babble
Saturday, December 04, 2004
Addiction:
So, I have a problem. I'm an addict. I know what you're going to say - you were all planning to stage an intervention, but you didn't know the right way to bring it up. But now, I'm admitting it, and doing what I can to change.
That's right. I'm addicted to collecting cameras.
It all started when my friend at DreamWorks brought me to a prop sale. Sounds innocent enough, right? I ended up with a box full of vintage and newer cameras, all for the low, low price of $5 each. Most were props in the Ring. You'd think that would satisfy me, right? But no, it was the beginning of an obsession.
Soon after that, I began trolling eBay for camera bodies and lenses that matched some of the orphan lenses and bodies I had from the prop sale. Then, I turned my attention to Brownies and other vintage cameras. My quest continued as I purchased new Holgas and a digital SLR from the local camera shop. The Holgas acted as a gateway, and I soon found myself experimenting with alternative processes and printmaking. I even started using a cameraphone for quick fixes.
My addiction seemed to be temporarily sated by my most recent acquisitions from eBay include a super 8 movie camera and a large format Polaroid (with bellows, very exciting!), but I couldn't stop there. I had to go further.
I had to have a Leica.
So a few weeks ago, as I stopped by the local camera shop to replenish my stash of film, I saw it, shimmering behind its glass case. The Leica C2 I mentioned a few entries back. Beautiful, sleek, perfect. My eyes longed to gaze through its viewfinder. So, in a dark moment of pure addictive lust, I purchased it.
But it didn't stop there.
I became even more obsessed, but not just by cameras in general - no, my addiction focused solely on one flavor of sweet, sweet candy - Leicas. I used the C2, and felt a jolt of pleasure with each press of the shutter, but I felt that something was missing. And I knew what that something was. A digital Leica. I spent countless hours on eBay, searching, bidding, and always losing the bid at the last second to someone just as desperate, just as enslaved by their need for a seamless combination of lens perfection and retro styling.
This past Wednesday, I finally did it. I braved the treacherous eBay bidding wars, and with cunning strategy and the desperate need to stave off withdrawals, I won an auction for the elusive digital Leica. As luck would have it, the seller is a (very cute) student at Caltech, which is just down the street from where I live. He offered to deliver it, but I couldn't wait, so I offered to pick it up. My eyes aquiver with the thoughts of its big, beautiful LCD viewfinder and its perfect, sharp lens, I went to Pasadena and scored the biggest hit of my life.
Now that I have my precioussss, I feel an odd sense of calm. The frenetic online research and obsessive refreshing of the My eBay Bidding page seems a thing of the distant past. My addiction seems to have been quelled.
For now.
babbled by Kat @ 1:38:00 PM |
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