the unofficial Cosina-Voigtlander User Community

Want to know who Chii Fei is? Take a look at the picture above. No, that's not him. That’s the head of a multi-million dollar optical goods company. That just leaves the one with glasses. Yep, that's him! He’s the Voigtlander distributor for the Singapore and Malaysian territories. Chii Fei is somewhat unique among the Cosina distributors in that before Voigtlander he wasn’t in any professional end of photography at all. He was simply a huge photo-enthusiast. He still is. In fact, he doesn’t even consider himself a retailer at all. Make any sense? Best to let him explain it, then.

Q: Can you give us a little bit of your history as a retailer?
A: I’m not so much of a retailer. More of an end user providing a service to other photo enthusiasts. Back in mid 2006, I wanted to get a Bessa camera, but couldn’t find any dealers in Singapore. The nearest dealer selling was in HK. Hence, I saw an opportunity over here. However, film was a dying thing, but I knew that there were many people like me, frustrated with the advancement in digital photography. Digital camera systems costing over S$5000 couldn’t even match pictures taken with S$200 cameras. Well, I decided to put in some money, brought in the entire range of Voigtlander cameras and lenses. Then, the only consolation I had was: If I couldn’t sell any, at least I get to own the full range of Voigtlander cameras and lenses. ?

Q: How long have you been a distributor of Cosina-Voigtlander products?
A: Coming to 1 year.

Q: What made you want to become a distributor of Voigtlander cameras, lenses, and accessories?
A: Just wanted to provide a service to photo enthusiasts like me.

Q: Are you a photographer or photographic items collector as a hobby? If so, where do your interests lie (i.e. landscapes, pre-war Leicas, etc…)?
A: I like to take pictures. Human subjects and scenery. I like to visit places. In fact, it’s my dream to travel round the world just to take pictures of people and their home. And if possible, make them smile.

Q: In the time that you have been in the “photography business”, how have you seen the perceptions and use of rangefinder type cameras change in your region?
A: The digital M8 did introduce many more people to the RF world. Before that, not many people heard of RF or Leica. From a pure SLR user who grew up in FE2, I must say, RF opens both eyes to the world of photography. In the past, I thought photography is only seen through the left eye. To the SLR users, RF will definitely open new frontiers. Hard to explain in words “HOW” to a non-RF user, he needs to hold one RF camera body to fully understand why.

Q: How would you characterize the current state of traditional photography in your region?
A: Film will die one day. Just like any technology. It will be taken over by something newer, sexier, cheaper and more efficient. But the fundamentals of photography will still remain. Be it people taking it as an art form, documentary, expression, or pornography, the fundamentals still remain the same. Whether shooting with film or digital or any future technologies, it’s still recording an image on a medium to be stored for archival or present it on another larger medium or different medium.

People choose to use film because the current level of technology couldn’t provide what enthusiasts want. Even with the USD5000+ M8, pressing the shutter is not as instant as firing on M6. A split second makes a world of difference in the photography world. That’s the frustration!

One day, when the digital reach a stage where it’s as fast as the film mechanism and it cost cheaper, then film might definitely die. Right now, as long as the full frame sensor cameras stay above USD2500, film will still have some place for survival.

Q: How do you see the digital and traditional photographic mediums co-evolving in the future?
A: In the next 5 years, film will still continue to survive. But it will eventually become history slowly. There will not be incentives for major manufacturers to continue a money losing business. But there might be new smaller companies who will buy over the technology and continue serving enthusiasts like us. I believe Ilford continue to do what they are doing as long as enthusiast like us stay faithful film & B&W. But cost will go up, to maintain a small group of die hards. In fact today, it has been considered a niche.

Q: How are you involved in the traditional photographic community in your region?
A: I regret to say that I do not do as much as I would like to due to work and family commitments.

Q: How are you involved in the traditional photographic community-at-large?
A: Providing equipment and consultation when people need information.

Q: If you could ask Cosina to produce one product under the Voigtlander badge, what would it be?
A: A digital RF body. I know many people are hoping for this. But before it can happen, full frame sensors need to be affordable and firmware needs to be stable. Cosina have always been a lenses & mechanical manufacturer. To venture into digital, they require a huge amount of capital and collaboration with someone who is strong in the digital photography world. Today, there are only a few players who can afford such huge amount of R&D budget. Until full frame sensors become affordable and stable, I don’t see a DRF by Cosina very soon.

You can visit Chii Fei online at http://chiifcameras.com