An interesting part about film cameras is that there is value added to the vintage aspect. People don’t want to shoot film on a camera that looks and operates like a dslr, they want a more manual and mechanical feeling camera. This results in some of the best modern film cameras having much lower pricing. So when my first film camera broke, I was able to pick up a Canon EOS Elan 7 for around $160 on ebay. This camera was especially interesting as its an EOS series camera. This means modern ef lens compatibility, TTL metering, autofocus, a whole host of shooting modes including full manual, and TTL flash capabilities, autowinding, and much more. One of my personal favorite features is the ability to set the film rewind to leave a leader, allowing me to mark the shot I’m on and switch between film stocks.
It’s pretty easy to mistake it for a dslr. Below I’ve added some sample images, one for each lens I’ve shot on this camera.
The Canon EF 50mm f1.8 STM is the first lens I got for the camera. It is known as the nifty fifty and is well liked for being an incredible lens for the price thanks to innovations like the molded plastic aspherical lens element.
One weekend, I decided to rent out the Zeiss Distagon 35mm f1.4 ZE T*. This lens is interesting as it is manual focus only. As with most Zeiss lenses, you get this 3D pop that almost feels like the subject is coming out of the screen, as can be seen clearly in the picture.
My most recent lens I’ve purchased is the Canon EF 24-105mm f4L IS USM, a travel zoom. As it is part of the Canon L series, this lens has a decent, larger aperture across the entire zoom range. Additionally, it features image stabilization, allowing shooting at lower shutter speeds without getting blur from hand shake.
This camera was the perfect first purchase for someone like me who had no idea how to begin in film photography. Still now, it serves as my primary camera as it just has so many useful modern features that ensure you get the shot if you really want it.