Film Cameras

A Pentax K1000 and a GoPro answer different needs:

one is chosen for control, the other for going where a camera normally would not. A manual SLR such as the K1000 or a Canon AE-1 takes interchangeable lenses and lets you set the exposure yourself. A point-and-shoot does everything on its own and fits a pocket, and new half-frame models from Kodak have put the format back in fashion. On the video side, an action camera from GoPro, DJI or Insta360 is a small waterproof box for a helmet, a bike or a swim in the pools at Semuc Champey, and a cinema camera such as a Blackmagic Pocket records footage meant to be graded afterwards.

Film SLRs that still fire with a dead battery:

a K1000 or a Nikon FM runs every shutter speed mechanically, and only the light meter needs a cell. An AE-1 and most later SLRs drive the shutter with a battery, so a flat one makes a good camera look broken, and an electronic fault is harder to fix than a mechanical one. Canon FD, Nikon F and Pentax K lenses are plentiful and adapt to most mirrorless bodies in photo cameras, so a good lens keeps its use if you go digital later.

Camcorders bought to play back the family tapes:

plenty of buyers want an old one for that single job, to watch weddings and first communions recorded years ago and copy them to a computer. Tapes shot in Guatemala are NTSC, so a camcorder brought from Europe, which records PAL, may not play them properly; the standard is printed on the label underneath. MiniDV and Digital8 models with a FireWire port copy tapes cleanly. For new footage, a camcorder keeps its long zoom and its steady hours of recording where an action camera struggles in low light. To watch one doorway all day, a unit from security and surveillance costs far less than an action camera running on a loop.

Paying by the frame on a film camera:

a 36-exposure roll of 35 mm colour film costs around Q130 to Q140, and developing with scans adds about Q150, so every frame comes out near Q8 before anything is printed. A half-frame camera gets twice the shots from the same roll. At those running costs a body known to work is worth paying more for, because a light leak or a sticky shutter ruins every roll you put through it. Action cameras run the other way: a current flagship from GoPro or DJI is around Q3,500 to Q5,000 new, and older generations go for much less because each one improved stabilisation and low-light footage.

Before you pay for a camera that sat in a drawer:

open the battery compartment first: green crust on the contacts from a cell left in for years is common and can take the electronics with it. On an AE-1, a squeal from the mirror as it fires is a known fault that needs a service. Check that the aperture blades are dry, with no oil on them, and snap shut when it fires. On a camcorder, record a short clip and play it back, because heads clog and the tape transport wears. On an action camera, look for grit or cracks in the side door seal, and never refit a battery that bulges. No-name action cameras promising 4K for very little often record at a lower resolution and stretch it, so play a clip on a large screen.

Listing a camera with scans from its last roll:

nothing reassures someone buying a film camera more, so add a few to the photos. Give the exact model and lens, and say whether it needs a battery to fire. For a camcorder, state which tape or card it takes and whether it plays back as well as records, and include the charger, because originals for old camcorders are hard to find. Someone travelling from Huehuetenango or Cobán will want to see it working, so have a fresh battery in, and with a film camera let them open the back and fire it empty.