Around a year and a half ago, my grandfather passed down his Ansco Super Memar to me. Ansco - based in Binghamton, NY - merged with Agfa of Munich in 1928, allowing Ansco to compete with Kodak on an international level. It also allowed Ansco to advertise their cameras with famed German engineering - like Zeiss. The Super Memar was released in 1956, during an era when Ansco was controlled by the US government. This is the camera my grandfather bought in Germany while serving in the Army on the West Germany/East Germany border, pre-Berlin Wall. This is the camera he used to document his time in the Army, the camera he used in my father’s childhood; the camera I watched him use throughout my childhood.
“I can’t use this thing anymore. Maybe you can,” my grandfather told me. Without my grandmother or grandchildren around, I think he just doesn’t know what to photograph. It also didn’t help that the camera was broken. The focus ring and a front plate had fallen off the lens, and the range finder no longer worked.
So, I brought it to the only camera repair shop in New York I trust: Camera Doctor. It took a while to get the right replacement parts or even find the right documentation, but as always, Frank (owner/operator at Camera Doctor) didn’t let me down. A little over a month ago, I got back the Super Memar. I wouldn’t exactly say it was shiny and new - after all, it is from 1956 - but now it works and it’s mine.
The lens is a bit scratched from 62 years of wear and tear and the general operation of the camera is a bit different than what I’ve grown accustomed. Not having a built in light meter is a bit tricky, but neither does my 120mm camera - also an Ansco. I ran a roll of Kodak Gold 200 through the Super Memar and the results were a bit disappointing at first, but after it sank in, I realized it’s actually quite fun.
This camera is not for precise shooting, making a masterpiece or for run-and-gun; it requires patience. It’s for broad strokes, for candids, for taking pictures of your family; for getting a perfectly imperfect human moment. For all of the above, I’m looking forward to many adventures with this old boy.