I bought a Mazda pick-up from a fellow in San Fran many years ago. Decent deal for both of us. I happened to have a portfolio with me, so after the sale, I showed him my work as he was interested in photography. As I walked out the door he asked me to wait a minute and he came out with an old Speed Graphic (wood body) with a Zeiss Tessar 15cm/4.5, all in good working condition. He gave it to me.
an 8x10 ansco studio camera that looked like a box of kindling, $10. Oh yeah, it came with a Verito soft focus lens and a 21 1/4 anastigmat too! Yay craigslist.
8x10 Improved Empire State plate camera with Bausch and Lomb Planatograph lens, and 5x7 Seneca 9 with Ilex triple convertible 8.5 to 20 lens plus holders for each and ancient wooden tripods. $35 for the lot at a Goodwill store back in the early 1970's.
"One of the greatest necessities in America is to discover creative solitude." Carl Sandburg
Dang nowadays that would be on Goodwill Online where the prices go higher than E-Bay (I suppose because it's charity?).Originally Posted by lenser
Oh yeah, a mint condition Crown Graphic /135 mm Schneider Xenar, case, flash, holders etc. It was so new that the wood shipping block was still in the rangefinder battery box. City Government auction. It was an old vice squad camera that no one knew how to use. $15.
No it's not for sale.
4x5 LPL Diffusion Modular Enlarger Model 7415, Schneider lens, power conversion box, Ecowash paper rinser, 4x5 Jobo developing tank, and chemistry trays- ALL FREE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
At a yard sale, in the bottom of a box of old 70's plastic and Polaroid cameras, a beat up leather camera bag with 2 user black paint Leica M4s with a little brassing, black paint 35 Summilux, a 28 Elmar and an early 50/1.0 Noctilux, several Leitz viewfinders, a Leicavit winder and some other Leitz accessories. The lady running the sale said she would have to have at least $60 if I wanted everything in the bag. I told her that was a bit steep and talked her down to $40.
...excerpt from a recurring dream of mine. sigh...
Both my Sinar P system and the Fuji GX 680 were given to me for free, together with hundreds of rolls and boxes of film.
I wonder why no one has posted that they got hundreds of Ansel Adams negatives for free?
I got hundreds of Edward Weston negatives at a garage sale... Sorry, John: you'll have to wait a little longer, I guess!
I don't know what was the best: my Beseler 45 enlarger was $4.50 at a local school auction. My Seal 210 dry mount press was $40 at another school auction (and I watched, helpless, as a 20x24 press sold for $125 when I had already spent all the money I had with me.) There was the estate auction with (literally!) hundreds of old folder cameras, Brownies, etc. in large boxes. My wife was merrily buying entire boxes for $5 each. The cameras were, of course, useless and worthless but in the bottom of one box was a small cardboard box with "Cooke & Sons" printed on it and the cutest little Cooke lens inside... There was the photo studio going out of business auction where I was so mad that one fellow bought ALL of the 4x5 film holders that I spent $10 on a stack of 8x10 film holders in frustration. Of course, I didn't start shooting 8x10 until a few years later but I made a nice profit out of those dozen or so holders. The wooden ones went to France, as I recall.
Funny, but out of all those sales and auctions, all I ever kept were a few 4x5 film holders and my Rolleiflex New Standard. Strange how that works out sometimes!
Mike
Politically, aerodynamically, and fashionably incorrect.
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