In the early 80s I was traveling in Cuzco, Peru.  On Saturday mornings
the wedding parties for upcoming Indian nuptials went to town to get
their wedding photos taken.  Those with money went to the photographer
in the shop, those without went to the photographer in the zocalo who
whipped up his own eggwhite plates and used a wooden, brass and leather
box camera with a well mended siken shroud.  He took the photos in the
early morning sun, processed them during the day and got them back to
his clients in the late afternoon.  He was charging the equivalent of
about fifty cents a print which was half a day's wages for a miner
then.  He took and processed five to six prints each Saturday.  They
were absolutely beautiful!

I love the quote " ... it is unlikely that any camera on earth
delivers higher quality from a given format..."  While this is
probably true, but I prefer the quote from Nevil Shute: "It has been
said that an engineer is a man (sic) who can do for ten shillings what
any fool can do for a pound ..."

Andrew.