Hacker News Reader

Comment by imglorp | Hacker News Reader

I have a Brownie Hawkeye stashed away. Solid, smooth, and bulletproof. I'm hoping someday, my grandkids will have access to some actual film and someone who can develop it, so they can play with it.

Anyway, if you look in the junk shops, the going rate on those seems to be about $24, which might be surprisingly low until you realize how many were made. Millions?

View on HN

I've shot numerous rolls of 120 through my Hawkeye, spooling onto a 620 reel. While the image quality leaves something to be desired the camera itself is beautifully designed and so dirt simple that you never have to worry about anything malfunctioning. Folding cameras are technically superior but quite fiddly and prone to issues with lubricants turning to glue.

Is nobody at all making film anymore? I know the big companies have all moved on to digital but I figured there had to be a niche market for film.

There's actually a resurgence in film making. A bunch of small film makers are starting production again (ADOX and Ferrania come to mind) and Kodak recently reintroduced T-Max P3200 and is in the process of ramping up Ektachrome production.

Some Brownies use the physical format of 620 film. It is no longer manufactured.[1] People can respool 620 spindles from commercially available 120 physical format.

[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/120_film#Other_similar_6_cm_ro...

$24 doesn't seem that low considering how limited brownies are. For that money you should be able to find a basic MF folding camera that'll give you a lot more control over your picture and fits nicely in your pocket(edit: well, coat pocket).

Yes, but at this point, the Brownie is a cultural icon and a working camera. $24 is pretty OK for that.

Props to the FPP for selling film adapters https://filmphotographystore.com/collections/film-related-ac...

Waiting for a MF digital sensor that uploads the pic to a smarthphone. That would be instagramming in style.

I don't thinks its value is in it's picture-taking capabilities which are quite crude by modern standards. Any value it may have is based upon it collectability and rareness. Based on that valuation, it doesn't seem to be either collectable nor rare. In that case, its probably more of a nostalgia item.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com