I think I am beyond help.
Just as I am saying I have enough cameras and I need to prune the collection; suddenly I am buying another camera and not even a Voigtländer.
Why do we do it? (Using “we” here in the hope that you there reading this are of the same disposition, please don’t enlighten me if you are not and leave me to my blissful ignorance and happiness that I am not alone in this crazy pursuit.)
I just can’t help myself, I can’t resist an interesting camera at a reasonable price. And I just can’t help looking either. Sometimes I try to kid myself that I’m only looking for specific cameras and that I am sticking to the one brand or a defined thing that I need yet I suddenly get and urge and ‘DING’ PayPal takes a hit.
Over the last year or so, I have sold some cameras but as I review the situation I am fairly sure my acquisitions outnumber my sales. I think I need to sit myself down and have a serious conversation with myself.
I’m not really sure whether I am looking for something and have not yet found it or whether I am just a collector and that is the way I am (I think the latter).
The thing is, these cameras interest me. I like the aesthetic, the feel of them and the mechanical nature of them not to mention their ability to make wonderful images. I like the fact these are historical objects and that at some time in the past they have traveled, worked and captured moments in peoples lives.
The concept of a camera is simple, an adjustable hole with a lens, a shutter that opens and closes and a method for moving film to the next frame. That’s all you need and yet the range and styles and features that are available that augment those three things is amazing and the ingenuity to improve on the basic idea astounding.
I also realize of late that I am a celebrity hunter; no not those B-list people on the TV, I mean camera celebrities. As I read a book or magazine that features a particular photographer of the past, I might notice the camera that they used. And I wonder what that camera was like and why they chose it over the others available. Take this for example, about a year ago I saw a picture of W. Eugine Smith and around his neck was a Miranda Sensorex; I’ve never seen one in person and I start to research them. I have no intention to buy one (it doesn’t fit my collection) and yet I frequently search and browse them and keep an eye on prices etc. Suddenly out of the blue last week I see one and now I am awaiting it’s delivery!
I think it is something to do with the relative inexpensiveness of the majority of film cameras; you can pick up very good machines for less than a tank of fuel (I find the price of a tank of fuel a useful constant for basing purchases on – whether cameras or not). This easy to reach price point allows one to try out different examples and see what they are like. Take my recent post about Leicas, they are more than a tank of fuel and so I can’t bring myself to invest on a whim.
Whim is the right word, this is a hobby that is difficult to justify to anyone else and my need to buy yet another example is not fully understood; so I have to limit the whim on cost; anything more than a tank of fuel is an investment that has to be justified.
February 20, 2018 at 12:21 am
Very interesting, I have a post in draft about the same thing. I think the first point is, if you enjoy collecting cameras – as you obviously do – then what’s the issue?
The problems only come, in my opinion, when you want to be a photographer more than a camera tester/collector, and having so many cameras is hindering you from improving and enjoying your photography. Which is the position I found myself in maybe a year ago, and have been working since on honing down to a much smaller, working kit.
If you love collecting and it’s not harming anyone, collect away!
LikeLike
February 20, 2018 at 8:42 am
I don’t think it is a problem as such but there is a part of me that wants to really explore the cameras I have but the other undisciplined part of me keeps adding to the backlog 🙂
Either way I am enjoying myself so that is the main thing.
LikeLike
February 20, 2018 at 4:15 am
I have a soft $50 limit on my cameras. I’ve broken that limit only a handful of times. It has netted me a collection that has numbered in the hundreds. Which is why I’m thinning the herd.
But oh, the Sensorex! I have a Sensorex II. It is a wonderful machine, with a delightful lens. Mine has an occasional shutter problem or I’d use it all the time.
https://blog.jimgrey.net/2015/07/13/miranda-sensorex-ii/
LikeLike
February 20, 2018 at 8:34 am
Yeah I am looking forward to trying it out, I hope its a good one. I had already read your review, it comes quite high on a google search you know. 🙂
LikeLike