Alchemic Photography is more than an 'online boot-sale'. We care about our customers, and we care about what we sell. So all cameras are carefully tested, whether classic vintage, or just old. Many are serviced/reconditioned, and all sold with real guarantees.
Hi,
my name is Gordon. I was born in Carlisle. (We all have our cross to
bear!)
At
eighteen I bought my first SLR, a Pentax K1000. It cost £130
in 1976. I still have it, and use it regularly. The following year I
got a job in a local secondary school. Officially as a photographer,
but actually spent more time designing and building science
demonstrations on the Heath Robinson principle. (Including a crude
radio telescope!) You know the sort of thing; looks great, works fine,
but you wouldn't want to stand too close!
After
a while helping out at a small recording studio, (If you think that's
glamorous, I suggest you try it sometime!) at age twenty seven, I
entered Brighton Polytechnic (Brighton University now) as a mature
student, gaining a Degree in Physics and Electronics. I also joined the
photographic club.
It has to be said, not an awful lot of photography actually happened in
the photographic club. It seemed to be mostly about taking the minibus
on 'photographic excursions' to public houses in Kent. (Why Kent
I don't know, I can't actually say the beer is any better!)
Nevertheless, it got me access to a darkroom.
A
while ago after working for several years as an electronics designer, I
decided to start my own small business designing electronics. But
business has proved slow, and you can only make so many cold calls in a
day, especailly when the answer is usually a poltite no! (And sometimes not so polite!). However, visits to the website are always welcomed, as this will help to prevent it being swamped out of searches by big businesses who often are not even selling anything relevant!
I
have therefore been spending quite a lot of time indulging my other
hobbies, which include repairing and maintaining cameras, and other
photographic gear.
It
struck me that there are a lot of very good cameras out there, only
requiring a little care and attention, and available on eBay. I have
now quite a collection of Cameras, mostly Pentax SLR's but a couple of
medium format cameras, and a smattering of compacts.
It
also struck me that a lot of very good cameras were being scrapped when
there were a lot of people still wanting good film cameras, and a
little light turned on in my head. Why not indulge my hobby, rescue
these poor abused cameras, put them in order, and offer them to those
who would really appreciate them. And if I make a little for myself
along the way, that's not a bad thing.
(I
should point out that despite reports to the contrary, film is not yet
dead.)
I also run a website where you can have a look at the insides of a few cameras, and see what it is that I do which makes my cameras that little bit special.
Also, you can find out how to do some repairs yourslef, and some thoughts on subjects such as the dread lens fungus!
Thanks...Gordon
PS:
I also have an HNC in software engineering, read science fiction, like
fireworks far
more than is at all healthy, play electric guitar, (not very well despite what my other half says!) and once met Terry
Pratchet.
Praise: Nice vintage 35mm camera. Exactly as described. Many thanks
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I have a simple
philosophy as regards selling and returns, and that is do do whatever
it takes to keep my buyers happy.
Happy customers are the
best advert that money can't buy! If my buyer is pleased with his or
her purchase, then they are likely to come back again. If they are very
pleased they are likely to tell their freinds, and may even post a link
to my sales/shop on an internet forum singing my praises. (That's a
hint by the way! copy this link!)
So I like to keep my buyers happy. How can I do that?
By treating them just like I would like to be treated!
(That sounds like common sense doesn't it? And it probabbly is given that the most significant characteristic of 'common sense' is it's rarity!)
So....
If you have a problem with any item I sell you, you can return it for a refund.
There does not even have to be anything wrong with it! All I ask is that you give the item a fair trial, and if you don't like it, (or you have bought it by mistake!) so you have seven days in which to contact me and return the item. When I get it back in good condition, (and with all the bits I sent) I will refund the full amount paid.
If you do return an item as unwanted, I think it is fair that you pay the return postage, and use a signed-for and insured service. After all I have already spent the postage to send it, and I won't get that back!
If the item is faulty or damaged, then you shoud contact me for a refund. I will probably want you to return the item first, but you will in this case be refunded the return postage.
Also, many items are covered by guarantees. You should check my returns and guarantees page for a more detailed explanation, but I think they are fair.
Some people ask me why I don't take more care to 'protect' myself from 'fraudulent buyers'. The answer is simply that in my experience genuine fraud buyers are so rare that it is barely unnecesary. In fact, I have carefully calculated the cost of taking such precautions, and compared that with the losses I have made due to suspected cheating buyers. It worked out that even the cheapest precautions cost ten times more than I lost!
I'm no fool. I know that some buyers will try and cheat me, and sometimes I will take extra precuations, when I think I need to, and I'm not likely to send an expensive item without proper insurance etc. But that's usually to cover the risk of loss or damage in the post.
Basically, (despite economic theories which assume the opposite) the vast majority of people like to be fair, and will not try to cheat every time they see an oppurtunity. (There are people who will. They are called phsycopaths, and I don't think they are all that common!)
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