Thrift Store Find: iZone Digital Combo

I see lot's of Polaroid iZone cameras at the thrift stores, but this is the first time I've run across this particular model. I've never heard of it before either. It's called the iZone Digital Combo camera. It's an iZone camera with a built-in digital camera added to the top. According to the Land List, it was produced in 2000-2001 and originally cost $99.95.

It sports a .3Mp digital camera with 1Mb of memory, 18 digital photos at 680x480p, an RS-232 serial PC connection, an optical viewfinder with no display LCD.

The iZone section of the camera is a standard iZone camera. The analog and digital cameras are separate from each other, but appear to share the same power source, since there is a switch to transfer the 4-AAA power source from one camera to the other.

Unlike most of my thrift store purchases, I don't consider this a usable camera, as iZone film is no longer available and the digital camera requires an outdated PC connection and PC software to download the photos.

Cost: $5.99

Thrift Store Find - 35mm Kodak Retinette, Model 30

This is a Kodak 35mm Retinette, Model 30 that I picked up from a thrift store.  The Retinettes were popular, and Kodak made many variations of this camera. It was built as a less expensive alternative to the Kodak Retina cameras. According to Wikipedia, the Model 30 was first manufactured in 1958.

The Kodak Retinette, Model 30 specs are:

45mm , f/3.5 Schneider-Kreuznach Reomar Lens

Compur Rapid Shutter 

shutter range - 1/500s - 1s, B setting

aperture range - f/3.5 - f22

accessory shoe, M-X flash sync

self-timer

tripod mount

leather case

The camera is in very good condition, with all shutter speeds working, and the aperture appears to close cleanly. It is a basic camera, with no metering and zone focussing. The roll of film that appears with the camera was loaded in the camera when I found it. It is a roll of Kodachrome II. I sometimes like to get the old rolls processed, but unfortunately, there are no more labs that do Kodachrome processing. I am looking forward to running a roll of film through this camera.

Cost:$15

Thrift Store Find - Bedfordflex 127 film Twin Lens Reflex camera

I found this little gem in my local Goodwill store. The camera's nameplate fell off, but based on other images of similar cameras that I have found on the web, I believe it to be a Bedfordflex. It's a nice little camera. As an added bonus, it had an exposed roll of 127 film in it. I'm not sure if there is anything on it, but since I will be testing a c-41 film processing kit, I will process the film myself.

127 film, while rare, can still be found at online stores like BH Photo Video or Freestyle Photo Supply. It's a paper backed roll film, about the same size as 35mm film. The availability of this size film makes finds like these working cameras rather than obsolete display cameras.

Check out the Where to Buy Section for links to the stores that sell 127 film.

Cost: $2US

Thrift Store Find: Ansco 1045 35mm Camera

I found this Ansco 1045 35mm camera at my local Goodwill store for $2.

It is a simple 35mm camera with 1 shutter setting, 2 apertures, a fixed focus 38mm/f5.6 lens, built-in flash. I am loading an expired roll of Fujicolor SuperHQ to test it out.

Vintage Camera - Agfa Silette 1

I finally had a chance to go shooting with my recently acquired Agfa Silette 1. I wasn't sure what to expect, but the lens has nice characteristics. This is a basic 35mm film camera, with a few more controls than one expects on a lower end 35mm camera. An interesting feature of this camera is that it has a countdown film counter. This type of counter tells you how many frames are left, not how many frames you've shot. With a full range of controls, I used a small Gossen light meter to set the exposure.

Agfa Silette 1

Film: 35mm

Shutter Speeds: B, 1/30, 1/60, 1/125

Apertures: f/2.8, f/4, f/5.6, f/8, f/11,f/16,f/22

Zone focussing. Minimum distance 3 ft.

Miscellaneous: No meter, hotshoe, countdown film counter (you must set it to the number of exposures in the roll when loading)

Lens: Color Agnar 45mm

The following photos were shot with Kodak Gold 200 (expired).