In your bag No: 546, Paul
Yes, just Paul, I didn’t get another name. But Paul has a great bag full of wonders which he traverses the streets of Tokyo with. Paul may be a relative film beginner, but he is certainly making the most of living in Tokyo.

My name is Paul, 27 years old French expatriate living and working in Japan for nearly three years now. I got interested in photography about two years ago and have been following your website ever since. This gave me interest 6 months ago in having a look at film cameras and using my old lenses for what they were built. I recently had the chance to shoot with a friend’s Leica M6 and felt in love with the rangefinder system. A Canonet QL GIII is already on my purchase list.

My family also recently found various Canon AE-1, old Voightlander Vitoret LR and even older Photox Boyer I’ll get this summer. Lots of fun to come.

For the moment I have 3 cameras in Tokyo and almost always carry (only) one of them, depending of my mood and needs. I tend to shoot pretty much everything I find interesting but I like to mainly use prime lenses.

– Bag : My beloved Paul Smith messenger bag found for nothing in a second-hand shop in Tokyo. Not the most comfy bag to carry heavy gears, but I use it every day.

– Pentax K-5 : Compact, great dynamic, weather resistant and awesome in high ISO. The great advantage is to directly be able to use old K-mount lenses on it. I’ve never regretted my purchase so far.

– The Pentax “plastic wonder” 35mm f2.4 is on it. Love this lens, very sharp and ultra-light.

– I also sometimes use the zoom Pentax 18-55mm WR, mostly for outdoor trips.

– Pentax KM : My first film camera, basically similar to a Spotmatic with a K-mount. I wanted to try my manual Pentax lenses on full format and got the KM as a junk at Fujiya Camera. Foams were good and it works as a charm.

– On the camera is the fantastic Pentax-M 50mm f1.7, sharp as hell. Below is the Pentax-K 55mm f1.8, pretty good as well. I got both for nothing in the same shop.

– Olympus OM-1 : Here comes the jewel. This camera has a special meaning as it comes from my girlfriend’s dad (Japanese) who was using it during university. Mint condition despite some dust in the viewfinder. I love its size and grip (more than the KM)

– It came with a Zuiko 50mm f1.8 and a Zuiko 28mm f2.8 that I use the most. Were also in the box a 37-70mm Macro SUN zoom and a 80-200mm KOMURANON zoom I haven’t tried yet.

– Polaroid Spectra E : I found this boy last week on a flee market for 100¥. It works but I haven’t shot with it yet.

– Black-rapid Strap : I often carry my K-5 with this strap, great for long hikes or even city walks.

– Films : I am still in a testing phase and tend to try everything I can find. Luckily we still have a lot of choice in Tokyo.

Plus the usual smartphone (Galaxy Note2), earphones (Monster Turbine), memory cards, sun glasses …

I don’t put many pictures online but you can have a look at my work on:

– http://flic.kr/ps/SkDpe

– http://dtodjapan.tumblr.com/

Thanks a lot for your commitment and hope to see you around the capital one day.

Thanks for sharing your bag and your film journey with us Paul. I am glad that the site has helped you and I am sure we will bump into each other at some point.

Keep them coming folks, we need more submissions, so get your bag on Japancamerahunter.com. Send me a hi resolution image of the bag (please make sure it is horizontal) and its contents, with some details about yourself and what you shoot. Oh and don’t forget your contact details (twitter, flickr, tumbler et al). Send the bag shots here.

Cheers
Japancamerahunter