What kind of vintage film camera should I buy?

Kathryn T: What kind of vintage film camera should I buy?
Vintage film cameras have recently peaked my interest. I bought a Polaroid OneStep Land Camera, but have come to find that one cannot buy film for such a camera. What other vintage film cameras should I look for that are fairly old, but still “alive” in the photography industry. In other words, I’d like an old camera for which I can buy film.

Answers and Views:

Answer by Briley
I have a Diana+F that I got from Lomography.com It’s all plastic and takes “dreamy” like pictures.
It uses 120film, which you can still buy or you could get the Instant pictures piece so it works a lot like a polaroid camera.

Answer by Jay
Yashica D TLR – TLRs are fun, with their waist level view screens, and the quality of a well made one is stunning (the yashica D’s lens is sharp, put in some nice film, and go to town)

Or a Minolta Autocord, both fantastic TLRs and about $ 100-$ 150

Answer by littlealien
A Holga.
They are super cheap and make great vintage looking pics!

Answer by Pooky
You must be young. Polaroid, although out of business, is hardly a vintage camera.

How about a Leica M3? It’s a classic. (And not very old either.)

Answer by Fishmeister
TLR’s are great, I own a Yashica A myself, but I think you should look at a 35mm SLR or rangefinder. If you could tell us what budget you have and what kind of photography you are interested in then it will be easier to give a better recommendation.

Here are a few you should consider..

SLRs

Canon A-1
Canon AE-1
Pentax K1000
Olympus OM series

Others..

Fujica Auto M
Voigtlander Vito B or C
Ricoh 500G or GX

That’s just a few I recommend off the top of my head (I own most of them)..

Another one to consider that is very cheap is an Olympus Trip 35, a great little camera. Zone focus, no batteries required, 40mm f/2.8 Zuiko lens (very sharp!) and available for around £20 on eBay. I always have one in my pocket. No manual options but hey, if I want those then I will just take an SLR out (but they do not fit in your pocket!)..

My Olympus Trip set..

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Answer by Jo
I would get a 35mm, not a medium format (6×6, 6×7, 6×8 or any 120 film). I say this because buying and processing the film for a medium format is a huge hassle and more of an expense for these type of films. Some companies have already stopped making these sizes and you can only take 10-15 pictures per roll.

35mm, however can still be purchased and processed in any corner drug store. You can make a quality 11×14 or larger with that tiny negative, so there is no reason to use a larger film, anyway. It’s a good camera that makes a good photo, and a good lens that makes a good camera.

I would get a SLR camera (single lens reflex). This is a detatchable lens with a mirror inside that flips up to the eye piece. That way when you look through the camera you are looking through the lens itself and not a view finder. Good brands are canon, hassleblad, nikon, minolta.

Answer by FotoZ 4 FX
Look into TLR cameras… Mamiya, Rollieflex, there are many and they take 120 and 220 film (medium format). You will enjoy using them and the images will be incredibly sharp (medium format is so much better than 35mm for prints).

Here’s a sample link: https://www.tlr-cameras.com/sales.htm

You can also find them at pro shops reasonably priced.
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