Frequently asked questions

A reflex 35 mm tout-manuel if you want to learn: you set the focus, shutter speed and aperture yourself, and you’ll understand photography within three rolls of film. A automatic compact if you mostly want to shoot without thinking about it. If in doubt, write to us: we’re happy to point you in the right direction.

For the look: direct flash, bold colours, the slight grain of small sensors. Impossible to imitate with a filter. And for the simplicity of a real camera made just for taking photos, one you can lend out at a party without worrying. The digital compacts are sent out with their battery checked.

The mount decides, and it’s listed on every product page: Canon FD, M42 screw, Pentax K, Olympus OM, Nikon F, Minolta MD… A lens only fits a body with the same mount, unless you use an adapter ring. On a recent digital mirrorless camera, on the other hand, almost all these old mounts can be fitted with the matching adapter. It’s actually an excellent way to give them a new lease of life.

Yes, and we’d encourage it. If something isn’t mentioned on the product page, write to us or get in touch via Instagram @analog_gwerz. We’d rather answer before you buy than deal with disappointment afterwards.

Yes, every camera is tried out in the workshop before it goes on sale. Film cameras are tested with a dummy roll to check the film advance. Digital cameras are tested with a card and battery fitted, right up to taking a picture. The details are on the page our testing method. What works is stated, and so are any faults.

Always. The photos on each product page show the exact camera for sale, unretouched, micro-scratches and signs of use included. It’s our number one rule: no catalogue photos.

They’re five precise grades, from ‘like new’ to ‘for parts’, each defined on the page conditions and guarantees. Above all, remember this: the condition describes the outward appearance, not how the camera works. The two are rated separately on each product page.

A camera sold not working, or only partly working, with the fault described precisely. It’s intended for repair, spare parts or decoration. The price reflects this, and nothing is hidden: it’s spelled out on the product page.

It’s a mould that grows between the lens elements, often in thread-like shapes, when a lens has been stored for a long time somewhere damp. It scatters light, lowers contrast and can attack the glass coating. It’s the first fault we look for when inspecting a lens under low-angle light, and it’s always mentioned when present.

Because it’s literally true: each camera is bought individually, tested individually and photographed individually. There’s no second one in reserve. It isn’t a sales pitch, it’s the nature of the stock: when an item goes, it doesn’t come back.

Yes, payment by bank card through a secure platform, with encryption and 3-D Secure authentication. No card details pass through the shop itself or are stored there.

Every order is carefully packed and sent with a tracking number. An old camera travels well protected: shipping is when the most equipment gets broken, and it’s not the place to cut corners. Free delivery in mainland France from €150; your basket automatically shows how much is left to reach it. For the rest of Europe and the French overseas territories, charges depend on the destination and are shown in your basket before you pay.

Available destinations and their rates are shown when you order, at the delivery step. If your destination isn’t listed and you’ve got your heart set on an item, write to us before ordering: we’ll see what’s possible.

Because we only supply what we actually have, and we say so. When the original battery, charger or case comes with the camera, they’re listed on the product page. When they don’t, that’s stated too, rather than leaving you to find out when you open the parcel.

You have the legal fourteen-day right of withdrawal from receipt, with no reason needed. The camera simply has to come back in the condition it left in, with its accessories.

Write to us with a few photos of what you see. The legal guarantee of conformity applies, and a badly described camera is our mistake, not yours: we’ll find a solution. Full details of your rights are on the page conditions and guarantees.

Yes: pellicules 35 mm et 120, colour and black & white, as well as MiniDV, Hi8 and VHS-C tapes for camcorders, in the consumables.

No, that’s not our trade. A lab near you or a mail-order lab will do a much better job than we would. Our job is to hand you a camera we know works, and that’s where it stops.

It’s common on bodies from the 1960s to the 1980s, designed for mercury batteries that have since been banned. There are two solutions: a modern replacement battery of the same size, accepting that the meter will read slightly off, or an adapter that restores the original voltage. On many fully manual SLRs, the battery only powers the light meter anyway: without it, the camera fires normally and you meter the light with an app or a handheld light meter.