Buying the Worst Condition Medium Format Film Camera on EBAY 

Yo! I'm so glad this was turned into a video! I am actually the guy that sold you the camera! I didn't want to be weird when I noticed your name when I shipped it out but I lowkey was hoping that at the very least this would be something that turned out into content! Some small backstory for you and the other viewers, I initially picked this camera up at an estate sale for next to nothing and planned on keeping this in my personal collection. It's no secret that film photography is on the rise, along with camera prices, film prices and development prices at labs. I think getting to find steals is also a part of the hobby these days, ESPECIALLY when it comes to film cameras, and lately, thrifting and estate sales are pretty much how I've come to acquire my film photography gear. Obviously, the battery contact piece was broken which led to the camera not being able to turn on. There was a brief moment in my own handling of the camera where I was able to actually get the camera on and test the shutter curtains, and check viewfinder LCD, but that was only manageable to do with a very awkward handling of the battery grip, with quite a bit of force really, to get it to register. Well anywho, at this point my next step obviously was to get a replacement battery pack, to which i waited.... and waited... and waited... to find something at a reasonable price. Prior to my initial listing of the camera, I literally could not find anything anywhere. I scavenged google and eBay to find nothing. I did hear about those 3D printed replacements but had to means of finding out how to get one made. I believe all listings (one or two to be exact) for the original battery packs at the time were sitting well over 150$ and at the time I couldn't justify spending more while I was also in the middle of repairing a Mamiya C330. I suppose at that rate I would cut my "losses" with it and let someone else get a go at getting the 645 up and running, but still monitor eBay to see if i could come across a battery pack. Lo and behold, it sells, and as I'm getting my shipping supplies and label ready to go, I noticed your name. "Oh shit, Willem bought my camera!" Being a fan of the channel and the content, I debated on writing a note to say Hi and that I was a fan of the channel and appreciated the content, but as stated earlier, I didn't wanna make it weird on the off chance so I figured I'd leave it as that and assumed at the very least id see a video in regards to camera at some point. Very happy to see that the battery cover was infact, solely the only issue that was present with the kit. As a fan of 90's JDM, also very happy to see some sick shots on a RX7 no less. I'm glad that you're getting some great use from the camera and I hope that it continues to pull through with more amazing film photography. Looking forward to 2023's film photography content!

What a gift. A willem verbeeck video on a Sunday 🥹

I started buying and fixing up as-is lenses a few months ago and it's been such a satisfying process to tear down, clean, and get them back in working order. I can imagine that even a few years ago it would've been hard to find any information on film cameras like manuals and diagrams, but it feels like nowadays if you have the time and some cheap amazon tools you can pretty easily fix some problems that would've scrapped the camera.

Andrew Tarkovsky had a similar developing problem when he made the film stalker because it was shot on Kodak film and the soviet labs weren’t used to developing it so all the film turned out green and he had to shoot the entire film again

My Medium Format cameras were primarily the Mamiya C330. I've had one in use since 1971, and sold the system (had all the lenses) before digital took over. I replaced it with a Bronica GS1 for the 6x7 neg . . . but sold that too. I still like the 6x6 format because with waist level ground glass, you don't have to flip the camera from portrait to landscape, the cropping done on the ground glass. At the moment, shooting a PENTAX 645z 50mgpxl DSLR, and benefit from the legacy glass your 645 uses. FUJI's 50 is coming down in price, but their lenses are still 5X more expensive than Pentax . . . I picked up a 400mm f5.6 Pentax AF for $450. Also have a Silvestri 6x12 to 4x5 superwide camera and a complete Graflex XL system, fully operational and almost every lens. As for film, I have a small JOBO unit to develop B&W as well as color film. Yes, shooting 4x5 color is up to $7 per exposure now.

