What was your very own first camera?

[furbs]

When I was 16 my grandfather gave me his Nikon N8008s for a photo class. I am pretty sure it had a 50mm lens. Less than a year after that class I lost all my prints and negs in a flood. I only used the camera for a year in that photo class, after which it sat collecting dust for years.

At 24 I rediscovered the camera and started shooting slides, which sparked my interest enough to keep me shooting for the past 7 years. The N8008s was stolen within a year after I picked it back up, which was enough of an excuse for me to get a DSLR, though I'm happy to be shooting film almost exclusively now.

[Travis L.]

This one.
Not sure how old I was, probably 7 or 8.... I never throw anything away.

[jim sparx]

Dick Tracy Detective camera, 1940s, I don't have the camera anymore but I do have a picture I took that my mother saved.
My first real camera was a Argus C3 I bought in Lebanon from a fellow GI in 1957 to take pictures of that stupid little war. Still have pictures, no camera.
I still have my Nikon 8008 from years ago though the film door does not close.

[Fedupwithdigital]

Mamiya ZE with a 50mm f1.7 lens. Still have it (needs new light seals, though).

[rfaspen]

Kodak Brownie Starflash. 127 roll film and used those flashbulbs with the spaghetti mass of filament in them (not the cubes).

I still have it, along with most every other camera I've accumulated along the way. (Which is a lot of cameras).

The camera that hooked me into a lifetime of film was my Rolleiflex SL35 with Zeiss Planar 50/1.8 lens. My high school friend's mom let me have it. I spent too much time trying to hunt down Rollei QBM lenses for it, then figured out Tamron lenses could be used (adaptall-2) and bought my first zoom lens (35-135/3.5-4.5). For the longest time I just couldn't figure out why my expensive new zoom lens would never give me photos with the same sharpness, contrast, and jaw-dropping "pop" that my old Zeiss 50 would. I learned eventually...

[slidesandthecity]

When I was about ten years old I wanted to have the latest Metal Gear Solid for Easter, but I got a compact camera from the local drug store. The disappointment did not last too long

[bjornkeizers]

The first one that I owned myself was an old Polaroid Colorpack II. It was a gift I got from a caretaker at a grade school I attended in the early 90's. The CP II was, of course, an old camera, even back then. (made between 1969 and 1972). I received the camera and two packs, which I shot myself.

Now, when the packs were gone... I had a slight problem. I had an uncle who actually worked in the Polaroid factory here in Enschede. I showed him the camera, and he unfortunately told me that Polaroid had stopped making film for it. This was around 1997 or so. I don't know if Fuji was already producing their FP100 then, and even if they were... I couldn't afford it as a teen anyway.

So, my uncle proposed a trade: he'd keep the CPII for his personal collection and gave me a 1000 series land camera - the cool white one with the rainbow - in return. I shot that a few times and even bought some film for it. Once they stopped making it... in the closet it went. I still haven't gotten around to buying some Impossible film for it, even though I pass by the factory every day

The reason for that is: I actually bought a Colorpack II again last year! When I found out Fuji had film available, I searched and found a brand new looking CPII and I've shot at least five packs with it so far.

[fiatlux]

I got a GAF MEMO 35 ET when I was around 8. Its lens was not spectacularly sharp, but it was a rangefinder!

This was my only own camera until I bought a Nikon N6006 much later, when at university, but I borrowed my father's Nikons quite often.

[MiniMoke]

If I remember right my very first own camera was a little square Agfa Optima something I got at my communion when I was about 9. I don't remember using it very much, as I had to beg to get film bought and developed.

Fast forward some years, and I bought a used Rolleiflex SL35 I used and loved a lot with 28, 50 and 135mm Zeiss lenses. I loved it so much I was dreaming of a Rolleiflex 2000 but could only afford the SL35 M.

What a disaster! The camera NEVER WORKED, I returned it the day I bought it, got another one and some short weeks later it stopped working too. Too bad for this beautiful SLR. The shop took it back finally after trying to get it to work for weeks and I exchanged it for a Canon AE-1 set.

Was happy with that for quite some years until it got stolen.....

A family friend gave me his Nikon F Photomic, and that was the best camera I had. Loved it dearly, only to get enthralled in the digital age and selling it for an EOS 300D and later a 400D.....

But it all began with the Agfa

[kendo1]

Contax 139 with Zeiss tessar T* 45. I gave it away recently...

[VitoCipriani]

Barring a Halina disc camera that I was given second-hand, the first 'new' camera bought for me as a gift was a Canon Sureshot AF-7 when I was in my mid-teens. I still have it (and the Halina disc camera).

[Valerius]

A Kodak Instamatic 104, which I got when I was 7 or 8 years old. I still have it.

[Doug Smith]

A Kodak Brownie which took 127 film, I used Verichrome as I remember. I must have been about 12.