I tried to acquire a Contax T3 film camera in good condition last year and it did take me some efforts. I don’t just want to be an owner of T3 because T3 already has many celebrity owners like Kendall Jenner and Jisoo of Blackpink but it is such a beautiful camera. So is the quality of photography shot on T3.

I acquired my T3 in almost mint condition from a local private film camera specialist. It was not cheap but T3 in good condition (i.e. coming in full box set and original leather case, not to mention it’s the “double teeth” model if you know what it means) is just rare in the market. I jumped on the deal and brought it home, few days ahead of my trip to Europe.

Contax was a Japanese brand but its famous Carl Zeiss 35mm F2.8 lens was made in Germany. T3 is known as the most advanced compact film camera to this day and it does live up to its fame as you can tell from the shots (#nofilter) I did with Fujicolor Superia X-Tra 400 film. The color, light, and balance were all right. If I don’t tell you this is T3, you may guess it could be on a Leica?

Of course there are still many limits when you shoot with T3, compared with Leica M models. But T3 offers you a lot of freedom and gets you back to the basics — remember the No.1 golden rule of photography? Don’t over-think. Focus on the moment and catch it.

I’m very glad to have T3 as my new travel companion. I guess Kendall Jenner and Jisoo of Blackpink may also agree with me.

View more photos shot on my T3 here.