1958 Leica M3 Double Stroke and Elmar M 5cm f/2.8 Goodwill find of a lifetime.

Congrats! You got the steal of a deal tht most of us only dream of. The lens delivers nice images with softer tones - so, hey, it's got character, right? Some folks around here pay big bucks for character, and you got a classic character lens for ... what? ... a couple of bucks? You are a lucky man. Go shoot the hell out of your kit, and please keep posting your pix here!
 
so i've been reading this thread for a while now..

before heading back home , i've been visiting every single goodwill store for 9 days in philly area and Ive also visited the salvation army thrift shop..

best i could find was a yashica freedom shooter where this kid took off and ripped the battery compartment..

this is not fair , it really isin't :/
 
It took me hundreds of trips, over about three years before I found this. You have to figure out the best times to go, I recommend tuesday through thursday. I've probably found 40-50 cameras over the years that were worth something to me or others. I've found FIVE Yashica T4s and sold all of them. I got my Nikon FE on my first trip while looking for a Stylus Epic. You just have to put in the time. It does seem that the well is running dry these days though. My latest score is a Yashica T3 that I'm going to list tomorrow. Good luck.
 
This is a great find, much better than anything I've ever gotten. Congrats!

There was another poster who has you beat though. He bought a cupboard at a yard sale a while back, with drawers full of Leica bodies and lenses, for $50 or so.
 
I can't even imagine your excitement. I recently found a Canon TL-QL with 1.8/50mm FL lens in a junk shop, all in like new condition. Paid $20 and I was pleased as punch. Apparently the thing had barely been used since 1970.

Having never used an SLR I was surprised at how different it is compared to rangefinders. Now I know why my photography friends make ugly faces and put down my rangefinders when they try to use them for the first time. It's not that rangefinders are bad, just very different than SLRs. I was surprised at how irked I was at VF black-out on an SLR. I digress...

My point is: it's always a grand feeling to find good kit in a resale shop.

Cheers to you and your good fortune!
 
baisao said:
I can't even imagine your excitement. I recently found a Canon TL-QL with 1.8/50mm FL lens in a junk shop, all in like new condition. Paid $20 and I was pleased as punch. Apparently the thing had barely been used since 1970.

Having never used an SLR I was surprised at how different it is compared to rangefinders. Now I know why my photography friends make ugly faces and put down my rangefinders when they try to use them for the first time. It's not that rangefinders are bad, just very different than SLRs. I was surprised at how irked I was at VF black-out on an SLR. I digress...

My point is: it's always a grand feeling to find good kit in a resale shop.

Cheers to you and your good fortune!
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Thank you very much. Now if I could just afford to get all the film in my freezer developed!
 
I like the fact that you sold most your other gear out. May you find true joy through that viewfinder. This is gold-hunting at its best!!!!!!
 
bonatto said:
I like the fact that you sold most your other gear out. May you find true joy through that viewfinder. This is gold-hunting at its best!!!!!!
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I did sell a lot, but I kept some that I just couldn't part with. The Leica is my main camera now, it's my go-to and always in my bag. I like to have a point and shoot like my Panasonic Super Mini or a zone focus camera like the Olympus EC2 for faster shots.

Using a hand-held incident meter has really been a growing experience. I tend to use it with my other cameras that have full manual controls, even if they have some form of AE. Not always, but more than I used to.
 
Mattco26 said:
I did sell a lot, but I kept some that I just couldn't part with. The Leica is my main camera now, it's my go-to and always in my bag. I like to have a point and shoot like my Panasonic Super Mini or a zone focus camera like the Olympus EC2 for faster shots.

Using a hand-held incident meter has really been a growing experience. I tend to use it with my other cameras that have full manual controls, even if they have some form of AE. Not always, but more than I used to.
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That's something I'm looking to try out in the future!
 
The only exciting time I had at a goodwill was when one in Denver got in what must have been somebody's personal collection of vintage cameras. I grabbed a Pentax H2 and a Kodak 35, and there were a few other things from the same era. But no Leicas. Here in Texas they put all the good cameras into weekly auctions, so you'll never find a good deal ever (you have to bid, you can't ever score by simple seeing something first).

Oh but when I was in Seattle I found a TRS-80 model one at the goodwill!
 
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