Gosh, this camera has a lot of names, but in Japan, it is a Kiss. I find a million of these in junk bins, I just had to try one while I had the chance. They are as cheap as chips, plus I already had a lens.
You can read all the technical details you might ever need here. As you can see it is from 1993 and is cheap and plasticky. This one has a panoramic switch, but when I used it the mask got stuck and didn’t retract unless I pushed it, so I just didn’t bother using it after that. The flash also didn’t work. The last thing that bothered me was the super slow focusing. I can find millions and I pick up a faulty one, perfect!
The thing I did like was the super silent shutter, honestly the quietest I have ever heard. Hardly even a whoosh or a pfttth. Perfect for ninja stealth photography…not so perfect when you are shouting, “focus, damn it.” Though the bodies are easy and cheap to get, the lenses are a bit trickier as they fit modern digital cameras. I lucked into this 35-70mm zoom which was as clean as a whistle, but not wide enough or long enough. I much prefer a 28mm.
Here are my test shots which I took at Mashiko Pottery Fair and a few at the Hitachi Nemophilia Festival.
I really didn’t like this camera. While using it I barely thought about what I was doing, I just didn’t like the feel of it. It just didn’t click with me. Isn’t that funny? How one camera you love and another you hate, but there really is no reason why. I was also a bit late for the nemophilia which didn’t add to my feelings about the camera.
Keep or sell: These cameras are a dime a dozen and with this one having issues I think it will just go in the bin.
The pictures came out well.
These are lovely beginner film SLRs — if you can find one with a working shutter. The entry-level EOS cameras’ shutters aren’t very robust. I’ve owned two with failed/failing shutters.
Yes, I agree. This one felt like it was falling apart in my hand. Very different from the Nikon F90x I tried the same weekend.
I think my issue with these kind of cameras regardless of brand is that they don’t give the tactile experience of older cameras. What I mean is, they feel almost exactly like holding my DSLR. Actually no, that’s not fair to my digital, it has more character.
TT hear cameras to me kind of feel exactly the same as the plethora of cheap compacts from the same era…..a little like the disposable you just reviewed. Perfectly good photos…but no soul!
I agree. I much prefer the feel and sounds of a manual camera…apart from the Contax I tried. That was awesome, the lens was so sharp.