A little about us and our philosophy:

We are Bob & Irene Bazzoli, living in Phuket most of the time, at least when some work project doesn't take us off to some other exotic (or not so exotic) destination. Being mostly retired these days has given us time to spend on other things, mostly either camera collecting and research, studying photography, or taking pictures. After 20+ years in the high speed digital age we have found it to be very relaxing and pleasurable to 'ditch' the DSLR's and get back to basics. Snapping off dozens, or even hundreds of pictures and then 'hoping' that one of them comes out 'right' or relying on later re-sizing and or editing to get a 'good shot' is a habit that is very easily fallen into with digital. On the other hand, composing a photograph after much thought, or wandering around until you 'feel it', and waiting for the light to be 'just right', then finally taking the 'shot' is a whole different experience, and is 'art' in the hands of those that can do it well. It is what we strive for. Its also relaxing and can be very rewarding when those efforts end with a photographic gem.

As we spend most of our time in beautiful Phuket, Thailand, we will include some helpful links for visitors or locals who are Film Camera aficionado's and may need some help finding film or camera repair/service here in "The Land of Smiles".

Finally, as some of you will no doubt have experienced, do to a bad case of G.A.S (Gear Acquisition Syndrome) we will be selling or trading some duplicate cameras, lenses, accessories and some just plain strange stuff that we have ended up with. We think our pricing is reasonable market value and on many items we are selling them for less than we paid. May also trade for other interesting equipment.

• Buying/Selling: For us its all about quality, buying the best we can find and afford, hopefully at 'reasonable' prices. Sometimes we have made great 'finds' at live auctions, or even on eBay. We have done business with various dealers, and a few collectors, have made some good buys, and some not so good, in hindsight. Dealers always want to make a profit, and that's fair enough, anybody would. Collector's sometimes value their cameras far above what would normally be considered 'fair market value', and we can understand this as well... Buying an old camera, then painstakingly researching, cleaning, polishing, sending it out for CLA, purchasing missing items to complete it and then seeing the results of restoration can give you an affinity for one of your treasures that can not be accounted for in 'market value'. We've been there! You may notice that in most of our camera descriptions that they include Case, Lens Cover, Neck Strap and etc. Most did not come that way but we enjoy making 'sets' that are complete, so you won't have to. In some cases the 'extras' can be quite expensive and so for these, on occasion when we bought these separately, we may also have to sell them separately, but this is not our 'norm'. Unless you ask for a price without case or etc (do you have a nice one already?) you will be quoted a price for the 'set', not individual items whenever possible. And sorry, no Facebook or Twitter for us, and no Credit Cards, will have to be 'the old fashion' way.

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• Collecting vs Investing vs Dealing: While we have long held an interest in photography, it has only been relatively recently that we commenced 'collecting' cameras. We do not consider ourselves to be 'dealers' and this project is more about the love of quality and the appreciation of it that keeps us searching for, and giving a second life to these old masterpieces, than as a means of investing. In this, the middle of the second decade of the 21st century, there are a lot of cameras coming onto the market due to the passing of the 'baby boomers' and or their parents, not to mention the "Digital Revolution". The prices of the Rolleiflex cameras, especially the higher end 'collectors quality', have maintained their values quite well, and continue to see modest rises. Rolleiflex has the advantage of a smaller number ever being produced, as they were never really intended for 'mass production' as were the Rolleicord range and even Leica. Leica's, due to the stiff competition of the Japanese in the 50's, and more especially from the 60's onward, while being a more consumer oriented camera, and as such made in larger quantity, were still made in only a fraction as compared to some of their Kodak or Japanese counterparts. This, and the substantially higher quality of Leica, is why their competitors cameras are now sold in bulk boxes by the dozen at auctions for penny's on the dollar, while the Leica's are still valued individually. That being said, it seems that, primarily due to the 'Chinese factor' where prices were driven up by hoards of new 'collectors' in the past 15 or so years, it seems to us that many of these are now also coming back on the market also and the Leica pricing seems to us therefor to be quite 'soft' as a result. As to the future, nobody knows of course, but it would be prudent to buy the best quality that you can afford, and buy it because you love it. There are always plenty of dealers, and wannabe dealers, trying to drive prices up, just look at eBay, some of the prices there are laughable, if not insulting, so buyer beware.