You've won $20,000 in a camera store raffle...

I would have liked to have tried a Mamiya 7II or a Contax 645. I should have done so when they cost s/h £850. Now they are pricy and they are getting on in years. Helicopter money might have made me go for them. Other than that a digital medium format would be nice to try. Or, predictably, the M10.
 
Fujinon 5cm F1.2 LTM, Leica AHOOT (28+50 Waist-level viewfinder that I've been hunting for years), and a 0.58 MP.
 
Ok, times have changed since I started this thread...

Fujifilm GFX-50R with 50/63mm lenses
Hasselblad 907X / CFV II 50C with 45mm F4
Used Leica M10
 
John,

This is a cool thread.

For me it would be film and printing supplies like paper, chemicals, and inks.

$20K is really not a lot of money. LOL.

Cal
 
Two Leica M9 series OEM battery, Cosina Viogtlander 28mm metal vf and .. all Ricoh GRD, GR which were made so far as new or LNIB with matching 21 lens, adapter. No two sets for each GRD and GR. Those are wonky :) .
 
jsrockit said:
Well Cal, it is and it isn’t. :) But when free, it is... ;)
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John,

Call me child like or immature, but I like daydreams and still have that sense of wonder.

One year I figure I bought $10K worth of paper and ink to get serious about digital printing.

Pretty easy to see me spending another $10K on film and printing supplies for wet printing.

Half joking when I said that $20K is not a lot of money. "Crazy is good," I say.

I will also say that I still love my MM, and all my other retro junk.

Cal
 
x-ray said:
I owned one in the 70’s. The big advantage of this lens was the lack of flare wide open. You know how you get a ball of fuzz flaring light around a streetlight at night? The f1.2 hardly flares under that kind of light. The V3 Summicron which was made at that time also was almost as good at flare control wide open. Both were a major improvement over the V2 rigid and dual range at flare control at f2.

Of course f1.2 potentially could be an advantage under low light vs an f2 just to get an image on film. There was a big disadvantage to this lens besides cost, size and weight. The lens was just average from f4 down. It performed its best from 1.2-4 and at its best it wasn’t exceptional other than flare co troll. Don’t get me wrong, it produced nice images but wasn’t any better or as good as a Summicron resolution wise from f2-4.

I never owned a v1 or 2 Summikux but felt after buying the 1.2 that the summikux would have been as good or better choice. In reality the No til us carried a very high price for 1/3 stop greater speed. Yes 1/3 stop, the progression of f stops is f 1, 1.1, 1.2 & 1.4. One third stop.

Unless you’re just looking for bragging rights, spend the money on something else. In the end, I owned it for a couple or three years and traded it to Doc McGinnis in Nashville. One of the items I acquired in the trade was a v3 Summicron. No regrets.
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XRAY,

I own a Noct-Nikkor.

This like the Noctilux's has low "Coma" glass to get rid of the "lava-lamp" hot spots in night shots.

I only paid $2.7K for the Noct-Nikkor. For shooting wide open, for portraits, and for shooting F1.2 to say F2.8 it is a wonderful lens. I mostly shoot it wide open or close to wide open.

It also does well mounted to a Leica SL or SL2 digital.

I would agree that for stopping down though other fifties are better.

Cal
 
Calzone said:
John,

Call me child like or immature, but I like daydreams and still have that sense of wonder.

One year I figure I bought $10K worth of paper and ink to get serious about digital printing.

Pretty easy to see me spending another $10K on film and printing supplies for wet printing.

Half joking when I said that $20K is not a lot of money. "Crazy is good," I say.

I will also say that I still love my MM, and all my other retro junk.

Cal
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No doubt we spend a lot on this stuff...and we will anyway, even if we don't win a raffle. It is expensive to do right and as an artist.

The original MM is certainly a unique camera and THAT "is good."
 
jsrockit said:
No doubt we spend a lot on this stuff...and we will anyway, even if we don't win a raffle. It is expensive to do right and as an artist.

The original MM is certainly a unique camera and THAT "is good."
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John,

I know where all my dispoable income goes. It goes into photography either directly or indirectly.

Now more than 8 years later the MM is still a great camera. The $8K I spent was worth it, then to have the sensor replaced for free along with a Leica overhaul. You know me, the 28 Cron version 1, or the 35/1.8 Nikkor in LTM is pretty much all I need.

I figure that the SL2 with the native glass I own will keep me from ever buying a M10M. The SL2 is like and all about overkill. The camera is brutal and is a true "Monster," especially with native glass.

The only camera I want would be a SL2 Monochrom (SLM).

Cal
 
I think I'd still have a fair bit of cash left after buying the Welta Superfekta and all the box cameras in the place, so I'd stock up a bit on 120 and chemicals, and find a charitable purpose for what's left, spread the love a bit.
 
I would go on a very very very Long European Holiday...
spend most of the Money that way
(though Im sure the store would not have it, boohoo)

as for Gear just Buy one lens ... f5.6 28mm Summaron

ahh, that would be Grand !
 
jsrockit said:
Good grief... it was just a silly little thread.
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Gosh, you must be a real damper at a party! These "silly little thread(s)" as you call them, can be fun. They give us some light relief from the dreary times we currently live in.

In 1996 I won A$3500 from the only two lottery tickets I have ever bought in my life. It was 'free' money so I used it to buy a big stash of film and then three months in Southeast Asia. That trip changed my life in many ways, not just in my photography but I also met my partner in Malaysia, who has been with me since. That unexpected money gave me a chance to get off the grid of my work and personal life at the time. I have been a very happy man ever since. Long may it last!

Now on to things photographic...

farlymac said:
Hmmm...I'd likely get an M10-something, a couple of lenses that have long been on the list, then a decent computer/printer/monitor suite to replace my current underachieving/overwhelmed set-up.
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+1000! This is exactly what I would do - an M10, a 28mm and a 90mm, probably Elmarits if they exist. All used gear with good warranties from a reputable dealer (these do exist, sadly in ever-decreasing numbers).

I would also upgrade my laptop to a new model. Probably MacBook.

THEN I would sell every damn photo gear item I own except those three Leitz pieces. And bank the proceeds to travel when the current Covid madness ends, if it ever does. And use that M10 and the two lenses until they drop or I drop, whichever comes first. Alas, at my age, probably (or inevitably) the latter.

The end result would be I would have spent somebody else's money, got the gear I need, and in the end saved more than the original $20K.

Win-win-win. Life doesn't get much better than that.
 
I would 100% buy a commercial automated film development machine and, if enough was left over, a more commercial-grade scanner (I know $20K probably wouldn't stretch this far, but let's assume they have used equipment!), and start up a development/scanning mail order business - as well as use it for my own benefit.
 
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