My First Time

The time I had spent with this camera without knowing of any man-made mishaps had happened was THE MOST FUN I have had while out making photos–EVER. 

We moved into our house in 2021. I learned that our neighbors were very friendly and introduced themselves very quickly. Of course, in conversation I naturally brought up that I am a photographer and had a camera collection spanning 129 years. 

The mention of this was all it took for my next door neighbor to practically shout out that he was also a camera collector. He made it clear that he had a “few” Speed Graphic cameras, a Mamiya of unknown model, and one or two Minolta cameras. 

It was all just chatter at the time. Since I was moving in when we spoke there was no time to go look at them that day. 

Years went by but every so often while walking our dogs I would see him out in his garage. Again he would say “come check them out” then go into some stories about himself and his experience with the mythical Speed Graphic cameras. 

Great conversations, but I was never able to actually go look at them. This would continue until July of 2026. 

It was then when he asked if I would come assess the collection before he prepared for a garage sale. He brought me (the Camera Goblin that I am) over first for the “fresh pickin” so to speak. 

I was not prepared for what he was about to lay out in front of me. 

I walked into his backyard fully expecting a handful of different cameras but that expectation was so far off. He and his son began bringing box after box to the ping pong table on the patio. 

As we unload each box it was very clear he did in fact have "one or two" Minoltas.– 10 of em.

There were some very unique cameras: some early Argus 35mm's, a couple of 8mm video cameras, an incredibly cool medium format Konica/Omega Rapid Press, and a laundry list more. 

All-in-all, a total of 27 cameras. After testing, 21 were in decent working condition. 

Then, within this massive group of cameras, I saw first proof that the legendary herd of Graflexes existed. It was like catching a Bigfoot taking a shit in the woods. 

In my head I thought "holy shit" but in the video I recorded you can hear me say it outloud. I had absolutely no poker face.

The first he pulled out was the miniature Speed Graphic 2x3–both shutter and lens being extremely clean and a fully functional focal plane shutter. With it were four 2x3 sheet film holders which would yield me 8 exposures when in use. 

There were a few boxes of sheet film included but I have no clue as to the age. I think it’s still worth experimentation despite me being aware of the not so ideal storage conditions. If anything, the images will be incredibly unique, if they develop something. 

My neighbor told me that there were still more cameras that he wasn’t able to locate just yet. He said those boxes will have the other missing Graflex cameras along with the unknown Mamiya. 

After I looked at everything, my neighbor went full Marlon Brando and asked to just make an offer he couldn’t refuse. It threw me off.

I want to be clear: I went into this thinking I would make an offer on maybe at least one or two cameras, and so far it was the Speed Graphic and the Konica/Omega Press camera. 

I thought about it for not nearly long enough then asked if the offer included the cameras still unaccounted for and yes, they were to be included.

To give you an idea of condition of these cameras, they were stored inside a backyard shed in the desert of Southern New Mexico. They're not in immaculate condition. All were dirty but the shutter on the Speed Graphic was working and the glass was very clean considering the storage conditions. 

Honestly, the Speed Graphic was sketchy as fuck on first handling. Thankfully, it was mostly just surface layer cosmetic wear and tear with no fungus on any of the lenses. 

I won’t pretend to know everything there is to know about the Speed Graphic cameras. What I do know is that if it’s working, it'll be fairly easy to recondition by sending out to someone or, if I get brave enough, tackle it myself. 

I knew the value sat mainly in the Speed Graphics and whatever unknown Graflex models that were still hiding somewhere in my neighbors house. 

The offer and he took it. I still don’t know if it was too low or too high. Either way, I have already made my money back from this acquisition by selling a few. 

Just last week I was returning an item we borrowed from him. A few months had passed since my first visit and I ended up coming back home with a box full of photography gear, darkroom equipment and some unopened powdered Dektol developer. 

What he finally located almost made me squeal...again. 

This box contained another of the mythical Graflex 2x3 cameras, along with three 120 Graflok film backs: it was a Century Graphic 2x3.

