jean_yves_mead

The first two questions are pretty much meaningless; the third, only you can answer since only you know what you want from the lens. And not one of 'em is a 50mm f/0.95 Noctilux, so they're all second-rate. ;-)

It's a basic bridge camera - £200 at most. It won't take much of a fee before the other party is better served either buying his own, or renting a 'serious' kit.

Surely you can't be too young to remember the Night Exakta?

That looks more like missed focus than motion blur.

Save yourself the headache and just negotiate a fair charge for the rental period.

You might have to chat with someone like S K Grimes (http://www.skgrimes.com/) to have one custom- made. I doubt it would be too expensive for a non-R/F-coupled adapter.

<p>It'll give you the same magnification no matter what camera you mount it on (max. 1:4.5, I think?). What changes with format is the proportion of your image the subject will cover.<br> <a href="http://www.zeiss.com/camera-lenses/en_de/camera_lenses/classics/hasselblad/500_series/makroplanart4120cfe.html">(Zeiss's info on the 120mm f/4 Macro Planar)</a></p>

The GW690 is a big camera, but not too heavy - and the two shutter release buttons make it easy to shoot in either horizontal or vertical orientation. The lens is a beauty and that 6x9 frame captures a *lot* of detail. As Doug mentioned, it isn't all that quiet in operation - unfortunately the loud snap that accompanies the shutter firing isn't from the shot counter, and so isn't something that can be simply disabled. As a walkabout camera it's fine, and it can be hung vertically on a shoulder strap which keeps it handy but out of the way.

I think everyone does that at least once in his life - it's still better than opening the camera and ending up staring stupidly at the un- rewound film.

That's an easy one - my Leica M3, 50mm Summicron, and as much Tri-X as I can carry. It's a combination I'm familiar with and enjoy shooting, and one that lets me think less about photography and just concentrate more on enjoying the trip.

Paterson reels are OK for 35mm, so-so for 127, and an absolute nightmare with 120. Hewes reels aren't the cheapest but you can often find them for reasonable money on ebay; and even at full price they're a one-off cost.

<p>Same as is daylight - expose the film for the correct time with the correct aperture, and then develop accordingly.</p> <p>Archaic though it may seem, Fred Parker's <a href="http://www.fredparker.com/ultexp1.htm">Ultimate Exposure Computer</a> is an excellent resource when your camera's meter lets you down.</p>

<p>Meet the Uglycam:<br> <a href=" title="EPM40776 by Jean-Yves, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3780/13797384085_1acd6a4be6_z.jpg" width="640" height="640" alt="EPM40776"></a><br> Griptac-covered Nikon F2, DE finder (from the F), 5.8cm f/1.4 Nikkor-S. Camera, hammer, melee weapon, all in one robust package.</p>

The only bulk film I have at the moment is 400' of Polypan F. I made up a film dispenser from an old cine camera magazine and load cassettes as I need them.

Ah, no - only compatibility is that it's K-mount.

A Chinon CE-4S is about the same size as a Pentax MX - dirt cheap, good meter, manual operation or aperture-priority AE, and a top shutter speed of 1/2000s if you need it. And did I mention they're cheap? Were it not for your desire for autoexposure I'd have recommended the MX - it's small, tough, a pleasure to shoot, and has a superb viewfinder.

Get hold of the waist-level finder - the image will be larger and brighter than through a prism finder, plus the WLF has a built-in flip-up magnifier. You could also use a high-magnification loupe to view the focussing screen.

It's an early-model Leica M3 with collapsible 50mm f/2 Summicron. If you're in the mood for shooting film then you'd be hard pressed to find a finer camera with which to treat yourself. If it's intact then a full service would be a couple of hundred dollars. Worth doing if you want to use it yourself, but probably not if you just want to sell it.

A page of pretentious twaddle and a countdown clock? That's... not the most enthralling teaser I've ever seen. Probably is for a copier.

Is it just that you need an extra tug to remove the battery? With the batteries I have, the spring contacts grip the body's pins tightly and require a little extra effort to free the battery - after which it slips out smoothly.

The M9 uses a CCD sensor; these have their benefits (colour consistency being a major one), but high- ISO performance isn't one of them. A modern CMOS sensor attached to a modern image processor would thoroughly trounce it in this area. Time for you to upgrade to an M Typ 240. ;-)

The SLRs can be rather noisy in operation (or very much so, if you choose a Pentax 67) - something to bear in mind at a concert. Having said that, if waist-level finders are your thing then take a good look at the 6x7 Mamiyas as they offer rotating backs that will allow changes of orientation without having to tip the camera over.

Spend your money on lighting and backdrops, and your time on learning how best to use them.

I guess that things are less painful this side of the Pond - over here, Rollei Infrared 400S costs the same or less than equivalent visible- light-only black and white films. Even with shipping from Germany to the UK I just bought 10 rolls of the above film in 120 format for about $4 a roll.

2) - buy an accessory rangefinder. There are still plenty of them around and they don't cost much.