A no-frills 1930s folding camera, likely sold in pharmacies and built for simplicity. ƒ/6.3, 1/100s max—surprisingly capable for 6×9 shots. Nearly a century old, still working great, and the bellows are intact. A charming, oversized gem in the collection.

My first folding camera—needed some TLC to get going: freed the focus, re-calibrated, patched the bellows. Now it’s a reliable, rewarding shooter.

A quirky little bakelite beauty from 1937! Runs on 620 film—solved with a nail clipper and some determination. Just two apertures (ƒ/11, ƒ/16) and three speeds (100, 25, Bulb), yet it delivers surprisingly solid results. No focus ring, no marked focal length—just pure, stripped-down vintage charm.

The Certo Certina, a 1966 East German camera, was once shelf decor—now a charming, no-frills introduction to film photography’s humble, functional roots.

I picked up this Meopta Flexaret IVa at a market in Chinteni that runs a few times a year. I stumbled across this twin-lens reflex camera and was immediately drawn to its character. I had no idea if it worked or what to expect, but I managed to negotiate a great price for it. It turns out this little box was made in Czechoslovakia during the 1950s by Meopta, a company known for its precision optics and strong reputation in Eastern Europe. The Flexaret series was their answer to the popular TLR designs of the time, offering solid mechanics and surprisingly good image quality for the price. Mine seems to have been customised at some point. From what I can tell, there was never a beige version of the IVa produced, so it must have been re-covered. I actually quite like the way it looks and don’t plan on changing it back. It seems to work well, although I did mess up loading the first roll of film, which gave me a few unexpected light leaks. Still, it was a fun learning experience and adds to the charm of shooting with a camera from this era.