My first SLR. Took some of my best photographs with this camera. Sold it back in the day to buy an olympus system.

I bought one of these with a couple of lenses in a charity shop around 25+ years ago. Unfortunately I didn’t know much about photography, and there was no internet at the time, and it ended up shoved in a cupboard and somewhere along the line it went missing. I’ve just won one on eBay for £1.99 (minus lens), I’m gonna have another go and actually use it this time! Excellent video thank you

Hi Gideon, my Praktica is a Praktica VLC2. It is basically a comparatively very favourable alternative to the Nikon F2 and F3, the Canon F-1 series, the Pentax LX and the Minolta XK and Xm. Interchangeable lenses and, above all, interchangeable viewfinder attachments with TTL exposure metering directly through the lens, means that with the Praktica VLC series (VLC, VLC2 and VLC3) you can even carry out TTL exposure metering with a light well viewfinder without any problems, as the light meter is not connected to the viewfinder attachment, as is the case with the Nikon F2, for example. And since the VLC models used the long 4.5 volt mercury batteries at that time, you can nowadays easily obtain adapters into which three LR44 button cell batteries are inserted, including a ten-pack of LR44 button cell batteries, cheaply on the major sales platforms. My Praktica works perfectly, I tested it just last week with an Agfa APX100 and the horrendous amount of money I would have spent on a Nikon F2 or even Nikon F3 can be invested in film, processing and possibly a Pentax K2 body and possibly one or two other mechanical lenses. Just to give you an idea, a Praktica VLC2 with all viewfinder attachments, one or two lenses, the special hot shoe, the original camera strap, a matching clip-on eyecup, a nice matching leather camera bag from the GDR photo bag manufacturer AKO and including the aforementioned battery adapter, I paid a good €200, which is around €200 for the camera in the cheapest case and around €350 in the most expensive case. If you want the same complete package for a Nikon F2, with a lot of luck and in good working order, you might be looking at €800, but more likely €1200 or more. Maybe the Praktica VLC series would also be something you could have a look at. I definitely don't need any more competitor models from the Japanese manufacturers. Greetings from Germany Lutz

I bought on ebay and it's mint condition! I love it!

I've had a few of these but my inner 'camera-snob' compelled me to sell them. They never broke, took great pictures and were simple to use. The shutter button was so instinctively placed, I never understood why it wasn't adopted more widely. I might buy another now I've watched this... Lol ;)

My firsts SLR was a Praktica Nova 2, with the same lens as you have. (That was in the 90s) still have it and it’s still working fine. Current slr camera is a Nikon F2,

Great camera. Probably #1 Camera among Socialist Soviet countries. My father had one. I still have it's long lens.❤

I have 5 mtl's of various models. With the loading that small plate that the film has to be tucked behind can be removed by undoing one screw. Note that there is small washer to remove behind the plate. With it removed I find the loading to be much easier and quicker and seems to cause no problems at all. Just line up the sprocket holes and wind on once before shutting the back. Much easier. Well done for making these videos, there is something about old mechanical cameras

got a MTL50 recently and your video is helpful.

The MTL3 I bought in the 80's - also the first proper SLR I owned - is sitting on a shelf upstairs. :) Still have it, need to start using it again.

MTL 3 Was my first SLR as well. Also Got a bc1, very similar to your bx20 - b series praktica cameras are a lot of fun, compact and reasonable bang for the buck, although I gather build quality for progressively worse as the DDR's economy started to flounder.

Nice video . I’m quite fond of the old Prakticas. The film didn’t do too badly considering. Some of those mail order films and “own brand “ films as well as stuff like scotch were made by Ferrania which is pretty good .

Good video. My first 35mm camera as well with a carl zeiss jena 50mm lens. Must have traded it in all those years ago for a Canon AE1 Program. Wish I had held onto to it now so it would be among my collection of cameras from my past.

Hi from the Continent.🙂I started to get a liking of these analoge SLRs again and got a Practice EE3 (without a lens) vor 30€ last week. I was a bit worried first when it arrived despite the seller had it advertised as "working". But it does work, there is a M42 from my late father's Praktica FX4 (which he had bought at the beginning of the 70'ies as a Porst brand) in the house I could use it for testing. The thing works fine! So I decided on getting a Pentacon Praktica "Electric" 2.8/28 mm lens for it which came in a set together with a Pentacon Practica 2.8/135 mm. This one is standard, non-"electric", but of course works with the Praktica EE3 in manual mode as well, just there is no electrical connecting between the camera and the lens. I learnt the Praktica EE2/EE3 models are fairly rare as they were not produced in high numbers compared to the rest of the Pentacon L-series. And there is also a Pentacon Praktica Bx 20 with a couple of lenses here. Looking forward to use the thing for some analog photography, I have a collection of analog Canons and Nikons (all with lenses) for some time but never used them because I had hardly any time for such things, which has changed recently ... 🙂

Hi Gideon, just subscribed and enjoying the content. The Praktica brand is so underestimated, it gets lumped in with "Soviet" cameras. However these were very innovative cameras compared to their Russian counterparts and came from the centre of the German camera industry, Dresden & Jena.

My first camera as well. Mine had the Zeiss 50mm. I really wanted a Pentax K1000 but the Practika with the 50 & a 110mm Zeiss were the same price as the Pentax so guess which Santa brought?

I got Gifted one when a friend was vacating their home. It's in prestine condition.

Used one Zeiss lens good

Has light metter