There's an incredible amount of historically significant cameras on display at the Camera Heritage Museum in Staunton, VA. The owner and curator of this collection was amazingly informative and the tour (about 1 hour) was well worth the small fee he charged. If you'd like to learn more about photography, you'd be hard pressed to find a better place! read more

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Enjoyed my tour at the Camera Heritage Museum! Staff was very friendly and very enthusiastic to answer any questions. read more

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The Camera Heritage Museum is a small gem in Staunton, VA. There are a few options on how to do your tour. You can do a self- guided tour where you are giving a packet and you can read about each exhibit. You can do an audio tour or do a guided tour with the curator, Dave Schultz. We started out doing the self-guided tour but we ended up doing a tour with Dave because he just had so much knowledge and his enthusiasm made all the difference. The collection of cameras is really impressive. If you get a chance, if you love photography and enjoy history, you must go and support the Camera Heritage Museum. read more

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Wow! What a spot! We read online this was a hidden gem and everyone was right! From the first camera ever invented to the last. We were captivated by the floor to ceiling, well organized collection of cameras! Younger children are free and the self guided tour was only $6.00! So worth it! read more

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This Camera museum is truly a gem. They have basically a collection of every camera ever made and many that were owned & used by people that made history! A lot of these camera are some of the only remaining and some were the cameras used to capture iconic events. This museum is worth a visit from anywhere and plan to send a good deal of time. Do take the guided tour as there are so many cameras and history about certain cameras that you would never learn without the guide. Do Stop and Visit! read more

Oh snap! In this present world of ubiquitous cell phones and selfies, it's refreshing to capture a shot of where it all began! This camera museum in historic downtown Staunton is not to be missed. Here you will find an unassuming small museum, (but quite deceiving from the outside) and discover a treasure trove full of cameras from every era including antique models to modern digital marvels. Their displays runneth over from ceiling to floor with mazes of photographic nirvana! They literally house thousands of cameras in this building. It boasts the only public camera museum in America. Your knowledge of cameras and photography will be "developed" as you peruse the menagerie of Kodaks including Brownies, Nikons, Minoltas, Fujis, Canons, Polaroids and other less popular camera brands. The folks who run the place are focused on making your experience here educational and enjoyable. They will give you a condensed or enlarged history of photography that you won't soon forget. If you have the time, they will share their wealth of information with you! We learned a lot of fascinating facts about the camera world, how the film process has evolved, and the mechanics of these little memory makers. There's a small fee for touring the museum and it's worth every cent. If you wish, can also make a donation to the preservation and expansion of this museum which we happily did in a flash! Truly, I have nothing "negative" to say about this picture perfect place! Zoom in and be prepared for a novel experience whether you're a camera buff or a novice Instagramer as you journey through the camera lens. Now say "cheese"! read more

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Amazing place with an amazing owner. Small but well organized museum that an enthusiast could spend hours exploring. For a regular person with an interest in photography and perhaps the history of photography, this is a must visit for at least 30 minutes. Well worth supporting all the care, love and effort. The owner was a White House photographer! read more

Let's get the one negative out of the way--they need a bigger space. The exhibit is overwhelming and poorly labeled. If you're at all interested in photography, they have an impressive collection of notable cameras but it is hard to tell what your looking at. I never would have known that the nondescript arial camera next to the blurry photo of warships was used by the Japanese in the bombing of Pearl Harbor unless they proprietor had told us. Which bring up the museum's greatest strength--the passion and knowledge of the owner. HIGHLY recommend the "guided tour", can't say how the audio tour compares, he is an excellent storyteller and really brings the collection to life. He also took our interested but antsy five-year-old in stride. A unique and memorable part of our trip to Staunton. And they told us they're working on getting that bigger space! read more

