As part of our coverage each of our reporters were asked to pick out what they considered the Best of Show product, service, or idea. In most cases it is the item that caused them to reconsider how they worked or that sparked their imagination. While each reporter had their beat, this category was open game for all, and most "crossed lines" to find their pick.
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Pick up the new Bessa R3M (or R2M--only the viewfinders differ) and it takes you back in time. At a solid 430 gm (a fraction over 15 oz) it has the heft and overall feel of a high-quality camera from the 1950s or '60s. Appropriately, it is the best Bessa yet, produced to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the founding of Voigtländer, and is engraved...

Is there still a demand for an entry-level film SLR camera? The folks at Voigtländer seem to think so, evidenced by their new VSL 43. It is very much an entry-level SLR, with a manually set (but completely battery-dependent) shutter from 1/2 sec to 1/2000 sec, flash sync at 1/60 sec, manual focusing, manual diaphragm, and manual film advance. There is a through-lens meter...

Just when you thought the R2 was the pinnacle of Voigtländer Bessa design, along came the R2A and R3A. They differ from the R2 in several ways, most notably the adoption of an electronic shutter allowing Aperture Priority automation; this is combined with a new meter. Other significant differences are a revised (and easier-to-use) rewind crank; the addition of a back lock...

This month we begin a new column with renowned "camera collector" Jason Schneider. Jason will be out there scouring camera stores, Internet sites, and camera shows to bring you the best bargains in user collectibles, recent gems, and vintage gear.
--Editor

Is there a camera enthusiast on the planet who hasn't pored over the...

In accordance with my predictions that medium format will move increasingly toward the specialist or niche market, there are no fewer than eight new panoramic rollfilm cameras since last year: one of the most active sectors in traditional silver-halide photography. In reverse alphabetical order, they are Walker/Canham, Shenhao (two models), Noblex, Gilde, and Fotoman (three...

If a picture is really brilliant, you don't have to worry about grain or sharpness or anything else: to quote Mike Gristwood, late of Ilford, "How much good would it do you to know the technical details of any one of Henri Cartier-Bresson's pictures?"

By the same token, if a picture is really bad, no amount of technical brilliance is going...