I don’t know the first thing about photography. I bought this old camera from a thrift store, and was hoping to fix it up for my girlfriend who’s into film photography. Can this thing even be revived? After some basic research, it looks like the film required for this camera is no longer manufactured. Would I be able to buy it anywhere? Also, is there any specific magicube I should look into buying? Any other parts to the camera I would need? Thanks!
Instamatic X-15 Help
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- Raymond
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If the film isn't being made anymore, any old stock you buy will VERY likely to be so out of date and therefore chemicals in them have changed to the point where it will come out very unpredictable. Unless you find someone that has some stuck in a freezer for the past 15 years. Not impossible but you also have no idea how it is going to look like until you shoot and develop a roll. Even if you do find the film, you will struggle to find a place that will develop it for you.
My advice? get a 35mm film camera. Give that to her as a present, a decorative one.
My advice? get a 35mm film camera. Give that to her as a present, a decorative one.
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Harlequin565
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Hi Jamie, welcome to TP!
Does the shutter work? i.e. can you wind it on, and press the shutter button and hear a click?
If so, then you're half way there.
The old instamatics use 126 film which was a plastic container that isn't made any more. I have successfully respooled 35mm into the old 126 cartridges, but it's quite a faff and needs a) an old 126 cartridge, and b) you need a completely dark area to work in like a dark bag. It's not for the faint hearted, and is quite a faff, but it does work. Here's the video I last watched on it.
I wouldn't worry about magicubes until you get film loaded into it!
As Raymond suggests, a 35mm camera might be a better option, although if she's "into" film, she may already have one of those. She might not have looked at medium format yet though, and you can get some quite cheap folding bellows cameras quite reasonably priced (Zeiss Ikon Ikonta or Nettar)
Does the shutter work? i.e. can you wind it on, and press the shutter button and hear a click?
If so, then you're half way there.
The old instamatics use 126 film which was a plastic container that isn't made any more. I have successfully respooled 35mm into the old 126 cartridges, but it's quite a faff and needs a) an old 126 cartridge, and b) you need a completely dark area to work in like a dark bag. It's not for the faint hearted, and is quite a faff, but it does work. Here's the video I last watched on it.
I wouldn't worry about magicubes until you get film loaded into it!
As Raymond suggests, a 35mm camera might be a better option, although if she's "into" film, she may already have one of those. She might not have looked at medium format yet though, and you can get some quite cheap folding bellows cameras quite reasonably priced (Zeiss Ikon Ikonta or Nettar)
Box Brownie
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Hi and welcome to TP
IMO you have bought a curio piece.
The Instamatic used a cartridge based film and AFAIK they were a dead end in regard to camera development.
As suggested above, a 35mm film camera is the best option as there is now a resurgence of interest in 35mm film photography and the films are being made again as are the labs to process them.