What is your 'camera for life'?

[Archiver]

@Erik van Straten and his images got me rethinking what a 'camera for life' means. His images have been taken over decades using a mix of older and newer films camera including the Leica 1a, Leica 2, M2, M3, MP and the Nikkormat FTN. Probably more. That such cameras continue to work after decades is inspiring and surprising.

It makes me wonder, what is a camera for life, and can a digital camera be such a thing?

I like to think that my M9 is a camera for life, as long as batteries continue to be available and it doesn't crap out. But there may come a time when it is no longer reparable. Leica no longer replaces the sensor or LCD screens of the M8 or M9, I believe. My Canon 5D Mark II is over 17 years old and still going, but I don't like the image quality and experience enough for it to be a regular companion.

A film camera with little to no electronic components could conceivably outlast some of us. M3? M4-P? MP or MA? Documentary photographer Patrick Brown recently posted his own repairs of three of his Nikon FM2 bodies on his Instagram stories. These cameras seem to last and last. But film is subject to costs and availability, not to mention chemical waste and storage. Unless you're a dedicated film shooter buying bulk reels, loading your own rolls and buying bulk chems, not to mention enjoying the dev process, it doesn't seem economically viable as a daily/companion camera.

If you had a camera that you could conceivably use for the rest of your life, what would it be, and why?

 

[telenous]

It depends on your stage in life. If you are 20 years old, any camera's prospects will seem less promising than yours. If you are past 50, as I am, it's the opposite.

However, if we are talking about cameras that feel natural in your hands -ones you could happily use for the rest of your life - then for me that's the M2 and/or the MP. I am predictable like that.

Perhaps slightly more interesting are my second and third choices: the Rollei 35s and the Olympus OM-1.

 

[FIegiso]

I have two. The Leica M10P and M3. When I bought the M10P I bought it with the intent that it would be that camera. Bought it in 2019 new and have never had an infidelity! Plenty durable and repairable for me. It has already lived a life of rugged adventure and continues...

The M3 is almost as old as I am and I don't see any reason that it won't be inherited.

 

[Zuiko-logist]

I have had my Pentax MX and SMC-M 50/1.7 since 1980. Will never part with it.

 

[raydm6]

I am approaching 70 in a few years and am thinking of how to divest a lot of my stuff - guitars, cameras, audio gear - as I want to simplify my life, travel more, and reduce clutter.

With that being said, I would probably keep one of my IIIf's w/Summicron LTM. The IIIf & Summicron, I feel, would keep me connected to classic B&W photography, allow me to admire its workmanship of a time past, and have a high-repair-ability factor.

 

[Richard G]

I just had my IIIf serviced, a somewhat incautious eye watering expense. My forever camera, logically would be my M2: nothing to go wrong now. As I’m older, more versatile is the M6. Overall I think the M6 is the best camera Leica made.

 

[Archiver]

I just had my IIIf serviced, a somewhat incautious eye watering expense. My forever camera, logically would be my M2: nothing to go wrong now. As I’m older, more versatile is the M6. Overall I think the M6 is the best camera Leica made.

I just found old RFF posts from 2003 which talk about people selling their M6s for 'the new MP'!

Post in thread 'Rumors of a new Summilux lens'

Mar 24, 2004

For some, yes, money and prices are very relative. I've seen (rather read) with a certain amount of surprise how a number of people just ditched their M6TTL bodies and got the recently coined MP. Or before, the much decried M7. To me it's not an investment, but rather a fine, pleasant to work with tool.

Let's see how prices go when this new glass hits the market, and let's hope it's a gain for all! 🙂

• SolaresLarrave

Mar 24, 2004
For some, yes, money and prices are very relative. I've seen (rather read) with a certain amount of surprise how a number of people just ditched their M6TTL bodies and got the recently coined MP. Or before, the much decried M7. To me it's not an investment, but rather a fine, pleasant to work with tool.

 

[Rick Waldroup]

Over the years I have shot many different types of cameras in all kinds of formats- from plastic toy cameras to 8x10 field cameras and everything in between. I have never been sentimental about cameras. They come and they go. However, I have a soft spot for certain cameras, such as my Lumix L1. But, at my age, if I was limited to just one camera, it would have to be one I could fit in my pocket.

 

[caila77]

Konica III or Kodak Retina IB

 

[Vince Lupo]

If you’d asked me ten years ago I would’ve said either my Leica Monochrom 246 or my Leica M-D (yeah maybe shoulda kept that one). These days and for the last six years it’s my Hasselblad 1000f cameras and my Hasselblad 907x/CFV II 50C. Incredibly versatile system as a whole and produces what I think are good results, I can switch back and forth from film to digital, and knock on wood they’re pretty reliable. I think the only way I’d ‘upgrade’ the digital part of the equation is if Hasselblad ever came out with a full-frame (56x56) sensor back.


Thursday Morning Coffee by Vince Lupo, on Flickr

 

[Bolo Kukus]

My Rolleiflex E2, surely. I bought it new in 1966. It went with me in many of my travels in Asia and the Pacific, as well as two times to North America - until I fell into the Big D storm drain and put away most of my film cameras. That E2 has aged well, in fact better than I have. It will surely outlast me.

Second on my list, my Leica iif, which came to me from the original owner (deceased) by way of his estate sale. A few bits and pieces have been added, notably three lenses (35/35 Summaron, 50/2.0 Summicron, 90/4.0 Elmar) to keep company with the magnificent 50/3.5 Elmar I got with the camera.

Sadly, I nowadays do very little film photography. This may change later this year as at my latest count there are 140+ cassettes of 35mm and a few 30-meter cans, patiently and safely stashed in my darkroom fridge. I have a loose plan to somehow work my way thru those, traveling with the iif, two lenses at most and a Weston EuroMaster, a handful of filters and lens hoods. The lightest kit I've gone away with in many decades. The photography I'll surely enjoy, the processing and scanning much less so. But then life isn't all about unicorns and rainbows...

