I Miss Bronica

I am the proud and happy owner of a Bronica GS-1 6X7 medium format camera. Sadly it is used far less frequently than it should be, but so goes life...

A few years ago I heard that Tamron had purchased the Bronica line of cameras. As a fan and owner, I had great hope that this line would become more prominent in the medium format field. Alas, this was not to be as Tamron has killed-off the Bronica line, leaving me and many other users with 'orphan' equipment.

So, does this mean that I need to immediately go out and purchase a new line of equipment made by a current manufacturer? After some thought, the answer for me at this time is 'no'!

My GS-1 is now almost 20 years old. Thanks to a generous employee purchase program when I worked at a camera retailer, I was able to pick-up the camera and accessories for an almost affordable price.

Thinking back to that time, why did I choose the Bronica? I was much more active in the darkroom then than now and frustrated at the grainy skies and lack of apparent sharpness in my prints from 35mm. The concept of shooting onto a larger film format was intriguing, so I spent free time at the camera shop over at the medium format counter, pestering the more knowledgeable sales staff and doing some reading on various cameras available.

The reasons I chose Bronica over the other available lines were for the following reasons -- in rough order:

• 6X7 format provided the biggest image on a film format that would fit into my enlarger (farthest away from 35mm I could get!).

• Electronically timed shutter didn't require the regular 'exercise' of mechanical shutters in other lines (handy for the occasional weekend photographer).

• Bronica's GS-1 was smaller and lighter than the other 6X7 format camera available (very nice for the field shooting I usually do).

• Excellent choice of additional lenses for (then) future purchase.

• SLR rather than TLR and film-plane flash metering

• The distributor had a great employee discount available.
  

Sadly, things have never worked out that I could purchase additional lenses for my Bronica. But I have been very pleased with the results of the few hundred rolls of film that have gone through the camera, even with its normal lens. I have shot weddings, products, book jackets, dramatic shorelines, blazing deserts and mountain peaks over the last 20 years with only one trip to the repair shop for a very minor fix.

As with any system, there have been a few frustrations with the GS-1. No one made a digital back or adapter for the camera that I am aware of -- not that I could have afforded it anyway, but it would have been nice to know one was available. I really got frustrated when film labs would occasionally cross-process my film. And my only other frustration was that sometimes the frame spacing varied on the film, requiring some care when cutting film for storage. Otherwise, for me the GS-1 has been a wonderful companion on a number of memorable trips.

So, now that I have an 'orphan' camera where new lenses cannot be purchased, what do I do? For the time being, nothing. Should I need additional lenses, eBay is always an option. Should I need further repairs, the local repair shop still works on Bronicas. And should I want to wander through the mountains trying to capture the beauty around me, the camera still works wonderfully well, provides huge transparencies and works flawlessly... so long as I remember to shut the power off so the battery doesn't drain!