Contax TVS test roll

This summer I did something I have never done before: I bought a second hand camera on eBay. I had read some good things about professional eBay stores in Japan, so I decided to take the chance and order a Contax TVS.

For quite some time I had wanted a more compact film camera for two reasons: I needed a camera, which I could have more or less permanently in my bag, and I needed a second camera in order to be able to shoot both color and black and white.

The fact that you cannot switch between color and black and white, like you can with digital, is indeed the only thing I continue to dislike about film. Usually I keep my rolls in the camera for months before finishing them. This means that each roll contains photos from different days and with different subjects, and of course I will always find myself in a situation, where there are photos I will have to give up making, because it's not the right film I currently have in my camera, or I will make them anyway, but they will then turn out less interesting, than what they could have.

I held my breath for a few weeks, until the camera arrived safely, and it turned out I had nothing to fear. The camera was BEAUTIFUL. Not a scratch. It looked brand new, and it was everything, I had dreamt about.

I immediately took it out for a test run, where I shot a roll of Ilford hp5 plus 400 over a few days, and I was more than happy with the result. I also brought the camera with me to Paris, but I haven't developed the rolls yet.

Next up I will have to shoot a color film. I am pretty sure, this camera will bring me a lot of joy.