Great to see the camera all working again, lovely shots Willem 👌

4:00 is toooo good, love the monochromatic looks with all the green/olive hues

The Pentax 645 is a fantastic workhorse. When I bought mine many years ago they sold for next to nothing and additional lenses were also available and really inexpensive. The only problem you didn’t mention is that they weigh a ton. I used mine for landscape shots with a tripod, so that wasn’t a problem. But lugging it around with a neck strap for an afternoon is a recipe for a sore neck! But your video is still great!

Some great images here. I always enjoy your choice of music. Thanks for the video.

I actually did the same fix last month! A work friend had one broken sat around for a while, I asked if I could have a stab at fixing it. It was also the grip, however old batteries had leaked breaking the compartment and also leaking down into the electronics below. I took the whole grip apart, unsoldered everything, got the corrosion off the PCB and reassembled into a 3D printed battery compartment. And it worked. Really enjoying using the camera. You are right, it feels like a great middle point between 35 and larger 120 frame sizes. Being handy with 3D printing and electronics can really help you save a few $$$ if you are afflicted with the film bug.

The car shots are amazing! Pls do more of these!!

Dude, that Mark VII. 😍Fantastic photography Willen, Pentax are my favorite cameras.

Damn that FD was amazing! Properly built! 6.tiff shoots some bangers when it comes to cars.

Loved your videos fixing the car, good to see your skills extend to cameras too!

6.tiff and chazzydawg are also goated. hopeful once i go to school in socal i could link with yall

Sweet. I love my Mamiya 645 1000S. The Pentax is newer and has more electronics and that is part of the reason I went with the 1000S. For some reason my older cameras with electronics and I just don’t get along and good luck getting them repaired. I do have the power winder for it but it makes it very bulky unlike the Pentax.

My boy Chaz and Marti (although I do know Marti film in the back alot for the vids sometimes) make their first appearance on the channel lets go... 👌🏿👌🏿

I'm pretty sure I passed over that exact same listing when I bought my own Pentax 645 to complement my 645D. Both cameras are a joy to use.

glad to see the Pentax 645 getting some love

Yessirrr!!! More car shoots please!

In 2021 I picked up a mamiya 645 1000s body for about 150 bucks. Repair shop in Salt Lake City had it working perfectly for 150 more. It's one of my favorite and most used cameras

It works! A cool story with another back story from the seller!

the car pics are dope! I have a saab 900 and these pics are inspiring me to get a friend to photograph it.. or they drive and I photograph

Wow that Rx7 is a beauty. I loved the Rx7's and Nissan 280 and 300zx's of that era.

This was my first medium format camera!! Still go back and use it every now and then 😁

Every photo you took with this camera, they are amazing!!!!! You are a great photographer Willem. I appreciate you and love your videos, keep it up man! Someday we will collaborate

Nice work!

i love my 645n, 18 (19 on a 220 back) exposures is amazing for med format.

its not a holga

Late to the party here. Great video, but also, that's a fantastic song you've got going on in the background!

Hey! Nice Volvo V70! Those cars are work horses! I bought a '02 sight unseen from VehicleVille in Ft Lauderdale with 125K Had it shipped to Wisconsin. Mainly use it for mountain bikes. They fit right in. Since I put 80K on it. Gets 26 mpg combined when I'm commuting. Goes 80 mph at 2700 rpm! So far I bought my daughter her first 4 dirtbikes with it, all fit right in including a XR 250. Hauled carpet with it. Lumber for a half pipe even. 2 sheets of 8x4 plywood fit nicely on the rack. Try that with your Toyota Vensa. Ain't gonna happen. Oh I got my first Summicron 2nd version a while back, love it. Sorry Voightlander

holy smokes those Lincoln shots!

This episode was a thriller because I was honestly on edge when you said you were going to fix it but, I love that it worked out! How do you record the view through the viewfinder? 🤔

I had that Pentax645 and enjoyed using it, such a solid camera, especially for the price ... currently I'm using a Kiev60 but I actually might get a Pentax645 since its a much "easier" camera to use ;)

Thanks. I had this camera for several years.Perhaps I should get another.

nothing can beat my 30$ bronica s2a on a thrift store. can't believe they were selling it at this price even tho it is pretty beat up. tried a roll in it and it works! best 30$ ever spent

if it has a focal plane shutter you can adapt all sorts of fun glass.

