The Magazine Camera Ads

[valdas]

I have owned all the above, though most were pre-F bodies.

I've bought- and sold them multiple times as my nostalgia waxed and waned 😉

My favorite was- and remains the original Mamiyaflex C2. When paired with a decent later lens, they were every bit as capable as their descendants, albeit with less convenience.

I ended up selling it all when I realized I didn't need a Hasselblad with lenses, a Yashica MAT-124g, and 2 C bodies with 5 lenses. This decision remains open to revision.

(Maybe I'll find a decent Mamiyaflex and reskin it in alligator green ...)

It is a funny thing with this nostalgia. At some point I sold most of my early cameras as I drifted from FSU gear to Japanese P&S then Canon SLR (in 90’s), later “upgraded” to Contax SLR, then RFs and Leica etc. And now that I am getting older I just want back those cameras I used and sold when I was young. EOS 50, Contax 167M - I bought them again. Maybe I will sell it at some point or will simply give away when I’m old (if my kids don’t want them), but now it’s more than 50 cameras in my collection and I keep saying to myself - “it’s a last one I bought”.

 

[chuckroast]

It is a funny thing with this nostalgia. At some point I sold most of my early cameras as I drifted from FSU gear to Japanese P&S then Canon SLR (in 90’s), later “upgraded” to Contax SLR, then RFs and Leica etc. And now that I am getting older I just want back those cameras I used and sold when I was young. EOS 50, Contax 167M - I bought them again. Maybe I will sell it at some point or will simply give away when I’m old (if my kids don’t want them), but now it’s more than 50 cameras in my collection and I keep saying to myself - “it’s a last one I bought”.

That's exactly what I did over the past decade - bought every great camera I ever owned and got it operational and used it. After I had satisfied my trip down memory lane, I sold everything I didn't plan to use regularly. It was great fun, made me a bit of a repairman and was a great joy.

 

[rfaspen]

Really like this thread!
I used to have boxes of old photo magazines but my wife made me "de- clutter" some years ago. But I do have a fair bit of Leica literature. I guess I can scan those promos and price lists from 1930's China (Peking) if I can find the time.... It's mostly in English but I found the pricing rather interesting. Hopefully soon?

 

[JeffS7444]

From 1948:

New release!
Coated 40/3.5 lens
(adjustable) flash sync
Seiko (rabbit?) shutter 1 sec - 1/500th sec.
Auto film stop, double-exposure prevention
Takachicho Optical Co, Ltd, Shibuya Ward, Tokyo. I hadn't realized that Takachicho Optical was the original name for Olympus.

 

[JeffS7444]

Donald Brun illustration for Gevaert Film.

 

[p.giannakis]

 

[p.giannakis]

 

[Photar]

 

[Photar]

 

[Photar]

 

[agentlossing]

Look at this beautiful ad from 1979 for the Pentax ME, extra special to me because Dad got one and gave it to me years later. If only Pentax made a retro digital camera just like this.

So here's a thought: Pentax tried and failed to make a mirrorless camera in the form of the K01. This did not sell well, but was able to use all of Pentax' K mount lenses. Surely today's technology would allow them to make a full frame mirrorless camera with all the bells and whistles that is natively compatible with their extensive K mount lens library. The Nikon Zf suggests that there is a market for well specced retro cameras. I would absolutely buy a Pentax full frame mirrorless camera with the styling of their legacy SLR's like this.

View attachment 4876820

This may well be the perfect camera ad. It somehow captures everything a gearhead wants to see and read, as well as an actual dedicated photographer. All substance, only a little flash.

 

[agentlossing]

 

[Alpsman]

View attachment 4878502

"It can make you only look intelligent."
. . . .
Nowadays, 2026, cameras are more intelligent than some of their users.
;-)

 

[agentlossing]

"It can make you only look intelligent."
. . . .
Nowadays, 2026, cameras are more intelligent than some of their users.
;-)

It's because cameras stay off of social media! 😀