<p>We have inherited several older (circa 1960s & 70s) SLR cameras and accessories (lenses, flash, etc) from my FIL. They were good cameras for their time - not professional ones, but Minoltas and maybe one other kind…can’t remember exactly.
What can we do with them? I love photography, but am strictly a digital gal. Is there any market for them? They hold no sentimental value; we can’t figure out what to do with them. Any ideas?</p>
<p>Possibly donate them to a school? The Photo 1 class at our HS is B&W film based and uses SLRs,</p>
<p>You could them up on ebay and see what they are going for. Minolta was a pretty good camera back then I believe. A lot of people LOVE 60’s era SLR’s so you may find a taker. Or you could check with a school like the above poster said. In my photo classes in college we needed an SLR and it was hard for some students to come up with the money for one. If you donated one they might be able to loan it out or something.</p>
<p>Oooooo. List on Ebay. And let me know!! I have a D and her BF who find digital pics to be so sharp and clear that they are sterile and are back taking film pics. And doing a good job at it. </p>
<p>Seriously, those cameras are back in and selling for decent prices. You won’t make a mint but you will be able to sell them on Ebay if you are interested.</p>
<p>Sell them to hipsters.</p>
<p>I remember an old “Divine Design” episode where Candace Olson (the designer) incorporated the home owner’s camera collection decoratively on living room shelves. Think of them as pieces of art and display them!</p>
<p>OP - The Minolta SRT series is a popular choice for photography classes. The trade regularly on eBay. If you want a fair price you’ll want a camera expert to check the camera before listing it. (Mold in lens’ is a common problem. And finding the correct battery for built-in light meters can be a challenge.) Another reason to find an expert in your area is that s/he may know of local collectors who might be interested in buying you cameras/accessories.</p>
<p>If you’re a patient sort, it can be very interesting finding experts and learning about these old cameras. Good luck! </p>
<p>Oh, and you might consider listing the make and model number of the cameras here. Who knows more about “old stuff” than people here on CC?</p>
<p>
:)</p>
<p>Thanks for all the suggestions. I did a quick look on ebay; seems like a few items move there, but lots with 0 bids. I will pull out the cameras and check model #s, etc and get more info. If it doesn’t seem like the kind of thing to sell, I’ll check with schools about donating them, if they are something they’d use. I’ll also re-post the info here, in case there are any camera experts on CC (there must be! 
)</p>
<p>I have an old Pentax K1000. When I bought it, the salesman said it was so sturdy that you could swing it at a brick wall, knock down the wall, then take a picture. Too bad we can’t refit the old cameras for digital - it was all manual but I loved it along with my wide angle and zoom lens. As below, that model has $0 bids on Ebay so I think I’ll keep it for nostalgia.</p>
<p>I sold my beloved old Nikon EM with leather case, flash as a lot on ebay. I purchased it in 1980 for my first (and only) trip to Europe right out of college. I even had the orignial receipt!
It took great pics of the alps.</p>
<p>I think I got $120ish for it all. Not a lot of money but it was dust collecting here in our house. LOVE my tiny digital Canon that fits in my pocket/purse.</p>
<p>^^ Marilyn - Knocking down that wall may have taken some of the value off that Pentax!</p>
<p>If I recall correctly, Nikon was one of the few (only?) cameras that could utilize film body lens’ on digital bodies. I know my Minolta and Yashica’s couldn’t.</p>
<p>When my D was ready to take an Art Photography course … well OK, I guess you could say she was pushed her into taking the course … I got out the old cameras. Neither was working. The Minolta was a simply fix … but not the Yashica. I finally found a guy in FL who used to work in the Yashica factory in Japan. When I explained the symptoms mine was having, he said “Buy one that’s working … $50 on eBay.”</p>
<p>Don’t want to steal the thread, but what I discovered was we had drawers full of cassettes (I think hi8 or some similar format, some in PAL system) of our kids’ births and early years. If we knew which tapes had the real important events, we probably could pay to get them converted to MPEG by a pro, but 90+% is random stuff that we wouldn’t want and there’s no easy way to retrieve our memories</p>
<p>Yes, Nikon F mount has not changed for ages. This allows someone to use those old MF lenses. </p>
<p>Old film camera ('60s or '70s) does not meter nor AF. Don’t think any of them 35mm ones have any real value. However, the lenses are a different story. If you happen to have a Nikkor 50mm F1.2, let me know. </p>
<p>The newer film bodies like F5 or F100 that could meter and AF could still worth something.</p>
<p>Thanks, DadII…I’ll have to go retrieve them today to check what we have. Right after I finish assembling my tax packet for the accountant (that should have been done weeks ago! :o )</p>
<p>Some Canon film lenses will also work on digital SLRs (this is why I bought a Canon digital).</p>
<p>Sell that old film equipment now–time is running out on it (in my opinion). Once you get a really nice printer, there’s no looking back.</p>
<p>
That’s what I’ve been thinking too, Hunt.<br>
As for the lenses, I think they’re Minolta - and I have a Nikon digital SLR, so no good there.</p>
<p>If the lenses aren’t very old, there might be an adapter that would allow you to use them.</p>
<p>I still have my father’s old Leica he used in WWII. It’s built like a tank, and still takes perfect pictures. The leather case is a little worn, but in good shape too. It was against the rules to take pictures on a bombing run, so he took them anyway, then smuggled the exposed film back to base by wrapping the film around his ankles under his black socks. That way, if anyone spotted his camera and confiscated it, he’d still have the pictures. And those pictures are fabulous. I know the camera is not worth anything, but I’d never sell it even if it were.</p>