Film photography and rotary engines. Instant win...

the roll is cooked and willem says "misdeveloped _somewhat_"... you're too nice man 🤣

A risky approach. For tow of my 35mm cameras I wasn't this lucky, I bought lemons. For a modular medium format camera, I knew I wanted something reliable. So I bought a Bronica S2A, knowing about the degrading foam issue impacting focus. I fixed that myself, it was a cheap and easy fix. Now I have a fully mechanical medium format camera, with 6x6 and 6x4.5 backs, plus accessories (left hand grip, prism finder etc.) - the whole thing was still dirt cheap. The three Nikor lenses I use were affordable as well, with the exception of the rare Nikon 40mm f4 which is kind of a unicorn lens on Medium Format as not many other systems offer the 35mm equivalent of a 20mm rectilinear wide angle on 6x6. I think the best advice is: spend what you're comfortable with but spend it sooner than later. Prices are continuing to go up. The time to buy a film camera was yesterday, so buy today, not tomorrow.

Imagine, I think you could turn this into a business idea of fixing other peoples cameras. Earlier I listened to a podcast of silvergrain connection and they were talking to Mirco from Fotoimpex in Berlin. I don’t know if you know him but in Germany he is a legend. Anyhow they were talking about the difficulties in finding trained people with deep knowledge about film specifically but also cameras. I think somehow we as a younger generation should continue this legacy of knowledge and maybe this is a way to do it. Wild thought.

I love the SLR format, and I probably shouldn't mention this, but there's still oodles of nice Bronicas on the used market at pretty cheap prices...

Your VIDEO is killer too… I noticed that ALL your videos are soooo great and your just the whole package my man. ❤BTW Did you shoot this episode with the BLACKMAGIC or the FX3 and if you used to BM how are you getting such smooth images with the 18-35 (with NO stabe) Gimbal? Monopod? Even with post stabe that is smooth…

your growth as a photographer and youtuber over the years is very inspiring. cheers brother

Had 2 645 bodies w 45, 55, 75, 120macro and 150mil lenses. Shot events, senior portraits and personal B&W projects for 20yrs. Never had a problem.

when i was young, and the 645 came on market, it was much to expensive to me.. round about 2500 DM. I bought one last year for 250 € in best condition. Many people dont know that cam dont work without film.. weird but it is so.. btw. sometimes some much better Rolleiflex 6000 is cheaper

Nice video mate, good for you for keeping the film content fresh. And thanks for not just taking photo's of a pretty girl in a garden patch or some shit 😆 Keep it up mate ❤

Chazzy!!!!

I’m not sure if I should get this or the Mamiya 645 for my first medium format camera

I bought my 1940s zeiss ikon tlr for 28$ on ebay in auction. didnt have high hopes but it was fully functional, there are still good deals out there people

Hasselblad 503CX+50mm, 80mm & 150mm CF Carl Zeiss. Worth the investment & quality.

All the as is I found had big problems, I guess just looking through as is listings is worth it and might find inexpensive fixes.

you know, I been buying a lot of equipment and gear off ebay and funny as it is, the 'as is' ones often turn out pretty good. Been into film lately so I bought several subminiature and 35mm cameras off ebay, more than one listed 'functional and tested' had various issues. Stick shutter and such. Got really lucky with this pentax MX i just got today. No description as is, seller doesn't even know jack sh*t about it, turned out to be near mint.

Maybe i’m massively underestimating the quality of pictures they had pre-2000 cause i’m not from then. Theres just something about these pictures, where even if you replaced that rx7 with something older like an s2000 or a w123, the photo in this video will still give me an impression that this was a picture taken weeks ago. In JDM terms, it doesn’t look midnight club/“this was a pic my cool father in the 90s.” And in movie terms, it doesn’t look like Back to the Future or Die Hard or even The Fast and Furious. I think i need some enlightenment on what to actually expect film and old camera photography

would you able to link where you found the replacment battery grip?? my 645j encountered the same problem a few months ago

i sometimes wonder what willem says during the close up B-Roll shots

I have the same issue with the same camera!!

