I need help finding a camera!

Question

Okay i love photography and i would really like to purchase my own camera because for the past year i have been using my parents camera. i have been looking for a good film camera, but i cant find anywhere that sells good cameras, everyplace i find sells digital cameras. can anyone suggest where i can get a good camera?

Answer 1

the largest used camera store is www.keh.com in Atlanta.  Their products are guaranteed.  I have used them repeatedly and am getting ready to use them again and I have never had a complaint.  

Answer 2

Try Freestyle Photo Supplies in Los Angeles.  For some reason, I can't post the link to their website, but just search for "Freestyle Photo" on Google.

They sell SLR film cameras, and also have a ton of different kinds of film, filters, photo paper (REAL photographic paper for developing pictures yourself), and chemicals.

Also, look on eBay for an SLR or even a rangefinder camera.  I'd recommend Minolta.  A good vintage SLR camera like a Minolta SR-1 will be a good one.  If you really want to try something different, get an old Argus camera like a Argus C4 or Argus C44.  They're antique cameras, but they take super sharp pictures...in fact, I've taken some awesome landscape photos with my Argus C44 that were MUCH better than my 8 megapixel digital camera.  They have completely manual aperture, shutter speed, and focus.  So you have control over everything.

Sometime, you might also want to try 120 film.  The amount of detail you can pick up with a 120 film camera will blow you away.  If you ever decide to try it, I'd recommend a Yashica A twin lens reflex camera.  You can also find one on eBay.  Any decent camera shop will sell 120 film, or you can order it from Freestyle Photo.

For getting your film developed, you can take 35mm film to the 1 hour lab at Walmart...or better yet, send it to a professional photo lab.  I'd recommend Dwayne's Photo in Parsons, Kansas.  They have a website too, just do a google search for "Dwayne's Photo."  They will develop 120 film too.  You can also easily develop your own black and white film and pictures at home.  For developing color film, I take mine to Walmart or send it to Dwayne's Photo.  But there are a lot of other labs too, you'll just have to look online.

EDIT:  Kodak has NOT made any plans to stop making film.  They said they were going to stop the manufacture of film CAMERAS, but they will continue to make film and chemicals.  In fact, they recently started making several new film emulsions.  Also, Kodak Plus-X is still one of the most popular types of B&W film for photographers and enthusiasts.

Also, some companies have gone BACK into making film and traditional photo supplies, like Ilford.  Look at the Freestyle website and you will see that there are a ton of different films available, including some that are more sensitive to different wavelengths of light, so you can try different effects.

Answer 3

Not so easy to find film cameras anymore, only at specialty shops.

Unfortunately, the camera makers are doing what film producers are currently doing - abandoning their traditional products line. Kodak has already announced their plans to stop making film, and Polaroid has already stopped since January. It may be wise to go digital, since its less costly in the long.

If you are looking for some comparisons, and options, take a look at the following websites -

http://www.calumetphoto.com/Film:+Camera...

http://www.ephotozine.com/

http://photo.net/

http://www.imaging-resource.com/

Answer 4

Check out http://adorama.com or http://bhphotovideo.com .. most professionals buy their gear from them.  They offer a wide array of cameras, lenses and other gear, good service and great prices.