Yes, we won’t be original. As it happens with beginnings, you have to start…. from the beginning.
The beginning, in turn, was … boredom. Yes, the most ordinary in the world, banal and with nothing exciting in it, boredom. Gregory, the man behind the idea and founder of this store, began to get so bored in the Autumn of 2021, that all sorts of strange ideas began to come to his mind. From going on a several months long trip, to taking up amateur rallying. Not wanting to leave my beloved cats and the city in which I was happy, I decided to return to a long-abandoned hobby – analog photography – for starters.
Back then I was taking hundreds of digital photos a month, but still something was missing. Since it had been years since I took my last film, I decided to refresh my skills at a local analog course. It turned out that I couldn’t have come at a better time. There were two of us taking the course, an instructor who was happy and passionate about sharing his knowledge and experience, and hours spent in the darkroom, which made us good buddies. Three to five hours a week, for more than a year, and access to the studio and darkroom off schedule. What more could you want?
Of course, I denied at the time that I would never buy a medium format in my life. They’re too big, too heavy, too bulky, and anyway, after all, 35mm film is completely enough for me. Besides, I was on this course just to kill boredom, for nothing else. Yeah, right. If only I had known that a measly three years later I would be surrounded by medium-format cameras every day, and that photographing with them would completely consume me. 🙂
I began to learn, meet people in the industry, photographers, technicians, developers, service technicians, and imperceptibly step by step I soaked in the environment of total analog nutters who, given a free choice, in 9 out of 10 cases would leave their digital camera at home and take a medium or large format with them on a session.
Suddenly, I found that time spent in the darkroom ceased to be a respite from boredom and became an end in itself. Learning new things, techniques, gathering experience and watching an image appear as if from nowhere thanks to my work on a blank white sheet became surprisingly satisfying. That’s when I knew I had swallowed the bug and that it wouldn’t stop with just the Minolta XD7. The hunt for a medium format camera began….
Like any nouveau riche, I liked everything, in fact, I could buy several types of TLRs, some Mamiya, Bronica, (Hasselblad, fortunately, probably not) and only after a solid emptying of the account and catching my breath, I would realize that this approach is completely pointless. Fortunately, I had friends who had been shooting with these cameras for many years, knew all their pros and cons and could show them to me so I wouldn’t have to spend weeks on it myself. Most importantly, I also had the opportunity to take these equipment in hand, and even rent them for free for a few days and see for myself which one suits me best.
A few weeks later, somewhat by accident, I auctioned my first Bronica ETRS (645 format) for a ridiculously low amount of money. In addition, it was from my town! I had to bid on it! I came across it online just 3 minutes before the end of the auction, I wasn’t even aware at the time what model, format, or system it was. I knew nothing and barely had the time google the basics! And yes, last minute bid worked out, I had my first medium format! 😀
As it turned out later, I was more lucky than smart, because the camera although old and with high shutter count was very well maintained by the owner, who took great care of it. It also quickly turned out that we had some mutual friends, so going out to pick up the camera ended with a trip for a beer, an extended training on how to use it and an engaging conversation about photography.
Later, I infected several of my other friends with the bug of analog photography and found out that not everyone’s purchase of a camera and lenses went as easily as mine. Not everyone was fortunate enough to be able to discuss everything first with people with years of experience and test different equipment with their own hands. Some colleagues became very fixated on hugely niche equipment and later regretted it very much….
Somewhere then the idea germinated in my head to share my knowledge and experience with others and help them find reliable analog cameras that will allow their new owners to develop their skills for years and who knows, maybe even one day create real art, whatever it is. 😉
From the idea to its realization was, of course, a very long time, but that’s a topic for another day and another story. 🙂
