Back in January, I made the spontaneous and seemingly rash purchase of a group of ten vintage cameras from Fab.com, an addictive, design-focused daily flash sale website. I bought them from Trampoline Vintage, purveyor of “rare and one-of-a-kind pieces.” The cameras represent four different brands, although half are members of Kodak’s Brownie series:

Very good for display? I think not, good madam. Unless you of course are specifically referring to the intermittent dormant periods between photographic jaunts. I’ve previously mentioned my disdain for the relegation of cameras to bookend duties (I’ve come to realize that’s what the other side of the bookshelf is for- if you’re not reaching it, it probably means you should be reading more), and thus felt the need to save these gorgeous bakelite beings from such a fate at the hands of some trendy, design-minded type of individual usually found trolling the ephemeral Fab sales. I believe I was meant – nay, destined, rather – to purchase these cameras, increasing the quantity of my collection by a veritable order of magnitude. And that’s what I’m sticking to when justifying this to my mother.

I’ll profile each of these as I clean them, fix them, and use them. In no particular order. Some might have to wait to be taken out for test drives until the Antiquated Film Revival Project gets rolling, and I finally have that steady influx of discontinued film I’ve been dreaming about.