This is another camera I got from a friend. He asked me to sell some at a fair. I sold a few, but not all, so I could play with them afterwards. I decided to try this one first as it was so clean-looking. The rangefinder patch was fairly clear, and the light meter responded as it should. The lens had a smooth action, as did the winder. It almost seemed as though this camera had never been used. The only issue I could see was that it had no strap lugs, but the case split in half, so even that wasn’t a big problem.

It was released in 1967, and you can find the manual at the super Butkus website. It needs a battery to work the light meter, the banned mercury one. But luckily, I got some alternatives at West Yorkshire Cameras before they closed their doors.

I tried it out during a school holiday, on my first camping trip of the season to Ironbridge. When I unpacked my stuff, I remembered the sleeping mattress broke at the end of the last season. I meant to get a new one, but forgot. I looked online and the nearest outdoor shop was in Shrewsbury. So I had an uncomfortable night’s sleep and headed there in the morning with the AL-F loaded with a roll of Kodak 160. I quickly finished the film, I loved Shrewsbury.

The website I linked to said Shrewsbury is one of the happiest places on the planet. Well, it certainly was friendly. The first place I went to…after buying a new mattress…was the Abbey. The person there asked if I had been before, and I said no. Then she proceeded to give me an itinerary for the rest of the day. I started at the English bridge and headed to the Welsh bridge via the castle. You can read more about the history of the town at this website. At the abbey, the guide also informed me that Wilfred Owen was brought up in the town. There was a memorial to him right there in the abbey. It was a nice coincidence, as I had just read a book of war poems, and his work really stood out to me. Compared to the other works in the book, his poems evoked more emotion within me.

Here are some of the results from that first roll.

I ran out of film as I arrived at the cathedral. I was having such a nice day that once I finished my test roll, I immediately loaded another quietly inside the cathedral. That roll was a Kodak 200. It was a colour sort of day.

These were taken at the cathedral.

After that, I made my way back to the car and looked at the map for other locations nearby where I had placed a marker at some point in my life. I have a habit of placing markers in Google Maps when I see or hear about things that look interesting. It means I am never short of somewhere to explore, though sometimes I don’t know why I placed it until I get there. The closest placemarker was at Acton Burnell.

I was the only person wandering the castle and the church. It was a stunning day and a beautiful location. I heard so many birds in the surrounding trees, including a woodpecker.

My day and the film were not over, so I headed to Much Wenlock. This was another very friendly place and the inspiration for the modern Olympic Games.

And that’s not all, I still had a few shots left for the campsite when I got back. What a long but lovely day.

Now equipped with my new sleeping mat, I slept very well that night…Until I was woken by a buzzard arguing with a peacock, and a fox trying to steal my food.