On the digital scene, I'm having a merry old time with my Nikon Z5 and Z6. A 28/2.8 Z lives on the '5 and a 40/2.0 Z on the '6. Eventually, a 24-70 f/4 Z will round out my full kit.

I like the Z6, but my greatest love affair is with the Z5. It's minimalist to the utmost and a truly magnificent camera in all ways.

 

[JohnWolf]

Considering my age, pretty much any model could likely qualify as a “camera for life.” But the only camera I can’t imagine being without is a GR of some sort. Though I’m sure I’d get along just fine without it.

Honestly, I feel that if we’ve made it to our 70s or 80s and still don’t realize this or that camera model doesn’t make a whole lot of difference, then we’ve missed an important life lesson.

 

[petronius]

Considering my age, pretty much any model could likely qualify as a “camera for life.” But the only camera I can’t imagine being without is a GR of some sort. Though I’m sure I’d get along just fine without it.

Honestly, I feel that if we’ve made it to our 70s or 80s and still don’t realize this or that camera model doesn’t make a whole lot of difference, then we’ve missed an important life lesson.

Expecting rationality in a photographers´ forum and a thread about gear ...?😉

 

[Dogman]

I'll hit 78 this month so I probably already have my camera for life, whatever's left of it. Life, I mean. I'm planning to sell off a lot of stuff soon. I'll keep what I'm using and a few others that I like but don't use much anymore. What I'm using are Nikon Z5 and Z6 bodies. Basic first editions. Nothing special about them, they just feel good to me and I like the images they produce. Easy to handle, easy to replace. If they all crash on me, I'll just buy them again. They get cheaper as more up to date models are introduced. I have been undecided about my Fujis. I like them a lot being as they're my fake rangefinder, Leica substitute. But I'll likely sell them all as well. Except for the X100S model. I have a special feeling for that camera. That's a lifer for me. And I gotta keep a D700 and a D3. They're too heavy for me to use much but what the hell...I can shoot from the car. I'm fond of the slam/smash/ring sound of those old dinosaurs. And I still like the look of their images.

Mechanical cameras? I have several but I don't use them. They're kinda like the ruins of Pompeii. Interesting but I don't wanna live there.


.........................................................

 

[Bill McMannis]

While I plan to keep my Crown Graphic and Leica III for the rest of my life, I also plan to hold on to, regularly use, my Canon EOS 3 that I purchased in ‘98 within days of camera’s release.

 

[Godfrey]

I'll be 72 this Summer. Half of my favorite cameras are as old as I am, and have been thoroughly serviced such that I know they'll out last me at this point.

A digital camera for life? I dunno ... My Olympus E-1 was first used in 2003, has made over 34000 actuations, and still works perfectly. Batteries are easily available. The lenses are fantastc. And it's a delight in the hands. For life? No idea.

I prefer mechanical film cameras. My current Hasselblad SWC/M is the third one I've owned and I'll not sell this one. I can make it a digital camera by fitting the CFVII 50c onto it, from my 907x kit. Or I can make it an instant print camera by fitting the NONS InstaxSQ back. I can shoot 6x6 or 6x4.5 if I use the A12 or A16 backs, respectively. It's a reasonable size, the lens is as good as a lens gets, and the basic camera is all mechanical and serviceable. I like the wide FoV, on 6x6 especially. For life...? For sure, but i do like other cameras too.

Any of my Leica Ms will outlast me. Any of my Kodak Retina IIc/IIIc cameras will do the same. My Rollei 35S shows no signs of letting up after 45 years. My Minox 35GT-E, bought new in '98, never fails me. The Voigtländer Vito II and Perkeo II have both been recently restored and should last another 75 years easily. I like shooting with all of these... Never mind my Minox submini IIIS, B, C, and EC cameras. I've probably owned and used those as long as any of the others...

So ... no clear answer. I will just keep going until I can't. Have to say, however, that I'm not buying many new cameras these days... 😉

G

 

[Zuiko-logist]

While I plan to keep my Crown Graphic and Leica III for the rest of my life, I also plan to hold on to, regularly use, my Canon EOS 3 that I purchased in ‘98 within days of camera’s release.

View attachment 4887585

A beautiful example of a fantastic camera.

 

[Mark A. Fisher]

At 77 I have been asking the same question, and the answer changes about once a week. At this point three answers consistently present themselves - the Leica Q2 Monochrom, the Fuji X100VI, and the Fuji X-T5. If I had to choose only one, it would be the Q2M. It is such a joy for me. For film, I still have my Canon FTb, acquired in 1976 and still with me, but like me it is a bit more battered and dinged for reliable service, but willing if called upon.

 

[38Deardorff]

"But film is subject to costs and availability, not to mention chemical waste and storage. Unless you're a dedicated film shooter buying bulk reels, loading your own rolls and buying bulk chems, not to mention enjoying the dev process, it doesn't seem economically viable as a daily/companion camera."

That's quite a slanted view Archiver, but of course we each have our own biases here. So it's more economical to buy a $9,000 digital Leica, than to buy rolls of film for the current price of a cappuccino?
To the subject... I prefer to print from larger negative, and as much as I have enjoyed LF photography....my eye is most alive when i travel.....so the Rolleiflex is close to my heart, but I've used Leicas for decades and the tactile elements of the camera itself play a part here. So if I combine those things, then this 1968 M4 would be my lifetime camera...

 

[neal3k]

Has to be two "cameras for life" for me. Leica I(C) with Elmar 50mm f/3.5 and a Holga 120N.