We made the trek to Staunton, VA for the sole purpose of visiting the Camera Heritage Museum. With a little help from Google Map we found our way without any problems. I really did not know what to expect to find. What we found was a very cool museum with a variety of cameras! The folks that run it are very knowledgeable on cameras and the history of photography. We started out with the audio tour, but soon found the owner and curator giving us a more in-depth tour of the museum. It was incredible. This place is a camera lover's, or photographic historian's, dream location. The have thousands of camera and photographic equipment on display. There are several unique and one-of-a-kind pieces on display. We spent a great deal of time there and David and Boris provided all kinds of information. I think I found a home for my collection if I decide not to take it on our next move. They only have a small portion of items on display, but it is bursting at the seams. They are working on getting a larger space, but that will require time and money. I would encourage anyone interested in the cameras and photography to visit at least once. I am pretty sure we will be back. It was a lot to take in on our first visit. More information on their fundraising for a larger space is provided below. There is the largest collection of Leica cameras I have seen in one place. The entire collection has some very valuable pieces, but several plain and basic items are on display as well. David provided stories behind various pieces without being snobbish about any of it. We were impressed. It was also nice to speak with others that understood the language of photography and photographic equipment. Many of the pieces would have ended up in the landfill if not for the efforts of those here and the supporters of the museum. read more

Best camera museum I have ever been to. The owner/operator was eager to give us a tour. There are modern camera supplies to buy there. I did not get any then but now that I have started photography as a serious hobby when I go back I will definitely buy there. read more

Hours of Fun We spent 3+ hours there and are going to go again. it's a must for anybody who loves history or cameras who is near Staunton read more

As a lover on small unique musems, this one is a real puzzle. This man has collected cameras for 40 plus years and has so many it is overwhelming. If you come to museum and just look at the displays, It will probably have little meaning. If the owner talks with you and does a tour, it will be one of the most fascinating museums you have ever seen, David Schwartz has more stories to tell than one can imagine. He will walk you through camera history, specialized cameras, and so many types that your brain will boggle from the stream of incredible information that seems to be endless. Some cameras I can remember from the over flow of information Camera from a Japanese fighter that bombed the Arizona at Pearl Harbor Spy Cameras used in James Bond Movies East German spy camera in a cigarette lighter box cameras that were given to all12 year olds in the 30's and the back story cameras used in space micro cameras huge 8 x 10 cameras prints of all sorts of types from the 1800 - 1900 period explainations of the equipment and how it was used original and rare prints and original editions and well I can't remember everything David said. He is friendly, engaging, inspiring, and overflowing with stories, information, and history. He is a treasue and the cameras need his tales. read more

I am not a photographer, but I am an avid photo taker. I loved this museum for the nostalgia. The sheer volume of cameras should bring you in, the owners VAST knowledge will have you staying much longer than you had thought. I would say to allow 1 hour for this museum. It would be heaven for photographers, but most adults should enjoy. I am 45 and saw an example of every camera I have ever owned even a few I remembered from my grandparents. As a teacher, I would say this is NOT the museum to bring small children. I know they are raising money to expand to a larger space and perhaps adding a kid friendly area would be nice. There is a wonderful ice cream parlor next door maybe the kids would enjoy that while your browsed. read more

My parents and I stumbled into a real gem in the heart of historic Staunton. The Camera Heritage Museum is a growing and soon to be huge landmark. We were greeted by Dave, the curator of the most interesting and exciting collection of old photography equipment and up-to-date photo restoration. He gave us a comprehensive narrated tour of his treasures, and even let us handle some of the pieces. He was passionate about everything relating to cameras and photography, and told us delightful stories from history. The tour was free (we did leave a donation toward the museum expansion). He is bursting at the seams, and eventually will have a large enough space to properly display his collection, hopefully in the near future. I look forward to returning to his museum and recommend his place to people of all ages. read more

LOVED this place! There was a LOT crammed into a small shop. The curator is incredibly well versed and very enthusiastic about cameras and their history. Spy cameras and war cameras, mini cameras and cigarette lighter cameras, he has it all! He also gave us some very good information about buying options for today's cameras. We easily could have spent much more time there as Dave seemed to have endless anecdotes to inspire history lovers and camera buffs alike. We will definitely return and will bring our daughter who is a budding photographer. read more