Fort Washington, Pa Photorama Show

<p>So I went. So I looked around. So I chatted with Arnie Duren. And then I left.</p>

<p>I wasn't in a buying mood and I'm not much interested in 35 mm gear so very little leapt out at me as surprising or unusual or wonderful. There was a very cute little folding 6x9 sheet film camera, Ohca with a 10.5 cm/4.5 Optor lens. It reminded me of a Premo #12. And I saw a Meyer Doppel Plasmat on a Meridian board. The board surprised. I've seen Meridian 4x5 cameras before, didn't remember the script "M" in each corner. Cute.</p>

<p>New venue, smaller room than at the old Fort Washingon venue. Fewer dealers and paid admissions than ever.</p>

<p>I too trudged down, 70 miles with wife and grandkids for a "shop" and lunch outing. 35mm day for me.<br>

One table had new in boxes, various Vivitar lenses. I picked up 3 of the Vivitar DL 75-205 3.8-4.8 "macro"s ( 1:4 in reality )in - Nikon AiS, Canon FD and Konica mounts.<br>

Total spent $15 ($5 each!).<br>

3 Vivitar teleconverters, some filters, cable releases, two parts donor Nikon FEs and a table tripod set me back another $22.50.</p>

<p>The lenses are absolutely untouched, no haze, dust nor any handling fingerprints. All the paperwork was present too, from about October 1982. The Nikon works fine on my D7000, quite sharp and virtually no fringing visible to me and very good out to the corners.</p>

<p>Fine outcome for a fun morning's road trip.</p>

<p>Jim</p>

<p> </p><div></div>

<p>I'm glad there was something there for you. </p>

<p>I've got way too picky. These days my photographic wish list is short and everything on it is at best a small improvement on something I already have. I used to think that human wants, mine in particular, were insatiable. I may have to change my mind on that. </p>

<p>I bought only a couple of rolls of scrap 120 film. Last year I got a 6x9 roll holder of a type I'd never used before and downloaded instructions but didn't try it out. Now I know. Loading is easy and frame spacing is good. I don't regret having gone to the show.</p>

<p>Back in the late 1970s I lived at Erdenheim Farms near Flourtown, PA, just south of Ft. Washington. I remember going to at least two camera shows in the area. Possibly Ft. Washington and maybe King of Prussia. I bought a 5X7 Ansco from one guy and a bunch of 5X7 film holders from another. This was when 5X7 was really dying out and the guy kept dropping the price per holder if I would buy more. I probably ended up with a couple of dozen, and he wanted me to take more. At the next show I bought a 500 series Gitzo tripod, probably the best purchase I've made. This was also the era before soft focus lenses became the "In" thing. I suspect most buyers at the shows at that time considered them paper weights. I probably walked by a lot of cheap brass lenses that are worth some money today.<br>

Now that I'm here in the State of Washington, I'm about 250 miles from the Puget Sound camera show. I haven't been to it in almost ten years. I've got too much stuff already and it doesn't seem worth it to fight the traffic over there. I guess I'm saying a poor camera show would be okay if it were nearby.</p>

<p>Len</p>