It has been ?? days since my last camera purchase.

I can’t really give a number to that statement as I have caved and bought a few very cheap cameras, junk ones for less than £3 each. The sort of bargains that are hard to resist. A Pentax auto for £5, a Contax 139 for £3 which is not working at the moment but it is close. As a camera lover, you can’t not buy those.

The last real purchase I made was for a Reto 3D which I have yet to add to this blog. I have a film in it right now and hope to finish it soon.

But it got me thinking, if I could have any camera in the world and not worry too much about the expense, what would I choose?

Well, last week I did try to win an Olympus 35 SP on eBay but was outbid by 4p FOUR PENCE. I was quite ticked and relieved at the same time.

I have always yearned after one of these since I first started looking for junk cameras in Japan. I once found one, but it didn’t work. This was right at the start of my journey when finding cheap cool cameras in Japan was easy. When I reminisce about it, I wonder if I could fix that one now, maybe not. Now I don’t own any Olympus 35 cameras, it makes me think about it even more.

So what else, well a Leica has to be on this list. I have owned a Barnack in the past and sold it due to lack of use. Plus I have the Canon and Zorki 1 which I prefer. The latter is currently in Slovakia getting a service. As for which Leica I would choose, it has to be the one from the King Kong movie.

I love King Kong, I saw my first movie when I was maybe 4 or 5 and still remember going to the cinema with my mum and grandma. They didn’t want to sit at the front so I left them and sat by myself. When it finished, I was a crying wreck. Now here was a new movie with a Leica in it, perfect.

You know, I think I might struggle to think of 5 cameras I really want. The main issue is that I have tried loads and still own lots. One I have owned and regret selling is a Bronica. I have tried 2 different ones and sold them both, the last one during my recent poor/broke times. If I could have another, it would be an SQ as it is 6×6 format and I haven’t tried it.

Though it does look heavy and I might not use it often, I still love looking for a cheap one.

The next choice would be a really good panoramic camera. One that actually takes panoramics and doesn’t just add a mask to 35mm. Of course, money no object it would have to be the X-pan. But I recently read this post and a Mamiya RB67 Pro SD with a 35mm adapter looks perfect and might fill the Bronica ‘want’ too.

And the final camera?? It has to be a point and shoot and I would love a Nikon 35Ti

It’s just so pretty and an amazing camera too.

So here is the final list in the order of preference, but honestly, any one of them would be nice.

1. Leica M3 with goggles
2. Mamiya RB67 Pro SD with a 35mm adapter
3. Nikon 35Ti
4. Olympus 35 SP
5. Bronica SQ version

I guess I could sell most of my cameras and get one of these, but where is the fun in that. For now, I will keep on dreaming and looking for bargains…you never know.