Zenith EM

I read a book recently entitled 'Lee Frost's Simple Art of Black and White Photography'. The introduction attracted me to the book because I am a similar age to the author (well I am slightly older but I won't go into detail) and we both owned the same SLR as teenagers - a Zenith EM. It was well known as a basic camera and for its good lens, but the main advantage was that it was a cheap. There was a simple light meter built into the camera but you didn't have to worry about buying batteries because there weren't any.

The lack of automation meant that anyone who used this camera had to know about light readings, exposure, shutter speeds and apertures. You had to know the basic physics of photography. If you didn't then there was no point in buying an SLR. I used to make jokes about one day they would invent a camera you could just point and shoot. They were around but they were more expensive, and if you bought one of them then you didn't need to understand how the camera worked.

Happy snapping