Category Archives: Junk Camera Finds

Olympus Superzoom 140S (Accura 140)

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Well, I thought I had tried this camera before, but that was the mju version. They are very similar, but apparently this is the cheap version. Both cameras were out at the same time, this one released in 1999. The superzoom was not as pretty, but bit more rugged. You can find some German technical details here.

I really liked the mju version, but I didn’t have much luck with it so I eventually sold it. If this one worked I might keep it…might. Inside was a found film which I finished off while on a bike ride. Why not? The camera is rugged and in its case it fit perfectly in the water holder.

There were only a few shots left on the film, the rest of the shots were fogged. Someone probably opened the film door at some point.

Well, for an expired film these are ok. There isn’t much to the camera for the user, the best feature is the titled “superzoom”. I also liked the addition of the diopter as my eyesight is getting worse with age.

It is a fine camera and a great, cheaper, alternative to the mju version. It is not exactly a heavy duty camera, but it is cheap enough to through around a bit.

Canon Ixus Z50 (ELPH LT260, IXY 220) APS

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I obtained this camera in a pile of point and shoots along with some containing films. The film I tried in this one was a retrieved film. I took it out of a camera that was already on my list, used a screw driver to change the position of the indicator and reloaded it in this camera. The original camera’s counter was set at two exposures and the first two of this film were double exposed quite nicely so that left 23 of the Kodak Advantix Ultra for me 🙂

When I lived in Japan lots of the Canon APS cameras I found where named IXY, now they are Ixus as I am in Europe. They can also be called Elph, this camera from 2000 also has many names. You can find them here along with some extra details here.

It is tiny but feels well built. When you turn it on the flash pops up, but you can turn it off manually. I would say, if you are going to go for a small point and shoot APS camera, then this is a good one to try. Though I am sure the flash is not very powerful so it would be best to use it outside on a nice day.

I took my found film and camera on a trip to Huddersfield. It was my first visit there and I quite liked it, not that I would go back as the train journey back was a real pain but that was not Huddersfield’s fault. I was just unlucky with demonstrations and accidents.

The film didn’t do too bad considering it was left inside the original camera for an undetermined amount of time in undetermined conditions. This camera’s ISO cannot be changed so that did well too. A nice, small camera to keep in a pocket…except I have a few APS cameras of that description so it will be moved along.

Just when I said…

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Just when I said I would scaling down the camera reviews on this site, I go and get a bulk load of point and shoots!

I saw them on Facebook Marketplace, which seems to be the place to get a few bargains these days. No selling fees, no paypal fees, bargains galore, maybe.

Anyway I saw an advert for 16 point and shoot cameras untested, but some of them were Olympus, Nikon, Canon etc. So I thought why not.

I went along to check them out and most of them had batteries inside, only one had any kind of corrosion. Six had films inside, two of those were APS.

In the end this is the list of cameras I picked up for £30. Nearly all have cases.

Tried before -seem to be working
Canon Ixus M-1 – APS (film inside, I removed it)
Olympus Mju Zoom 140 (tried before, but this had a film inside so will test as I liked it)


Untried with film Inside – seem to be working
Canon Ixus Z50 – (APS, I put the M-1 film in this one)
Canon Sureshot AF-7
Chinon 35F-EE
Minolta Vectis 20 – APS
Nova dx-5 (seems like a toy camera)
Olympus Superzoom 140S (film inside)
Pentax Espio 738 G (The S and G seem to have the same specs but look different)
Pentax Espio 738 S
Pentax zoom 70-R (film inside)
Ricoh FF-9
Yashica Zoomate 70

Not working – tip material
Canon Ixus Z70 – aps (had a film, able to retrieve)
Nikon AF200
Nikon TWzoom 85
Olympus AZ-300 Superzoom

So not bad really. I get to try 13 cameras with 2 APS films. So about £2 each. The person selling them had found them by hunting the car boot sales. So in terms of time and petrol saved, that makes it even more of a bargain.

Return to Canon EOS 1000, but with an F

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I have been given a few cameras recently, this one included. I have tried a version of this camera before, the Japanese version. This is the European version.

When I was first given it, it didn’t work having been stuck in a cupboard for a number of years. I cleaned the battery points and then it did fire up, but the autofocus did not respond. So I clean the points on the lens and the camera. Voilà, let there be…movement/power…something. As I have loads of expired E6 film I put in some of that and went to vintage vehicle show, because I can.

Here are some of the colour shots.

I think this example performed better than the last one I tried. I also converted the film to black and white to compare.

They both have their charms, what do you think?

Braun Super Paxette II

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I got this camera down the pub. Not a knock off, hey do you want a camera, type deal. But someone who knew I liked film cameras gave it to me to try. It had a film inside that had been there for well over 20 years. If I could try and retrieve the photos then I could have the camera.

Firstly, I want to say thank you to the person who gave me the opportunity to try this camera. Secondly, I really don’t like it 🙂

Sometimes you like using a camera and sometimes you don’t. With this one I could not wait to finish the test roll and almost abandoned it altogether. Some of that dislike is based on the example that I used. It had been stuck in a cupboard for many, many years and was very stiff. It also needed a double stroke to wind and cock the shutter. The rangefinder second image was a little light and juddery, this was probably due to the stiffness of the focusing. I had no confidence it would work, therefore I thought I was wasting my time.

Once I retrieved the found film. I loaded the camera with a newer one, because I said I would. I sent off the original film to get developed and some images were saved. They contained pictures of the owners ex-wife who died a few years ago. So I am glad to save those for him. The camera was tricky to load and I had to try a couple of times. I could not see if it worked as the rewind dial did not spin when it was pushed down. This also cause me an issue when unloading the film and I ended up doing it manually in a dark bag. It turned out the dial is not engaged unless you pull it up. I have not come across that before.

So about the camera. After looking at this website I realised this was the Super Paxette II version introduced in 1953 or 1956. The simple fact it has a rangefinder means that it is the super version as regular Paxettes did not have that feature. Through those links and the photos of the camera you can get all the technical details you need.

Given that I had no confidence in the camera, it was stiff and awkward…didn’t know if it worked. I took it to Buxton to use while I took part in a photographic competition. I could not use it for that event as it was a digital only event, but used it as I wandered about looking for the categories I needed.

Well, it did work. It was not my favourite experience with a camera. I tried to give it back to the original owner, but he said he would rather it be owned by someone who might take care of it. He would probably put it back in his cupboard. As I didn’t want it, what to do?

I offered it for free to the film photo group I am in and someone responded. I handed the camera over and the new owner seemed really chuffed to own a vintage camera. He really looked like he would take care of it and maybe give it a bit of a clean. A good deal all around.

Fed 4 2nd Version

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I bought this from a customer at a vintage fair I had a stall at. The funny thing about the fair, I came away with more cameras than I took. Many people coming up to me saying they had a film camera at home and would I like to buy it. Mostly I said no, but I said yes to this one. I looked at ones sold on eBay and halved the price, that was the fee I was willing to pay and they accepted. This one is mechanical so I could see it worked quite well, but you never know. It was definitely missing the take up spool so I would have to buy one of those.

As the title says there are a few versions of this camera, this is the second. It was produced between 1969-1980. That is quite a long production time. You can find all the technical details you might like here. I love these old Russian cameras, they just work and rarely seem to stop. They look like bricks and last like them too. This example came with the regular Industar 61 lens. I tried it with with a collapsible jupiter lens, but it didn’t seem to work quite as well. After I put in a 100 asa film and took it to a couple of historical places. First to Chatham Dockyard and then finished the film at Battle Abbey, the site of the Battle of Hastings.

