About this episode

Alex Luyckx interviews David Smith about his unique collection of microscopes and its connection to film photography.

Today, Alex is joined by David Smith, a Biology professor and researcher at Western University in London, Ontario. While we mostly talk about cameras on the show, David has something unique: microscopes. As many history nerds know, many camera companies we know and love today began producing optics, including microscopes. Dr Smith came by this affinity for collecting honestly, as his mom is an antique dealer. David talks about his microscopes, how he started the collection, and how it led to film photography and a fantastic collection of Leica rangefinders, lenses, and medium-format cameras. You can find Dr Smith online.Instagram https://www.instagram.com/arrogantgenome/?hl=en

People in this episode

Host: Alex Luyckx

Guest: David Smith

Topics covered

• microscopes
• film photography
• camera collection
• optics history
• Leica rangefinders

Keywords

• microscopes
• film photography
• camera collection
• Leica
• optics

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Western University, Leica

Places: London, Ontario

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• Episode 222 - Pirates of the Leicaflex · April 28, 2026 · 55 min
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• Episode 220 - Life of the (Third) Party · March 24, 2026 · 1h 22m
• Episode 219 - Best Before · March 10, 2026 · 37 min
• Episode 217 - 51 Years of K · February 10, 2026 · 51 min
• Episode 216 - Pilgrim's Progress · January 27, 2026 · 34 min

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