Brave guy! I woould never buy an "as is" camera on eBay if I wanted something to actually use. For parts maybe, though. 🙂 Lenses for the 645 are pretty reasonably priced too. Same goes for Pentax 6x7, if you are interested in a 6x7 SLR system... big camera, though!

Rare full face Marti shot!

i have been seeing a lot of pentax 645 for sale lately. i think i should get one idk yet.

Whats the link to your second channel? I can't find it

Have you ever looked into the kiev 60?

I wish you'd do a tutorial or two on how to shoot cars, i love cars as well, i shot loads of them but i'm getting a bit bored of it

@ 4:00 That's on lilac terrace right?

Why is this guy talking into a hedgehog? 😇 Fun video.

looks like a dozen of pics straight from CJ’s camera!

Damn! Lovely

so sick

I bought one a few months ago and am still trying to learn its mechanics. Is there a way to manually control the shutter speed?

One item worth noting, in eBays terms and conditions anything listed as used must be in fully working condition. No matter what BS the seller writes in the description you can return it and not as described. Items with any faults must be sold as faulty

looks like some mildew on top of the viewfinder and some other spots around and about

Where to get your film developed?

Thank you for sharing. You said that is the cheapest pentax 645.... but how much cheap? How much did you pay it? 😉

Very interesting

As the owner of 7(!) Pentax 645's, that battery grip is definitely the achilles heel. I have 3D printed more than I can count. Also, count on your replacement meeting the same fate unfortunately.

If you have the mind for remembering which screw goes where, buying busted cameras and lenses is a HUGE money saver. I mean really busted: fungus, wonky speeds, et cetera. The great thing about these old machines is that they were built well enough to be brought back from basically any state.

I notice you had a 220 film back would it be best to change the film back to a 120 one?

Were there any quirks that came with shooting 120 film in the 220 back?

Why is no one talking about the Michael Cimino appearance!!

Over there by Neema's house !

pentax gang 😛😛😛

wheres that location at 4:15 n 4:36?! they are so stunning

There is a shop where a guy still fix Pentax645 in japan.

Is the next video all about shooting blizzards?

The 645 was my first medium format camera that i bought during art school. Sold it after graduation, when I started working as an photographer. But as i turned back to analog after 10+ years in the digital darkness I sometimes can miss it in my analog collection. Maybe I'll get one one of these days. 🥲

Now you have ruined it. The Pentax 645 in various versions is the sleeper medium format camera. The lenses are excellent & for me the results are superb. Really a joy to shoot with.

How did you use it with the 220 back? I’ve got the exact one and haven’t used it because of that!

A good camera it is, but I am afraid of auto advance film...😂😂😂

I would say RU-vidrs like you, Matt Day, and Joe Greer have contributed to the popularity of film photography

Nothing better than shooting cars.

Sheeeew that fd was pretty

PENTAX GANG

luck of the draw. glad it worked out looks like you owe bryan a lot of $$$ 😂

Enjoyed the video. But hey, why not some more 645 love from you and other influencers? 6 x 7 or 6 x 9? a person who is just starting out in medium format film is gonna get killed on cost. 645 is going to be much more cost effective and still provide plenty of image area for great resolution. I am seriously curious, how big does your scan have to be before you see degradation on 645 vs 6x7? There is more to photography than loading up a 6x7 or 6x9 with Portra. Other camera formats and other films that just don’t get tapped. Influence alternatives. Thanks, and truly, I do appreciate the video.

if only the car was yellow or red, It would look really like from the 80s/90s

Thats not a Holga 120

woah micheallllllll

6.tiff on the other side of the camera ⁉️

❤❤

y'all have got me buying all the cameras on my list in fear of price hikes lol. enjoyed the vid tho.