Gear Acquisition Syndrome

"gmctavish needs more space" (gmctavish) 10/14/2019 at 23:10 • Filed to: photography

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Did I need another camera, and more lenses? No. Was I even really looking for more? Not really. And yet here we are, with a deal that was too good to pass up. A Minolta X-1 (JDM version of the XK), an MC 50mm f2, an MC 28mm f2.5, and a Vivitar 70-220 f3.5 Macro. Supposedly good, even though it’s Vivitar. Made by Kiron apparently. All for $150. The big deal is the X-1, I’ve never seen one on eBay for less than $390 or so, or locally for less than $425. They’re usually $500-$600.

Oh yeah I got this MD 100 f2.5 a little while ago, and the guy I bought it from happens to be in a band I’ve been listening to for 10 years.....it also came with an XG 1 and an MD 50mm f2. The body is meh, but the lenses are good. Especially the 100mm. 

CB > gmctavish needs more space 10/14/2019 at 23:23

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Mad jealous.

gmctavish needs more space > CB 10/14/2019 at 23:30

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Deals are out there, just gotta look on Craigslist and Facebook obsessively like you’re hunting for a car deal....and either be single, or have a spouse that tolerates this much camera gear 

CB > gmctavish needs more space 10/14/2019 at 23:31

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I have one of those, but finding camera stuff is tough out here.

MiniGTI - now with XJ6 > gmctavish needs more space 10/14/2019 at 23:36

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That 100 looks like a nice piece of glass. 

Bryan doesn't drive a 1M > gmctavish needs more space 10/14/2019 at 23:42

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Nice! I miss the vintage camera game. So cheap compared to cars...

gmctavish needs more space > CB 10/14/2019 at 23:44

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That’s frustrating. I don’t really have any ideas other than thrift or vintage stores, unless there are any vintage camera stores in Stoon or Regina. 

gmctavish needs more space > MiniGTI - now with XJ6 10/14/2019 at 23:45

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I’m excited to try it. I bought it from a Nikon shooter who liked it enough that he kept the XG 1 around just to use that lens. Very underrated amongst old portrait lenses, apparently. 

gmctavish needs more space > Bryan doesn't drive a 1M 10/14/2019 at 23:46

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It really is. Trying to do both at the same time isn’t as cheap...

CB > gmctavish needs more space 10/14/2019 at 23:50

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There are a few around. I have a vacation soon, so maybe I’ll take a look.

gmctavish needs more space > CB 10/15/2019 at 00:02

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Are there any you have in mind you’ve been looking for?

CB > gmctavish needs more space 10/15/2019 at 00:07

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Not particularly, to be frank. I know nothing about film.

gmctavish needs more space > CB 10/15/2019 at 00:19

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Well I’d recommend a Minolta, unsurprisingly. Cheaper than Nikons and Canons, but great glass. Everything from the SRTs up has full aperture metering, and XKs and up have autoexposure.

My Hi-Mat ic AF2 was a great way to get started with film, since it’s autoexposure and autofocus, less intimidating than something fully or mostly manual. Some other common good ones are the Nikon FM, EM, F2 and F3 but they’re pricey. Canon F1, A1, Olympus OM1, 2, etc... too many good reasonably affordable cameras to keep track of.

There are a lot of decent reviews and overviews on Casual Photophile and Japan Camera Hunter, I’d do some digging around there to see what looks good to you. 

SlideshowOhNO - Fixit Union, Chapter of Kinja > Bryan doesn't drive a 1M 10/15/2019 at 16:54

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-- and Digital.

SlideshowOhNO - Fixit Union, Chapter of Kinja > gmctavish needs more space 10/15/2019 at 17:00

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I’m a terrible photog, so admiring the cameras/lenses on principle of capability is difficult for me. On the grounds of i ndustrial design and material? Old school cameras and lenses are wonderful.

I have a Sony APS-C camera with a *okay* 16-50mm kit lens, but I can tell it’d be far better with just a couple primes. I can’t justify the cost of Sony E-mount lenses, but I feel I’d be set with a good telephoto, 35mm/50mm, and a nice wide 16mm. The telephoto would be the highest priority, purely because we have some incredibly scenery here (The Rockies front range), but the current lens range makes them look incredibly distant. The others would be purely to get good background/foreground separation through focus, which the current kit lens is unable to achieve at distance.

gmctavish needs more space > SlideshowOhNO - Fixit Union, Chapter of Kinja 10/15/2019 at 18:23

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If you don’t mind manually focusing, and if your camera has focus peaking, do some digging on http://www.mflenses.com/

Lots of reviews of reasonably priced older glass that can be easily adapted to digital bodies. Mirrorless Sonys are some of the most popular for that sort of thing. 

SlideshowOhNO - Fixit Union, Chapter of Kinja > gmctavish needs more space 10/15/2019 at 23:58

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I prefer manual. The motor groan of the zoom motor is unnerving, especially for video.