Another day with the Guys
Lens, Book and Camera
October 1st was the latest Camera Show here in Vancouver and as usual I had my table. Again I went to this show with very little in the way of cameras to sell. I did take lots of camera cases and other stuff that I have accumulated and put them in a “Free” Box to get rid of them. I am on a crusade to clean out my basement and get rid of anything that is not part of the Collection.
My friends John from Seattle and Todd from here in Vancouver joined me at 6:30 in the morning outside the Croatian Center to help me take my boxes in which was a great help. Then we settled in for a day of talking, walking and rummaging around the show.
As usual there were cameras and lenses I was not able to afford and lots of bits and pieces to fill out corners in the collection. I had reduced many of my prices to sell off cameras I don’t want. And I did sell several things which, over the day, yielded enough to buy a few things. I was surprised that I did not sell my Leica IIIc with an Elmar 50mm f/3.5 collapsible lens at $480.00. This is a bargain price but no takers. And I had three Canon EEAuto SLR’s and various lenses for them on my table. In spite of a low price none of them sold.
However, with the proceeds from what I sold I was able to acquire a new lens, a very interesting book and a camera model I did not have. Let’s have a look.
This is my new Model 7sZ (Ser. No. 118439). As you can see it is in excellent condition. The lens I also acquired at this show. It is one of the M-39 mount lens Canon issued in 1970 with the introduction of the New F-1.
I finally acquired from Todd a really nice Canon Model 7sZ. The Model 7s had several changes of a minor nature during its production run but the last change was a redesign of the viewfinder which
resulted in a clearer image.
Canon did not give this
change a new model
name but Canon collectors
have called this the Model
7sZ. It was the last
rangefinder camera produced
by Canon. And it was arguably
the best of their rangefinders.! This
is a welcome addition to the
Collection. I already have film in it
and you can expect a write up about
it very soon.
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And then I found a lens. It is an S 135mm f/3.5 lens (Ser. No. 110715) for a Canon rangefinder camera (or any camera that accepts Leitz M-39 lenses). Apparently the rangefinder lenses had sold so well there was still a demand for them in the late 60’s and so Canon reissued a series of these lenses at the time they issued the New F-1 camera. Kitchingman says that, based on Serial Number, this lens was one of those and it was very near the end of that production run.
Just as I was rying to clear out my closet by offering low prices, others are always doing the same thing and interesting stuff comes out. One man’s junk is another man’s treasure. One chap also had a “Free” box and I found two camera cases, just the tops of them, and they had camera logos on them. I took them and I will take the logos and make pins out of them.
On another table I found a very nice Canon “F” Series camera case. As you can see in the picture on the left it is in almost new condition. It is a large case for the f/1.4 and f/1.2 50mm FD lenses. That I picked up for a few dollars. It now holds one of my FT SLR’s.
Every show is different. Much of the gear has been there before but there is always something new to look at.
Part of the fun of these shows is going around and catching up with the friends I have made in the camera community, and checking out their stuff.
My table with one of my wife’s table cloths on it. You can see we did not have a lot of stuff for sale but there was enough to generate a little cash for new treasures.
Only a fraction of the cameras, lenses and gear on the tables is from Canon. But I enjoy all cameras and like to examine more than Canon. But I don’t have the money, or space, to start collecting other brands. It is just not practical. However, it is fun and the looking goes with good conversation all around the hall.
And finally we get to the book. On one table I found a large and heavy volume of over 340 pages containing all of the images Alfred Stieglitz published in “Camera Work” between 1903 and 1917. The book was in excellent condition and the images were beautifully printed. And the seller wanted only a few dollars. He was cleaning out his bookcase.
So why am I excited about this book? Stieglitz was revolutionary photographer in the first years of the 20th century and he published a magazine he called “Camera Work” from 1903 to 1917. In it he published photographs by many of the worlds leading photographers of the time and writing by himself and other writers on the meaning and importance of photography. I have a complete digital set of these magazines and they are wonderful to read, even today, for anyone interested in the origins of photography as an art form.
These images from a hundred years ago have so much to teach us about photography. For me they are masterful and I would love to be able to take such pictures with my own equipment. But I am afraid that may be very difficult. Our lenses are too sharp, the digital sensor is too accurate, we cannot avoid reality. One hundered years ago, with old cameras and processes, photographers were capturing images that showed what was in front of the camera but also in the heart of the artist.
The book also contains a discussion of Stieglitz and his impact on the photography of the time and issues that still haunt our craft.
But wait ….. there is another book. This one Todd brought to the show just so I could see it. I was aware of the existence of this book but never thought to buy it because of its price and the fact that it is in Japanese with no English version I am aware of. It is by a Canon employee named Hayato Ueyama and published in 1990 by the Photo Forum Co. Ltd. The title is, as best I can make out, “All About Seiki Optical Canon”.
It deals with the earliest days of Canon from pre-war to immediately post-war cameras. This is a difficult period to research as most records from the time were destroyed or never kept in the first place in the chaos of war. And what sources there are are mostly in Japanese.
Todd does not want to part with his book, I wouldn’t either, but he has lent it to me. My intention is to scan it and create a PDF of it. Then, with the help of Google Translate, convert it into English. A big project and unfortunately, not one I can share. It is for my own use and research. The author went to a lot of work and I am sure he would be upset if somebody copied his hard work and started distributing it on the internet.
So there you have my last camera show. I am left with much to do: write a piece on my Model 7sZ; test my new 135mm lens and write about it; work on a post about pictorialism in photography; and finally, copy and translate Todd’s book.
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