Zaidmade film case review (and other photography paraphernalia)

By Hamish Gill

Zaid who makes the Zaidmade leather goods contacted me a few months ago asking me if I’d like to try one of his leather film cases. Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, I bit his hand off! This is a brief run down of my experiences with said case…

When the case first I arrived, I must admit I was a little surprised by the size; it’s a fair bit bigger than I expected. Rather than snugly fitting 5 rolls next to each other, there is room for 6 rolls stood upright, with a further 3 on their sides on top. I was initially a little disappointed by this, though I quite quickly overcame this sense of disappointment when I realised what this extra space allowed me.

I’d recently started using a Lumu light meter (review coming soon), and have been using a little 28mm viewfinder with my M3 more than I had been. On top of this I often find myself carrying little bits of sticky paper for recoding the DX codes of my film, a little pen knife with scissors for cutting the stick paper, a little lens cloth, the odd battery, business cards… You know the sort of stuff – trinkets, paraphernalia, photography ancillaries; all the stuff that usually rattles around in the pocket of a bigger bag, but never feels like it quite has a home.

Well now – it least in my life – it feels like it does. The Zaid made case has become a pocket for all such stuffs. A pocket that I can chuck in my bag or pocket when I go out that keeps all these things more readily to hand. And for that reason alone I really like it!

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A quality hand made thing

Of course, aside from its function, it’s also a very nice thing in itself. I like leather, I have a leather wallet, leather shoes, leather camera strap. It’s a tactile material that feels quite often like there couldn’t be a more durable or suitable material for the purpose. My leather belt – though somewhat tatty – shows no real sign of breaking, and that’s something I wear every day, have done for a decade, and that’s no exaggeration. This leather case feels quite like it could last just as long without any trouble. The material feels good quality, and the construction shows no sign of weakness, despite me pulling at it. Even the little fastener is nice. It would have probably been cheaper to just use a little chrome fastener, but instead the choice was made to use a faux-aged fastener instead. It’s a small detail, but it’s those sorts of choices that make hand made products like this for me!

So that’s that, a lovely thing that’s become 100% useful to me. If you’re a carrier of paraphernalia like me, I can without reservation recommend one! If I only have one reservation, it would still be the slightly large size – but of course the beauty of hand made products like this is that you can always ask the maker if they will make a half size one? Zaid?

If you are interested in Zaid’s products, check out Zaid’s instagram, and if you want to order one of your own – just drop him an email!

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About The Author

By Hamish Gill
I started taking photos at the age of 9. Since then I've taken photos for a hobby, sold cameras for a living, and for a little more than decade I've been a professional photographer and, of course, weekly contributor to 35mmc.
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Comments

Nick Clark on Zaidmade film case review (and other photography paraphernalia)

Comment posted: 24/05/2016

I've been eyeing off Zaid's stuff on Instagram for a while, looks fantastic! I get what you say about the extra space being handy, but I do wish he made one that snugly fit 5 rolls side by side...
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jeremy north on Zaidmade film case review (and other photography paraphernalia)

Comment posted: 24/05/2016

It seems pointless bulk to me. No serious film user would need such a thing and the kind of film poseur who would like such a thing wouldn't be shooting more than a few frames, let alone rolls.

Still, a gift horse is a gift horse.
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Hamish Gill replied:

Comment posted: 24/05/2016

By this merit, the implication is that I'm not a serious film user? I carry this thing in my bag with me every day, and have done since I received it

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jeremy north replied:

Comment posted: 24/05/2016

Not at all Hamish. Just that if you have to carry a bag to put it in it seems superfluous. If it had a means to attach a strap or belt, it would be ideal, thus negating the need for the camera bag. His Instagram page shows more of his lovely leather goods. The roll film pouch looks even better!

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Hamish Gill replied:

Comment posted: 24/05/2016

It also fits in my pocket :)

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jeremy north replied:

Comment posted: 24/05/2016

... but so will the film etc. or a cheap nylon bag for that matter. Come on H 'fess up, you are justifying using a lovely handmade leather product because it fits with your rustic aesthetic values rather than for its practicality. :-) Perhaps you can blag a freebie from Morgan cars just down the road from you, and recommend it as an ideal transport for photographer and gear. Ash chassis, leather interior and V8.

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Hamish Gill replied:

Comment posted: 24/05/2016

Here you go - the tatty film JCH film box that used to live in my bag that it replaced. You can see a bunch of the other usual crap that I carry - all the little things that used to get lost in all that other stuff, now sit neatly in a leather case. http://www.35mmc.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/IMG_3377.jpg To be fair, to contradict something I said in a previous message, I probably won't carry it in a pocket very often - I don't like carrying all that stuff unless I absolutely need to... I have carried it though, and thats the thing that makes me feel like its still a little too big

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jeremy north replied:

Comment posted: 24/05/2016

I was teasing you about the blagging. I know you'd not endorse a product unless it was up to the job. I took your use of "gift horse' to be light hearted. I was just riffing on that. I share your love of quality products and thank you for bringing them to our attention.

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Hamish Gill replied:

Comment posted: 24/05/2016

About half of what I've said above is me saying I like it because of what it's made of...? As for blagging - that just didn't happen. You've no idea the stuff people try and send me. I have a company who have literally emailed me about 7 times trying to give me photorealistic backdrops. Not interested. Yes this is something that on face value appealed to me - which is why I let him send it to me, but when I got it I found it useful. I kept it because I liked it - if I didn't like it I would have sent it back. Yes, I like it because it feels and looks nice, but I have found it to be more useful than the plastic film box I used to use. It's a simple as that. I think you might be mistaking me for a different type of person Jeremy.

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zaid camera strap – Camera Harness on Zaidmade film case review (and other photography paraphernalia)

Comment posted: 26/06/2018

[…] The Zaidmade film (and other photography paraphernalia) case […]
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Andy on Zaidmade film case review (and other photography paraphernalia)

Comment posted: 15/03/2019

Zaid is a damn crook. I paid for a strap that I never received. Fuck him.
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Peter on Zaidmade film case review (and other photography paraphernalia)

Comment posted: 25/06/2020

He is a scammer.
Like the comment above, Zaid failed to deliver a strap that I've purchased from him as well.

When you reach out to him he'll be super communicative, and once the transaction goes through he will be super hard to reach.
Stay away by all means.
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