Tom Caldwell
New Member
Missed the RD1 myself. I remember at least "thinking" about it then having a quiet choke about the price. Was obviously not alone. The same went for the LC1 aka DL-2. No way anyone "with brains" could justify the entry price even for the cheaper LC1 which only lacked some metal knobs and the famous mark applied at the Panasonic works. From memory the LC1 was AUD$2,800 at the time. The suddenly they had a run out at $1,400 and I made myself afford one, and then they were gone. Many, including myself, waited anxiously for the "replaceable lensed" LC2 that never was. Those that missed the run-out of the LC1 or simply passed on the LC1 because the LC2 could not be far away missed out big time (sorry Tim).
Then Panasonic made the very forgettable L1, I am glad that common sense got the better of me there.
For every cult camera there are others that bombed on the market and are therefore rare but could not possibly be sought after other than for their "rare" factor. Reports from owners of the L1 at the time reported a high degree of satisfaction with their purchase. Personally I was never jealous.
Perhaps the definition has to be of a camera that was not sold in great numbers but is still revered and sought after. Perhaps some of these cameras have not yet created their cult and that in order to do so some outstanding game-changing unique feature that they introduced has to be recognised. The final seal of a to-be-cult model is it is one that despite it's extraordinary advantages the manufacturer stopped making them and did not release an upgrade. Perhaps the GRD, for instance, might fail this test. But to draw a fine line - the GRD/GRDII were not precisely upgraded with the GRDIII/GRDIV as the latter cameras are much more complex than the former and although in a similar sized box the GRD is not directly superseded by the GRDIII. Only a GRD enthusiast could explain why. So the GRD might make the "no longer made" test by a whisker.
To put a case for the almost unknown Samsung NV7: this camera was the Rolls-Royce of the Samsung line at the time and probably priced at a level that no one was prepared to pay for "a Samsung". Innovative context driven proximity sensitive button menu system was so easy and intiuitive to use and a body built to standards that have rarely been equalled. Great lens and 7x zoom. Very slim body but the lens was bulbous when "everybody" was looking for a flat-pack compact. Took/takes great images. Quirks were a hardly good enough battery life and a three-level focus system - one normal, a macro, and a super-macro with no automatic change-over. Which meant that even focusing at 3 metres would not work until you figured out that you have to switch to macro. Once understood, no problem.
Again Tom was quick to snap up one when Samsung dumped their remaining unsold stocks of this camera at a price that was irresistable. However one man waving (raving) hardly a cult might make?
I seem to recollect a lot of good talk about a Sony(?) R1(?) - I am not sure of the model designation, but it was quite large with a big zoom and had the lcd on the top of the camera. Not something I ever fancied myself (liked the top mounted lcd - not so sure about the size) but from the raves of owners at the time they sounded happy-chappies.
In the digital camera world surely these cameras will eventually fade and die simply because their batteries no longer work and the manufacturers in their brilliance dictate that many, if not most, of these cameras had their own unique batteries. Even batteries of similar size and capacity often have unique terminal keying.
Tom
Then Panasonic made the very forgettable L1, I am glad that common sense got the better of me there.
For every cult camera there are others that bombed on the market and are therefore rare but could not possibly be sought after other than for their "rare" factor. Reports from owners of the L1 at the time reported a high degree of satisfaction with their purchase. Personally I was never jealous.
Perhaps the definition has to be of a camera that was not sold in great numbers but is still revered and sought after. Perhaps some of these cameras have not yet created their cult and that in order to do so some outstanding game-changing unique feature that they introduced has to be recognised. The final seal of a to-be-cult model is it is one that despite it's extraordinary advantages the manufacturer stopped making them and did not release an upgrade. Perhaps the GRD, for instance, might fail this test. But to draw a fine line - the GRD/GRDII were not precisely upgraded with the GRDIII/GRDIV as the latter cameras are much more complex than the former and although in a similar sized box the GRD is not directly superseded by the GRDIII. Only a GRD enthusiast could explain why. So the GRD might make the "no longer made" test by a whisker.
To put a case for the almost unknown Samsung NV7: this camera was the Rolls-Royce of the Samsung line at the time and probably priced at a level that no one was prepared to pay for "a Samsung". Innovative context driven proximity sensitive button menu system was so easy and intiuitive to use and a body built to standards that have rarely been equalled. Great lens and 7x zoom. Very slim body but the lens was bulbous when "everybody" was looking for a flat-pack compact. Took/takes great images. Quirks were a hardly good enough battery life and a three-level focus system - one normal, a macro, and a super-macro with no automatic change-over. Which meant that even focusing at 3 metres would not work until you figured out that you have to switch to macro. Once understood, no problem.
Again Tom was quick to snap up one when Samsung dumped their remaining unsold stocks of this camera at a price that was irresistable. However one man waving (raving) hardly a cult might make?
I seem to recollect a lot of good talk about a Sony(?) R1(?) - I am not sure of the model designation, but it was quite large with a big zoom and had the lcd on the top of the camera. Not something I ever fancied myself (liked the top mounted lcd - not so sure about the size) but from the raves of owners at the time they sounded happy-chappies.
In the digital camera world surely these cameras will eventually fade and die simply because their batteries no longer work and the manufacturers in their brilliance dictate that many, if not most, of these cameras had their own unique batteries. Even batteries of similar size and capacity often have unique terminal keying.
Tom