I found carrying the camera a little awkward due to the lack of strap rings. That meant I had to rely on the original camera case and strap which was a little thin. I really wanted to cut it and replace it with another, but that seemed wrong. The long length of the strap did mean I could carry it over my shoulder instead of around my neck. The viewfinder was small, but the second image was nice and clear. The camera has an uncoupled selenium cell sensor with a match the needle type indicator. I relied on that at both locations. Loading the film was fine, but unloading it was a bit of a pain due to the lack of a lever. There is a thumb wheel and boy is it hard to move, and that is even after you have managed to put it in reverse mode. To do that you have to rotate the collar around the shutter release in a clockwise direction. That was not easy if you have got to the very end of the film. This reviewer also mentioned this system as a bit unconventional. I wasn’t actually sure it was rewinding until I felt the film finally give way.

Here are my test shots.

Well would you look at that. All perfectly exposed, well done light meter. The lens is nice and sharp too. What a cracker. Still not sure it is worth the weight though. If this was your only film camera then yes it is. But if you have other, lighter choices…hmmmm tough choice. I think I prefer the Zorki 4 and the Fed 2 to this one for a variety of reasons.

Kowa H

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This camera was not given to me, I did not buy it in Japan…shocking really as it is a Kowa. I don’t really remember buying it at all. But there it was on my “to try” shelf. It had been there for about a year. I think I left it there without really looking at it as I was sure the light meter wouldn’t work. I was sure the auto exposure wouldn’t work either, making it a manual camera only.

But it did work, even on auto.

You can find this camera very cheaply on eBay and other sites. It was produced from 1963 and as the stamp says, in Japan. Once I sat down and looked at this example carefully I couldn’t find a fault with it. Even the light seals were perfect. And here is the special thing…if you put your ear to the camera and press the shutter, you can hear a “chime” sound. I didn’t notice it at first, but then I read about it on this website and I had another listen. Sure enough there it was, like a clock or church bell. So I took the camera to Canterbury Cathedral.

Unfortunately, as I was walking around I bumped the camera and the back sprung open. This reviewer also had the same issue. I didn’t know when it had happened and thought the whole roll had fogged. So to finish the test I also took it to Headcorn Air Show and finished half a roll of an expired film there.

As it turned out many of the shots from the first roll were fine and the exposure choices were spot on. That is pretty amazing as this great review says it was the first camera with an electronic eye…and this one’s still works.

Using the Kowa was a delight. The viewfinder was super bright, the mechanics worked and the selenium cell powered everything perfectly. I tried the camera on both auto and manual mode. The only issue I had was the placement of the film speed dial. It is in the right hand thumb position on the back of the camera. That is usually where the wind on is. But on this camera the wind on is under the camera, so it is moved with the opposite thumb. That meant I naturally moved the film speed when I wanted to advance the film. The camera is slightly on the heavy side and there is no hot shoe. Those are my only niggles.

Keep or sell: no point in selling it just yet as they are super cheap. I might give it away or trade it with someone.

Graffiti and the Holga 135

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I have already tried this camera, but I gave that away ages ago and found this one for $3. There is a BC version which means black corners indicating more vignette. As you can see from my example photos the original camera already has quite a lot of vignetting.

I was quite excited to try this camera again as every 120mm Holga I have tried has had pleasing results. I didn’t really give this one a chance when I first tried it as, but my opinion of fantastic plastics has chanced since then.

As I was going to London for the 100 heroines exhibition, I decided to take some time to try this camera in an area I have not visited before. I did a search for places to see if you have already seen the top tourist spots and Shoreditch came up as a choice. For fun I thought I would try to capture the graffiti around the area with a black and white film. I loaded a Fomapan 100 with the intention of push processing it to 400. I thought it would have a different look to it and show off the vignetting.

I absolutely loved my day in Shoreditch, an area I had not even thought to visit before. Everywhere I looked there was something else to see. Using the Holga was easy and the resulting photos are by far favourite series of photos that I have completed recently. I have already put another film in the camera, a colour one this time. Where shall I take it?