Have you been looking for a Leica camera that also shows the depth of your love for the Star Wars universe? Japan Camera Hunter might just have the cameras for you…
Tokyo-based camera seller Bellamy Hunt has modified two Leica M-mount cameras in colour schemes inspired by George Lucas’s space operas, both of which are available to buy from his online shop.
The cameras are a Leica M3 inspired by the bounty hunter Boba Fett and the other is a Leica M4-2 with a paint scheme that pays homage to the Imperial stormtroopers.
“The custom Star Wars cameras were a collaboration with Gray Mountain Industries (GMI), a good friend of mine from Hong Kong,” Hunt told Kosmo Foto. “He’s a massive Star Wars nerd and a serious camera collector, which makes for a perfect creative partner.”
Hunt says he had previously worked with GMI on two cameras to mark Japan Camera Hunter’s 10th anniversary.
“We wanted to work together to make some new custom cameras that are different from the usual fare, black paint and so on. Very quickly, we landed on the idea of a Star Wars theme. GMI is way deeper into that universe than I am, and he had a strong vision for a Boba Fett–styled camera.
“But we didn’t just want to paint something green and red and call it a day. It had to be inspired by the original trilogy: authentic, detailed, and thoughtfully executed. That’s why we included a collector’s card and a Lego figure with each piece: we wanted to create a full collector’s experience, not just a custom camera. It’s our tribute to one of the greatest characters in the Star Wars universe.”
Hunt told Kosmo Foto that he wanted to make “new custom cameras that are different from the usual fare.
“We wanted to create a collector experience.”
Hunt said the pain scheme is done by Kanto Camera, which he calls “the best in the business”.
He said: “JCH and Kanto camera have had a very long relationship. They created all of the special custom cameras we have made for clients in the past, and the JCH 10-year anniversary cameras. I trust them to not only present the highest quality work, but to also surprise me with interesting new techniques and ideas. They made this camera for me many years ago with only a very loose brief and the result was beautiful and also quite polarising.”
Hunt added: “These cameras stand alone. They are unique. And I understand that they are not to everyone’s tastes, but each to their own and they have their fans. There are a lot of repainted Leica cameras out there, but I think the ones we have created stand out from the crowd, not matter how you feel about them.”
He added that if he were to choose to keep one of the Star Wars Leicas it would be the Stormtrooper version. “I have a real thing for white cameras. I guess because they are so non-conformist. There are very few white cameras as they don’t really make sense, they were some special-edition cameras like the Minolta Dynax 404si and the Pentax 645AFN. I like the clean lines of a white camera, and I am not about to start shooting in a war zone, so why not have a camera that is a bit more personalised?”
Hunt added that he has ideas for other themed cameras “we’d love to bring to life. But the process takes time, and there’s a fair bit of investment involved. It’s a slow burn, but we’re not done yet. Keep an eye out – there’s more to come.”
I'm a New Zealander who has been living in London since the mid-1990s, shooting film seriously since the year 2000. Kosmo Foto was launched in 2012 and has since become a film brand, with the release of my first films Kosmo Foto Mono 35mm (2017) and Kosmo Foto Mono 120 (2019).
I’m doing everything I can to promote film photography in the 21st Century, and help it survive and thrive. If you want to write something for Kosmo Foto, please drop me a line at foto.dowling@gmail.com.