To say I was excited would be an understatement. I immediately took it into the office studio and began to test the camera.

I checked the shutter speeds. I checked the infinity focus. I checked the Kalart Rangefinder. I checked everything the only ways I knew how to make sure they were accurate. 

They were.

The shutter was working, kinda. Shutter speeds under 1/50th of second sticks and it does not close after you release the shutter. 

Bulb setting is also temperamental and decides on it's own if wants to cooperate or not. This might be remedied by a better remote cable. The one I had on hand wasn’t doing the job right. 

I just could not wait to use this camera at a few of my favorite yuccas off Baylor Canyon Road. 

I went out a little too early but it gave me plenty of time to get things set up and scout out the locations I was hoping to capture. 

The scenes were almost too perfect for my “first time” with this camera. 

The yucca framed the organs in the background perfectly. Focus was set with the ground glass. I repeated the shooting process over and over in my head to make sure I didn’t forget anything that might mess it up.

"Focus frame – Meter scene – Set shutter – Remove dark slide – Shoot – Replace dark slide – Advance film."

Then I went to actually load the film into the 23 Graflok film back. 

I loaded it, yes. Did I load it correctly? …No. I didn’t know at the time of course, somehow... just perfect.

The time I had spent with this camera without knowing of any man-made mishaps had happened was THE MOST FUN I have had while out making photos–EVER. 

The feeling I had behind the ground glass making very small and careful decisions on the frame is almost indescribable. The process felt extremely personal, methodical, and almost ritualistic in the way I approached each scene. 

 It is undoubtedly a dragon I will continue to chase for a very long time.

The film was pulled and developed at home with a Caffenol Recipe I learned from some Subculture weirdo named Adam. I had shot two rolls of 35mm film to be sure everything was working correctly. 

Both rolls of 35mm cam out looking great. After that, I was confident enough to try a 120 roll in this Speed Graphic. 

Nothing

Not even a hint of an image. 

What the hell happened?

I immediately went to the shutter as the culprit but the 1/100th and 1/300th speeds were showing no issues when inspecting. The slower speed issue still remained but nothing seemed to be wrong with the two used speeds. I went to bed still not understanding what happened. 

That night I dreamt about the whole morning out: setting the frame, attaching the film back, and then loading of the film ran back in the dream. 

There it was! I loaded it wrong. The film never pulled the correct direction across the actual exposable area of the back. A dumb mistake, but a fixable one. 

I was ready to go back out immediately. In fact, the next morning I returned to exact same spot where the film loading disaster happened. 

The conditions were almost exactly the same. I loaded the film correctly, and began another incredibly intoxicating morning with the Graflex 2x3. 

This time, it felt better somehow. Maybe the nerves of using the thing went away. Maybe I actually felt comfortable with it or better yet, I felt confident in my ability to overcome that failure a day before. 

This is a photo from that morning from my Lumix GX85. I felt it told the story of my mornings with it. 

It was a scene captured in the moment and experienced as if it was perfectly timed, but ultimately ending with empty film negatives. 

I could either be like the yucca on the right appearing to be running away from failure faced, or I can be like the yucca on the left; standing tall and meeting my mistake exactly where it failed the morning before. 

The frames from the camera were incredible and exceeded my expectations of what it and myself could create. All captured with the miniature Speed Graphic on expired (2024) Ilford HP5 400.

I'm not sure what cameras remain with my neighbor. Who knows? Maybe the Bigfoot himself, a 4x5 Graflex will be in there. Either way I will welcome the experience and new perspective those cameras will provide me. 

For the Century Graphic 2x3? I will most likely dig into the shutter issue myself or have it CLA’d so it functions well enough for me to spend a good chunk of time with it. 

There are goals with this camera in mind and I even told my wife and son I will win the 2027 Southern NM State Fair Best in Show award with this camera, and judging from the first few frames, I should be able to give a good fight. 

I shot a video covering this story and the camera. Click below to watch the whole journey on YouTube.

▶ Watch on YouTube