendary Fuji Klasse -- never sold in North America, so I've been told. Would it qualify for the 'Classics' designation of this thread? Maybe. It was manufactured and sold several years ago, but is no longer available. It has since been replaced by the Klasse 'S' and Klasse 'W', both of which is still sold by Fuji in Japan.

This particular model is neither the 'S' flavor, nor the 'W' model -- but rather the more obscure Klasse 'original' version. It doesn't really have a proper designation to differentiate it from the other Klasse models, AFAIK.

I purchased this camera from a fellow RFF'er a few months ago but have not had the time to fully learn its personality. In the brief time that I've owned it, I have been quite impressed with the features and build quality. This ain't your father's Fuji point-and-shoot ... it's definitely designed for enthusiasts.

It differs from the later Klasse models in that it has a slightly different lens design, and the controls were modified in the 'S' and 'W' to provide a bit more custom control.

 

[bobby_novatron]

Last but not least ... the Ricoh GR1S.

Again, I hope I'm not breaking any rules by posting a post-Millennial camera in this thread ... but I think the GR1S still qualifies as a 'classic'.

The GR1 and GR1S were both manufactured and sold by Ricoh in the early 'naughts, around 2001 or so I believe. They were later eclipsed by the GR1V, which I think has now been discontinued.

The GR1S features a 7-element lens design with TWO aspherical components. I must admit, this is probably my one of my favourite cameras of all-time. The picture quality from this teeny-tiny camera is absolutely mind-blowing. Dare I say, 'Leica-esque'? Perhaps it's heretical to make such a comparison, but I am constantly amazed at the quality of the photos I get from the GR1S.

 

[kzphoto]

@bobby novatron: We share many of the same cameras. That little canon has a *really* sharp lens.

 

[matthewm]

Next up, the Fuji Klasse.

Yes, the legendary Fuji Klasse -- never sold in North America, so I've been told. Would it qualify for the 'Classics' designation of this thread? Maybe. It was manufactured and sold several years ago, but is no longer available. It has since been replaced by the Klasse 'S' and Klasse 'W', both of which is still sold by Fuji in Japan.

This particular model is neither the 'S' flavor, nor the 'W' model -- but rather the more obscure Klasse 'original' version. It doesn't really have a proper designation to differentiate it from the other Klasse models, AFAIK.

I purchased this camera from a fellow RFF'er a few months ago but have not had the time to fully learn its personality. In the brief time that I've owned it, I have been quite impressed with the features and build quality. This ain't your father's Fuji point-and-shoot ... it's definitely designed for enthusiasts.

It differs from the later Klasse models in that it has a slightly different lens design, and the controls were modified in the 'S' and 'W' to provide a bit more custom control.

I just got one of these myself. The only differences between this guy and the other S and W models (aside from the custom controls) are that this has the f/2.6 lens vs the f/2.8 of the newer models. Also, the manual focus is on the front of this camera whereas the manual focus on the S and W models is up top with an exposure compensation dial where the manual focus adjustment is on the original Klasse.

I love this camera and it has quickly become my favorite point and shoot. I prefer the 35mm focal length and this is close to that so it's really natural for me. I also love the fact that I can control my aperture and shoot wide open to minimize the use of flash and still get great low-light shots, especially on 3200 speed film.

Fantastic camera and one of my all-time favorites. 😀

 

[bobby_novatron]

Thanks for the info, Matthewm, I'll have to spend more time with the Fuji! 🙂

 

[Greyscale]

This camera was another very pleasant surprise, it seems like it took me forever to finish its test roll, I kept grabbing other cameras instead, but when I saw the results I was shocked by how nice they were:

Minolta Freedom Tele:

It has a really nice lens at both ends of the spectrum, and fast, accurate focusing. Here is a set of shots from that first roll:

http://flic.kr/s/aHsjuEMcHh

This is the same camera as the Leica AF-C1. Expect to pay $50 or more for the red-dot version, while they are practically giving these away on eBay, they often go unbid upon even with a low starting bid. You can pay literally pennies for a very nice dual focal-length camer.

 

[aafuss]

Continuing in my dysfunction love of unloved cameras ... I present the Pentax Zoom90 and Zoom105 siblings.

I purchased these at a thrift store for a few dollars. They're quite impressive cameras -- loaded with features! Big zoom, flash, fill-in flash, backlight correction, macro, custom intervalometer, bulb setting, the list goes on and on.

They are fun cameras to use, but they have a couple of drawbacks. First, they're big. Clunky and big. Maybe that was cool in 1990, but if I want awkward and clunky, I'll dig out my medium format gear, thank you very much.

Secondly, the image quality is only so-so. The lenses give nice contrast and saturation, but there's a disappointing softness to the final image -- mostly due to the pedestrian nature of the glass.

I have the Zoom 105-R from a year later. Has lotas of features like the Zoom 105 has.

 

[bobby_novatron]

Zoom 105-R? Wow, I didn't know about that model. Guess I haven't seen it at the thrift shop yet!

 

[p.giannakis]

My latest addition. I've already loaded it with film. Let's see how it compare against the T-4.

 

[NickTrop]

My latest addition. I've already loaded it with film. Let's see how it compare against the T-4.

Of the point-n-shoots I currently own: Ricoh FF3, Pentax 35AF, Minolta 35AF, and the Yashica T3 (yes, went on a bit of a binge the last year or so...) The Yashica T3 is my favorite. Looks better in person than it does in pics. Might not be the sharpest (I think the Ricoh edges it out in this department...) but I do think the Zeiss T* coating makes a difference. I just love how it renders color and OOF areas. Some think the scope is useless, I couldn't disagree more having shot - with varying degrees of success, blind from the hip in the past.

Love to know how you think it compares to the T4.

 

[p.giannakis]

Of the point-n-shoots I currently own: Ricoh FF3, Pentax 35AF, Minolta 35AF, and the Yashica T3 (yes, went on a bit of a binge the last year or so...) The Yashica T3 is my favorite. Looks better in person than it does in pics. Might not be the sharpest (I think the Ricoh edges it out in this department...) but I do think the Zeiss T* coating makes a difference. I just love how it renders color and OOF areas. Some think the scope is useless, I couldn't disagree more having shot - with varying degrees of success, blind from the hip in the past.

Love to know how you think it compares to the T4.

I can't say that i was terribly fond of the T-4, i sold two already for a ridiculous amount of money. I think that the Fuji DL supermini has far better lens.

I just want to see how it compares against the T-4. For sure it is much bigger camera.