Well, I'm sure you were expecting a post about brand new equipment... I recently got a new lens, battery grip, and more memory cards, but we're not going to talk about any of that today.

Instead we'll talk about a Christmas present I didn't buy for myself. Let me preface that with a little explanation. Anya and I made a decision when we got married that we would do gifts every day from our anniversary (on 12/15) through to Christmas. So today was day two of our gifts, and Anya surprised me with this little beauty!

That's an Anscoflex II TLR camera that I will be able to use for more TTV Photography (see more: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8). So it gets to go along with my other vintage cameras.

The Anscoflex started production in 1954, but I'm having a hard time finding more details about it, but I am looking forward to building a new contraption for it and getting some TTV shots with it. I like that it came with the case, and I really love the super large viewfinder and the sliding cover for it, but I can't stand the vinyl neck-strap, so that'll be coming off. After unwrapping it, I instantly started playing with the knobs and shutter, and fired off a couple frames before realizing that there was still film inside! So I might have taken a couple shots of our Christmas tree, but either way I'll have to go get the film developed (along with the roll from one of the other TLR's we've found).

This was a really wonderful gift, but I promise I'll try to get to the new equipment reviews soon.

- Bill