point and shoot

Ricoh AF-60D

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The Ricoh AF-60D is the data back equipped variant of the AF-60, one of half a dozen or so consumer grade autofocus point-and-shoot cameras introduced by Ricoh in the mid to late 1980s. This particular AF-60D—which was purchased by my father when I was a kid—has the distinction of being the first camera I have ever used. I remember going into my parents’ bedroom and digging the Ricoh out of my dad’s sock drawer. I remember looking through its viewfinder at the mirror and putting my finger on the shutter button like I had seen my dad do so many times. A click and whirr later, I ran away giggling.

Konica MT-9

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I received this Konica MT-9 by mistake a few days after winning an auction for a Konica C35 EF. I opened up the package expecting a superb Hexanon-flexing wonder but was met with an unexceptional plastic compact camera instead. The seller (a charity shop) didn’t believe my story until they attempted to put this very MT-9 up for auction and included a photo of the serial number which I quickly matched to the camera I had erroneously received. Story proven, they quickly took down the auction for the MT-9 and immediately sent me my C35 along with a hastily worded but very sincere apology.

Yashica T AF-D

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The Yashica T AF-D is a high-end 35mm compact camera introduced in 1985. Shortly after acquiring Yashica in the fall of 1983, Kyocera took advantage of its existing licensing agreement with renowned German lens manufacturer Carl Zeiss AG and began production of the T* series, a successful line of compact cameras that use high quality Carl Zeiss Tessar 35mm lenses with the legendary T* coating. The very first model was the Yashica T AF which was closely followed by this data back-equipped AF-D variant.

Olympus Infinity Twin

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The Olympus Infinity Twin (also known outside the US as the AF-1 Twin) is unusual among compact point and shoots in that it has two lenses (a wide-angle 35mm f/3.5 and a telephoto 70mm f/6.3) that you can switch between with a touch of a tiny red button. It also inherits the rugged body designed for the world’s first weatherproof automatic 35mm camera: the original Olympus Infinity/AF-1 which makes it even more unique.