"It must be hard for you, but there is a right time for everything. When it is time to wait, you must wait."
Words from my favorite author, Haruki Murakami, that I always hold on to every time I’m near losing my patience on anything in life. It’s so easy to give in to impulse, but I’m slowly learning how to step back and look at the bigger picture.
This outlook seemed true again for me in film photography. After few months of acquiring my Superheadz UWS camera, reading a lot about film, joining groups to learn more of it, I felt a great feeling of want need for a film SLR camera. I knew it was only a matter of time, as there were a couple of moments that I wanted to give in to it already. Reading a lot helped me (but also confused me) to narrow down my choices of target. There’s a lot of good deals around, so I told myself I had to be wise in choosing.
I’ve had quite a number of moments when I’ll browse camera deals and just melt right in front of the screen because I wanted them all so badly, but I know I can’t invest on it yet. I guess you come to an age where you realize it’s not really easy to earn money just to spend it in a whim (or sobrang tipid ko lang talaga ngayon haha).
Anyway, my top 3 choices for film SLR were: Canon AE-1, Pentax K1000 and Nikon FM3. I would frequent online deals to check if there’s a reasonable deal for me.. Until one morning, I saw a recently posted ad that really caught my eye. Somehow it fell all right into my 2 main categories of concern: (1) it belongs to my top 3, and (2) it was within my budget. I immediately sent a text message to the seller and asked if I could buy it on weekend because I obviously have work during weekdays. He said yes, only if nobody has bought the camera yet by that day. So I hold on to dear hope that no one will grab it yet, because I really thought it was a great deal! Come Friday, I asked him again if it was available, and he said yes! Oh sweet baby jesus, thank you! I met up with him in Manila and I was lucky because I think the seller is a good guy. He handed this to me and it was love at first sight (with the camera, not with the guy haha!)
It’s a (rare) black Canon AE-1 Program which only put a dent in my wallet for only P2,500 (roughly $55)! Still in good condition. And what made me thought this was a great deal because attached to it was this:
An FD 50mm f/1.4 lens! Meaning I could shoot in low light and enjoy an awesome depth of field :)
On top of this all, the seller even threw a speedlite for free!
Although he’s not sure if it’s still working mehehehe! And I’m not yet acquainted with speedlites so there’s still no way of knowing if this would work. But it’s okay because I don’t usually use flash when taking photos :)
I feel so lucky to have come across this because I usually see Canon AE-1 priced at around P5,000. Funny story was, the seller’s ad price was originally at P3,500, but his description said P2,500 at the time I inquired about it. So he felt no choice but to give it to me with the lower price, all because of a simple typo! Hehehe!
Now my black series family has added another member!
I feel so happy now, and relieved at the same time. Had I been carried away by my impulse, I would’ve bought the camera that I didn’t like as much with, a much higher price. Whew, thank you Mr. Murakami, for putting out there an inspiration for waiting, and the value of patience :)
Can’t wait to shoot!
This is such a long and emotional post for a camera!
