Two years ago, I wrote about the top 5 cameras I yearned for. This one was on that list, and one of my friends recently bought one. He remembered that post and offered it to me as a loaner.

So now I have it, what do I think?

Well, it looks amazing. Apparently, it was Ansel Adams’ point-and-shoot of choice.

It is the same age as me, being released in 1969.

Though it would have been easy to shoot it without removing the lens cap, as written in this blog post. I didn’t fall into that trap, which surprised me, as it seems that it would be something I would do quite easily. I think I was conscious of the meter always being on and draining the battery, so I was careful to put the cap on and off when shooting. BUT, that actually wouldn’t solve the issue as the light meter is not under the lens cap, but to the side of the lens. That means to turn it of,f you would need a case or cover the meter with some black tape. So taking the cap on and off just made me conscious of the meter issue. This website has lots of details about the camera and the metering issue. There is a spot metering button on the back, which is very useful. Some examples I have seen also have a battery check button; this one did not.

The rangefinder patch on this example was very clear making it a delight to use.

I loaded this example with a roll of the new Kentmere 200 and took it out for wanders in the soaring heat of the summer. Though it fit perfectly in my pocket, I tended to use the neck strap, which made it a little top-heavy. However, the camera wasn’t mine, and I worried about it falling out of my tiny girl pockets. I left the camera on automatic speed and aperture, so that I would really know if it worked and whether the choices it made were appropriate for the conditions. Could I trust it?

Here are most of the results from that roll.

As you can see, I love sunflowers. I am sure they will be in lots more photos over the next few weeks.

The camera metered perfectly. I am quite impressed with the film too.

So is it still on my want list? No. Though it is a great camera and I really enjoyed using it, there wasn’t enough for me to justify the current price, given all the cameras I already have. I really appreciated my friend’s generosity in letting me try his copy. I got to save my GPS counter and money at the same time. Next time I see him, I will hand this back with a smile, no regrets. BUT, if I didn’t have a plethora of cameras to choose from, then I would happily look for one of these.