Rating: 
Summary: Excellent reference book - definitely worth having
Review: Praise; I found the book very useful in identifying camera model and can highly recommend it. I liked the way the author discussed the camera and enjoyed his opinions. The photographs of the cameras taken with the old cameras was, to me, an excellent idea and really showed what these cameras are still capable of. I personally did not mind the authors personal photography and actually found them useful in comparing the variosu qualities of the cameras discussed. I think it is extremely unfair to be judgemental about someones photograph it all eye of the beholder really isn't it! If you like using or collecting old SLR's then you can't really NOT have this book. My only complaint; The softcover copy book that I bought the spine started to split and the cover has almost fallen off after a few days of intensive reading.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent reference book - definitely worth having
Review: Praise; I found the book very useful in identifying camera model and can highly recommend it. I liked the way the author discussed the camera and enjoyed his opinions. The photographs of the cameras taken with the old cameras was, to me, an excellent idea and really showed what these cameras are still capable of. I personally did not mind the authors personal photography and actually found them useful in comparing the variosu qualities of the cameras discussed. I think it is extremely unfair to be judgemental about someones photograph it all eye of the beholder really isn't it! If you like using or collecting old SLR's then you can't really NOT have this book. My only complaint; The softcover copy book that I bought the spine started to split and the cover has almost fallen off after a few days of intensive reading.
Rating: 
Summary: A compass in the ocean-wide used and old camera market
Review: A comprehensive review of a great number of those old and attractive tools: classic cameras. Using a simple and plain style mr. Matanle describes his criteria for judging old cameras, always giving useful information on cameras he has actually used. But don't worry: you decide what you're going to buy!
Rating:
Summary: This is a must have book for camera enthusiast...
Review: Ivor Matanle is obviously crazy about cameras. He does not, however, allow his enthusiasm to reign his pen. There is a great deal of information about all the makes of cameras which he includes, from general history of a particular type, to its availability and reliability at the time of writing. There tends to be an emphasis on european cameras, but what do you expect? The real Japanese invasion in the SLR market did not take place until the later model Pentax (S1a and Spotmatic) and Nikon F series hit the shelves, an event which takes place comapratively recently in the history of the SLR camera. It is too bad that Matanle's other book "Collecting and Using Classic Cameras" is out of print, because if this title is anything to go by, then the other volume is the missing link in the most comprehensive compendium any camera fanatic could wish to have.
Rating:
Summary: Matanle's Classic SLRs Captures the Tools
Review: Matanle's "Collecting and Using Classic SLRs" is amust own for every SLR camera collector. His camera close ups, as wellas specs, prove he knows his material. He provides abundant information on cameras A to Z. His shots of cameras are crystal clear; however, photos from his personal collection are somewhat hazy and appear out of place. Book is still worth the money...
Rating:
Summary: Matanle's Classic SLRs Captures the Tools
Review: Matanle's "Collecting and Using Classic SLRs" is amust own for every SLR camera collector. His camera close ups, as wellas specs, prove he knows his material. He provides abundant information on cameras A to Z. His shots of cameras are crystal clear; however, photos from his personal collection are somewhat hazy and appear out of place. Book is still worth the money...
Rating:
Summary: Matanle aims straight for the heart of the SLR grognard!
Review: Matanle's book is a great survey book of 50's-through 70's SLRs. It is obvious that he likes certain makes/models and not others (but usually for good reason) an he makes no apologies for it. There is a certain old-fashioned paradigm that he has adopted that endears you to his pre-electronic worldview. I learned about the sleeper systems like the Mirandas and learned why Fujicas never caught on. Also, what rare birds could be found in the post-war East German lineups, and which models had poor shutter mechanisms, etc. His book is splendid bathroom rack material and a trusty companion to any obsessive Ebay shopper. A camera nerd's best paperback friend!
Rating:
Summary: Matanle aims straight for the heart of the SLR grognard!
Review: Matanle's book is a great survey book of 50's-through 70's SLRs. It is obvious that he likes certain makes/models and not others (but usually for good reason) an he makes no apologies for it. There is a certain old-fashioned paradigm that he has adopted that endears you to his pre-electronic worldview. I learned about the sleeper systems like the Mirandas and learned why Fujicas never caught on. Also, what rare birds could be found in the post-war East German lineups, and which models had poor shutter mechanisms, etc. His book is splendid bathroom rack material and a trusty companion to any obsessive Ebay shopper. A camera nerd's best paperback friend!
Rating: 
Summary: Enthusiastic, opinionated, but lean on substance.
Review: Mr. Matanle makes his opinions known, and he frequently can put forth a compelling case for a favorite marque. For the novice collector or photographer interested in using classic cameras, he provides an accessible start. Beyond that introduction, less general texts will likely yeild more substantive information. Both of his books on classic cameras are heavily illustrated with his own photographs, which are, sadly, unrelentingly amateurish, murky, gritty and just plain lacking in any technical proficiency in black and white printmaking. Talk about making sow's ears from silk purses! The classic tools he describes deserve far better representation.
Rating:
Summary: Wisdom, Wit, and Solid Information
Review: Terrific book. You won't be disappointed. The emphasis is more on the 'using' rather than collecting, which is refreshing. A bonus is Mantale's dry wit.
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