Buying Guide Japan Camera Shopping Guide: The Whole Trip, Start to Finish
This page is a map of everything on this site.
Quick introduction, in case this is your first article here: I work i...
2026-08
Buying Guide 
Buying Guide Your Camera from Japan Arrived Damaged — What to Do First
You open the box, lift out the camera, and something is wrong. The viewfinder is cracked. Or the lens rattles. Or the s...
Buying Guide That 6-Month Warranty on Your Used Camera: Does It Mean Anything Once You Fly Home?
Picture the moment at the register. You have just bought a clean used lens in Tokyo, and the staff hands you a slip of ...
Buying Guide How to Find a Specific Camera in Tokyo (Check the Shelves Before You Fly)
Let's say you already know what you want. Not "an old film camera" — a specific one. A Nikon FM2, black, working meter....
Buying Guide Closed on Wednesdays: What I Learned About Japanese Camera Shop Hours
On August 1, 2026, I spent a Saturday walking a route through Akihabara's used camera shops — seven stops on my list. M...
Buying Guide Getting Your Camera Home in One Piece — Packing Lessons From the Shipping Desk
So you did it. Somewhere in Tokyo — maybe at the end of a long camera day in Akihabara — you found the one, paid, and w...
Shop Guide Nisshin Camera in Akihabara: A Small Showcase Shop That (I’m Told) Turns Into a Bar at Night
Every other shop from my Akihabara camera day got a clear label: the polished one, the cheap junk floor, the self-servi...
Shop Guide 2nd BASE by Sanpou Camera, Akihabara: The Used Camera Shop Under the Tracks
The sign at the door reads "2nd BASE by sanpou camera" — it is run by Sanpou Camera, a Japanese used gear dealer. Street level, under the train tracks, with English signs at the entrance and cameras you can pick up. The shop I would send a first-timer to in Akihabara.
Shop Guide Kitamura in Akihabara: A Big Chain’s Junk Camera Floor, Marked by a TAX FREE Sign
Kitamura (カメラのキタムラ) is one of the biggest camera chains in Japan — the red logo is everywhere, from shopping streets to...
Buying Guide Lemon Camera in Akihabara: English Condition Ranks, and a 3-Item Junk Rule
If you have searched for "Lemon Camera Tokyo", you probably found the Shinjuku shop. But there is a second one, in Akih...