One of the great things about running a site like this is all the interesting emails we get. However one of the best things about the web in general is that you can often find the answer you are looking for without having to resort to email at all.
We try and incorporate as much info into the various camera related pages on this site - but here are a few Frequently Asked Questions worth covering separately:
Current number 1 frequently asked question:
Q) Where can I buy film for my Polaroid I-zone camera?
A) The short answer is unfortunately - you can’t. Film for i-zone cameras has not been made for several years now and whist occasionally some will come up for sale - it will be expensive/out of date and really not worth the trouble.
Q) I’m looking for a manual / instruction book for XYZ camera. Can you help?
A) We don’t actually upload or distribute manuals ourselves - however there are a few sites well worth looking on:
http://mikec62.tripod.com/manuals.html http://www.butkus.org/chinon/index.html http://www.urmonas.net/manuals/ http://www.marriottworld.com/instruct_page.htm
This is by no means an exhaustive list and its well worth just searching on Google as this often turns up a manual.
Its also possible to buy manual reprints. The 2 best known places are:
http://www.oldtimercameras.com/ http://www.craigcamera.com/
Another site I’ve recently become aware of is:
Wallage Reprints
which is especially interesting as it stocks reprints of the classic ‘Focal Press Guides’ for a variety of cameras.
Q) I’ve been given/found an old camera and I’d like to know what it is. Can you help?
A) Probably. We are always willing to try and help - but the more info you supply the better. A good photo of the camera always helps - but the key info is the lettering/numbering around the shutter/lens at the front of the camera. Many cameras look similar - but this info helps to pin down exact models.
Note - we are only really able to advise on cameras which take ordinary still photos using film. There are other types of camera we can’t help much on including cine/movie cameras and digital cameras.
Q) I’ve got an old camera I’d like to sell - how much is it worth?
A) Difficult question. In the past the value of old cameras was largely determined by the book price. By this I mean the value listed against that camera in one of the standard camera guides. In the last few years though the 2nd hand camera market has taken a tumble - mainly due to digital cameras. Also many cameras are sold on Ebay - and in many respects this is the most accurate guide to what a camera is really worth. Of course its important to accurately identify a camera before trying to value it - and your exact model of camera may not have sold in Ebay recently. Having said all that - if you’d like our opinion on what a camera is worth - please feel free to contact us.
Q) I have an old camera - would you like to buy it?
A) We like cameras - but we have far too many as it is - so unfortunately the answer is almost certainly no.
Q) I have seen something on your site I’d like to buy - is it for sale?
A) No - this site is for information only - nothing is for sale.
Q) My camera is broken - can you fix it?
A) No - this site is for information only - we can’t even fix our own cameras most of the time - let alone anybody elses! ;-)
Q) I need some film/accessory for my camera - where can I buy it?
We live in the UK (United Kingdom / England). If you live here too - we might be able to help - but if you live in another country then you can probably find what you are looking for closer (and cheaper) to home than anywhere we can suggest.
Also we are unable to buy items on your behalf and post/mail them on.
Q) You have lots of values on your website - but I don’t understand the currency/money you use?
Most values you will see will be written with the £ (pound) sign eg:
£10.50
This reads “10 pounds, 50 pence”. This is the current system used in the UK (since 15th February 1971) and there are 100 pence to the pound.
You can easily convert between this and other popular currencies by using the following site:
http://www.xe.com/ucc/
For reference original selling prices are sometimes quoted in old UK money, eg:
£10 5s 6d
This would read “10 pounds, 5 shillings and six pence”. There were 12 pennies to the shilling and 20 shillings to the pound.
Got a question or can't find the info you are looking for? Click HERE to contact us.
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