Argus C3 AKA "The Brick"
I found this camera on Kijiji. The owner was really great and explained some origins and how to use the camera. He was a little shocked by my interest in an old dingy camera & asked me what I planned to do with it. So I told him I was going to shoot with it. Again he was shocked.
I gave it a little exterior cleaning, fired fired a role and saw some potential. First I calibrated the rangefinder, then an interior cleaning. The leatherette was so dried it had shrunken over the years.
Behind the front plate
I tried to cut new fabric based on the old peel. I should have made a proper stencil, but this was my first attempt.
A previous owner had re-glued the original leatherette back on with super adhesive. It wasn't easy to remove.
But it looked kind of bad-ass.
One day I will redo it with a thinner material & paint the knobs but for now I enjoy the colour.
If you're wondering how it shoots... It renders sharp focus and smooth transition to bokeh, with a little swirly effect using wide apertures and close focus. A very classic camera look. I'd love to shoot a retro theme with this neat little brick. Two examples below:
