Film cameras can be worth a second look! V intage Cameras
learn ^ buy and sell
By Michael and James Fry
V
of the market and are easier to identify. Quite a few of the valuable cameras in the medium format category are boxy “TLR” and “SLR” (twin lens reflex and single lens reflex) cameras. A fewminutes spent searching these terms online will give you a clear understanding of what they look like and how they are differ- ent. The TLRs are easily identifiable by the two lenses on the front of the camera. While most vintage cameras at our estate sales sell between $10 and $40, we sold a Rolleiflex TLR medium format camera for $245 this past June (pictured above/below etc). Brands to be on the lookout for include Mamiya, Yashica, Rolleiflex, Rol- leicord, and Olympus. The medium format SLRs in contrast, have a single detachable lens on the front. The Kowa Six (pictured above/below etc.) from a sale we hosted last year is a good visual example of a medium format SLR, coming in at a price of $160. Notable
isit any Kansas City-area antique store, vintage shop, flea market, estate sale or auction house and the chances are pretty darn good it will have a vintage film camera for sale. The advent of
digital technology created a surplus of this antiquated technology—once found in nearly every home in the country. Interest in these cameras has dwindled to a small group of film enthusiasts, collectors, and those who enjoy vintage decorating. Indeed, many of these older cameras such as the Kodak Brownie Hawkeye or Argus, have little value beyond looking aesthetically pleasing on a bookshelf. However, if you know what to look for, there are plenty of sought-after cameras that sell in the hundreds to thousands of dollars. Here are a few guidelines so that the next time you’re at a garage sale and
the camera quite a large outfit. In addition to their size, they can be identified by their bellows and ability to tilt/shift the lens. If you’ve ever seen a picture of Ansel Adams on top of his station wagon with a huge camera, then you have seen a large format in action. Re- sale value for a working, large format camera is hardly ever below $150. Sought after brands like Deardorff, Wisner, and Lenhof, with a quality lens, can sell for more than $1,000. One of the challenges in hunting for valuable vintage cameras is the fact that most brands have both expensive and inexpensive models. Canon, Pentax, Kodak, Graflex, Olympus, and Nikon all made models that currently sell for over $500 and other less desirable models that sell for less than $10. Sometimes the valu- able models even look the same as the cheap ones, as is the case with the Polaroid 180 and 450 Land Cameras. In the world of optical documentation there are very few brands sought after for nearly every model they ever produced – few brands whose cameras are revered by both collectors and photography practitioners alike. No other camera manufac- turer exemplifies this better than Leica. Known for their rangefinders, an average selling price for a vintage Leica body and quality lens is often more than $1,000. Even point-and-shoot models made in the early 2000s (the least desir-
spot a Minolta Hi-Matic next to a Hasselblad 500CM, priced at $25 each, you’ll know which one is worth picking up. The size of film the camera uses can be a helpful basic starting point for potential value. The vast majority of vintage cameras use 35mm film. Cameras shooting with larger film are broken into two categories: medium and large format. Focusing on cameras with film sizes larger than 35mm simplifies our
brands include Pentax, Mamiya, and Bronica. The most well-known medium format brand, and also one of the most valuable, is Hasselblad. While all the other brands typically sell somewhere between $100 and $400, Hasselblad cameras with a lens regularly sells between $400 and $1,200. Large format cameras are even easier to pick out than medium format. The filmwas 4in. x 5in. or larger, making
focus because these cam- eras are in the minority
8 vintagekc fall 2015
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