My Unexpected Leap into Medium Format: The Agfa Billy I Story
Why I chose a budget-friendly Agfa Billy I and what it means for my photography adventures.
My return to analog has taken me down all kinds of rabbit holes.
One of them was right there on my bucket list: shooting medium format.
To be honest, it’s been a bit frustrating. I had my eye on one of those "modern" medium format cameras—Pentax, Fuji—but the prices are outrageous. I even looked into Vivian Maier’s weapon of choice, the Rolleiflex. Same story: beautiful gear, equally painful price tag.
I started losing faith in the idea altogether. Dropping that kind of cash without knowing if I’d even like the format? Nah.
Then, somewhere along the way—I honestly can’t remember how—I stumbled onto a whole new category: the old folding cameras. I started digging around and ended up finding the Agfa brand. Solid reputation, beautiful German design, and just obscure enough to keep the prices low.
One late-night eBay scroll (as usual), and there it was: a listing for an Agfa Billy I. After a quick detour to YouTube for some research, I jumped into the auction. A week later, it was mine.
The bellows were my biggest worry—those are often the first things to fail in a folder—but the seller said it was recently serviced and in perfect condition. Honestly? It felt like a steal.
I paid $35 for it.
And another $35 for shipping.
Still worth every penny.
As soon as it arrived, I loaded up a roll of Kentmere 400 and hit the street.
First Impressions
All I can say is: wow. The quality really lives up to the hype. The amount of detail you get on a 6×9 negative is just ridiculous. It’s a different league.
Downside? (Not for me.) You only get eight shots per roll.
But hey, it makes every frame count.
The Main Attraction
There’s this giant building in Mexico City called Edificio Canadá, right on Insurgentes Sur 300. It’s shaped like a massive “V” and it’s absolutely striking. Seeing it from the ground level is something else.
I tried to back up enough to get it all in the frame—but no luck. It’s that big. Still, it made for the perfect subject to test this camera.
And that’s it, all eight pictures in their glory.
I don’t believe in “test rolls”. I always try to find something cool to shoot because I have too much faith in my cameras (haha).
What do you think?
Tech Specs — The Agfa Billy I
This little guy is from the 1950s.
Simple, no-nonsense, and kind of charming.
Shutter tops out at 1/200s. Slower speeds are 1/20s and 1/50s.
The Agfa Agnar 105 mm lens goes from ƒ/6.3 to ƒ/22.
“Compact” and portable
Retro feel, easy to operate
Zone focusing (no rangefinder).
Loading film wasn’t totally intuitive, but once I got the hang of it, everything worked like a charm.
As far as I understand, mine came with VARIO shutter, but there are other models more advanced (read: more shutter speeds).
Also, there’s the Solinar lens that claims to be faster (ƒ/4.5) and sharper (but I believe my Agnar is good enough. Too much sharpness will make it seem digital. Eww).
Tech Specs - The Film
Roll: Kentmere 400
Lightmeter: Light Meter Pro (iPhone)
Shutter speed: 1/200 for all pictures (or risk trepidation)
Post-process: Lightroom CC to enhance contrast.
Do You Shoot Medium Format?
I’m sold. The format is amazing. But it’s also different. It handles differently, and it’s a bit of a commitment.
I don’t have a medium format scanner yet, and I’ll admit—I’m lazy when it comes to dropping off rolls at the lab.
(If you’ve been following along, you’ll know I’ve started developing and scanning at home this year.)
So for now, medium format is going to be my “special occasions” setup. But I’m glad I took the risk.
Wow man what great photos! Can't beat that quality for the price. I want to see more from this thing.
So many bangers! Yeah, medium format has something special about it. People also become more friendly for street photography because they see an old camera. I think it has less camera shake due to the larger format, so I wouldn’t worry too much about it.