Goodwill

We were out and about yesterday afternoon, to Goodwill to drop off some goods. While there we decided to go have a look around. I always bee-line to the electronic/camera department.
It’s amazing what people give away. There were many auto cameras there. Cheap little do-dads that probably sat in a drawer for the past ten years. Then the Canon caught my eye. It was hidden behind a Mr. Microphone leaning against the wall. “Hey baby, we’ll be back later to pick you up”….not !

The camera was the Canon AF35M. It originally came out in 1979. Compared to today it looks like a big black brick. I checked it out. Super dusty, clean battery compartment, it was mine for $2.99.

When I got home I cleaned it up the best I could. Vinegar works great. Vinegar on the optics make them as clear almost as the day they came out of the box.

I currently have a roll of Kodak Tri-x I will develop this week, and see how it works. I will end of keeping it in my car’s glovebox as a backup..

Here is some specific information on this camera:

The Canon AF35M, nicknamed the Autoboy by Canon Japan or the Sure Shot by Canon USA, was Canon Inc.'s first autofocus 35mm lens-shutter compact camera.[1][2] It was launched in November 1979[1] and received the Japanese Ministry of International Trade and Industry's 1980 Good Design Award in September 1980.[2] It proved successful among similar cameras from the competition and sold well; production reached 110,000 per month by the second half of 1981.[2] It was partly supplanted by 1981's higher-specified AF35ML and wholly replaced by 1983's AF35M II.

The active autofocus system used a near-infrared emitting diode and a pin photo diode to determine the subject position by triangulation in a manner similar to a coincident-image rangefinder. This meant that the system was independent of ambient light levels and achieved a high degree of accuracy; however, it could be fooled by glass (which is not transparent to infrared radiation). The autofocus area was marked on the reverse-Galilean optical viewfinder, which also had projected framelines, zone focusing marks for near, medium and far (lit to indicate the approximate area the autofocus had selected), parallax correction marks, and battery-check and camera-shake warning LEDs. Viewfinder magnification was 0.5× and coverage was 85% of the full 135 frame by area.

The lens was of 38 mm focal length and with a maximum aperture of f/2.8. A ring around the lens optic itself was used to set the film speed (ISO 25 to 400), which was indicated on a small window on the front of the lens assembly; also there, but below the lens optic itself, was the cadmium sulfide (CdS) photoresistor for the light meter. The location of this, inside the filter ring of the lens, meant that the meter would function accurately even with filters fitted to the lens.

Film transport was fully automatic in both directions, but the camera was not fitted with Canon's Quick Load feature; film still had to be manually threaded to the take-up spool.

An integral flash was fitted; this retracted into the top of the camera on the left (from the user's perspective) and was manually extended via releasing a catch on the camera's front. The unit had a guide number of 14 (at ISO 100 in meters) and featured auto-exposure with the camera's light meter as well as supporting fill flash. Also on the front was a self-timer control.

All electronic functions drew power from two AA batteries.




Coming Soon- scanned photos from this capable relic !

You know, for a $2.99 camera, it's not bad for having a super cheap film camera in the car when I can't or don't have my more expensive cameras with me.  Sure, I have my iPhone as a nice 8mp digital back up and it's a great thing, but for me film just has a different look to it. It's something not even digital can effectively mimic. Raw and unrefined.   The flash in the second photo is monstrous and just too much, so I will try to diffuse it with some tape or something.  The film I used was self wound Kodak Tri-X and I developed it in D76.  The enlargers that I use are the Beseler 23CII and the Beseler 45M.  I got the 45M and all the lenses and everything for $50.  What a bargain !

So whenever you are in the Goodwill store poking around on Saturday afternoon looking for a bargain, always check the camera section.  Lots of fun for $3.