Classic Camera Revival

We love our advanced, top-of-the-line, high-quality cameras here on CCR. The Nikon F5 and F6, Rolleiflex, Hasselblad, and large-format cameras with multi-element lenses. But recently Alex has been digging into cameras that often are not what he typically uses and is loving the experience of keeping things simple and a bit of a juxtaposition from his usual kit. In today's episode, Alex sits down to talk about all the cameras that he...

Jess Beaudin first came to our attention when CBC posted an article about her use of natural materials to develop and print her photographs. So, of course, we wanted to get her on the show to talk about her work! Jess agreed and sat down with Alex to talk about anything and everything!

You can find more of Jess' work online: Web: jessbeaudin.ca Facebook: facebook.com/profile.php?id=61570628757496 Instagram: instagram.com/...

And we've made it to the end of the tetralogy, and we're going beyond the portrait length to talk about telephotos, which, for our purposes, are lenses that are 200mm and longer. These might not always be the first lens you reach for in your regular photography, but they are still powerful tools for events, nature, and even getting close when you can't do so safely. The lenses featured in today's show include the AI Nikkor 300mm f/...

Before we get to long lenses, we're going into lenses that are designed for portraits, it doesn't matter if you're talking headshots, couples, quarter length, these are amazing lenses that are far more versatile than what they're called. Today's criteria are focal lengths between 70mm and 200mm, although 200mm is pushing it for some photographers, but it's our show, and we set the rules. The lenses featured in today's episode inclu...

While everyone always associates the term "normal lens" with the 50mm focal length, here at CCR, we're going with more of a range between 28mm and 60mm. In reality, normal human vision ranges from 31mm to 43mm, which can be difficult to replicate with readily available lenses. So on today's episode, we're featuring the Pentax-M 40mm, AF Nikkor 35mm, Leica Summicron 50mm, AI-S Nikkor 28mm, Zuiko 35mm, Biotar 58mm, Yashinon 50mm, Tak...

We're finally doing it, a full set of four episodes, a "tetralogy" all about lenses. In this first part, we're covering ultra-wide lenses. To help keep things ultra-wide, we're using the same criteria as Matt (from Matt Loves Cameras) and going with lenses that are 25mm or wider. Each host picked three ultra-wide lenses from their own kit. And we ended up with a fantastic set of optics, including the AF-S Nikkor 14-24mm, AI-s Nikko...

In today's episode, Alex sits down with Kevin Ealaín, the founder of Darkroast Arts, a name he chose after discovering the joys of working with Caffenol. Since then, he's expanded into photographing local events and protests, and into promoting the art of working in the traditional darkroom. The conversation goes from camera gear, darkroom practices, coffee, some politics, and a little bit of subject matter! 

Web: https://www....

We love hearing from members of the community as a whole, especially when they reach out to us to talk about life, photography, film and more. So in today's episode, join Alex as he sits down with Raf to talk about his journey from starting with photography to developing his own film at home. From Brazil to New York City, it's a couple of nerds just enjoying life, the process and more. And almost everything is covered, from music t...

Join John and Bill with special guest Jeff Greenstein of the smash hit I Dream of Cameras to talk about everything Leicaflex. Everyone connects the names Leitz and Leica with rangefinders, from the classic Barnack to the modern M-Series. And while that is what Leica is known for, they also saw that SLRs were becoming popular in the 1960s and decided to throw their hat into the ring. In 1964, they released the Leicaflex, an SLR base...

All Fujifilm, All the Time! We've been talking about doing a show dedicated to Fujifilm for a while now, and the time has finally arrived! While Fuji often catches flak for the number of product line cancellations, especially in the film world, they have maintained a core set of worthwhile products. Today's show, we're talking cameras, lenses, film, and chemistry. From the Texas Leica to Acros 100 II and Microfine. Plus, rememberin...

There's something to be said about OEM lenses with full compatibility, native mount support, and a high level of quality control. That all comes with a cost attached. Then there are third-party manufacturers: companies that often offer the same level of compatibility, quality control, and multiple lens mount options, but many don't carry a price tag as high as the original manufacturers'. So today, we have John and Bill, joined by ...

So, back in December 2025, Alex handed out some expired film to James and Bill, and today we're back revisiting the topic of expired film. And while Bill & James haven't had the chance to shoot their rolls, Alex did shoot his odd duck of a roll. Everything from colour shifts to fog and bad chemical packs, it's all about shooting and using expired film. From developing without any data to best practices, techniques and chemistry...

Today, Alex is joined by David Smith, a Biology professor and researcher at Western University in London, Ontario. While we mostly talk about cameras on the show, David has something unique: microscopes. As many history nerds know, many camera companies we know and love today began producing optics, including microscopes. Dr Smith came by this affinity for collecting honestly, as his mom is an antique dealer. David talks about his ...

Last year, we were so caught up in our own tenth anniversary that we completely forgot about the fifth anniversary of the K-Mount! While the K-Mount is most often associated with Asahi/Pentax, it was a joint invention by Asahi and Zeiss Ikon. Like the M42 mount, the K-Mount was intended to be a universal, open-source lens mount. But the partnership never materialised, and the two companies parted ways, with Pentax retaining the mou...

Last year, we chatted with James McFarlane about his journey and pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago. What we did not count on was finding a second film photographer who took his own film on his pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago. Today, Tyler Cahoon of the Retro Film Project joins Alex and John to talk about his Camino journey, the reasons behind his pilgrimage, the people, the photos, the cameras, and the film that came along.

We're back for Season 12! While we wanted to include a Mystery Camera Challenge as part of our 10th anniversary season, it just didn't work out. So James, Alex and Bill head into Toronto to kick off the new season with another Mystery Camera Challenge, our sixth! This time around, we each drew a name and used that person's camera, and then grabbed a roll of film from the other person! The cameras in this episode include Alex's Niko...

It's been a while since we've done one of these shows. It was back with the Nikon FA, and in that case, we just passed the camera around the table. But today we have something special, the Pentax MZ-S, the last professional camera from Pentax/Asahi with a rich history. The camera was provided by John Roberts (who is back on the show today). It was used by Alex, James, and Bill, along with the three limited-edition lenses that were ...