Alain Berry had passed away...

Absolutely crushing email I got morning with the news I was the most afraid of. Alain Berry had passed away 2-3 weeks ago. He was very sick and undergoing drastic treatment. I have rarely met a person so full of life and charm as Alain, I will miss him very much, my thoughts and condolences are with his wife Claire.. rest in peace, Alain my dear friend....

Oh no, very sad news indeed!
When we met him at Bievres it was very hard to believe his sickness. A great but humble man and I am proud to have known him.
Please tell my condolences if you are in contact with Claire.

Best regards,
Juhani

What a bad news! I've never met him but it was always a pleasure to talk to him here. My thougts are with his wife.

Ulrich

http://fotos.cconin.de

Very sad news. I was also afraid of that. Rest in peace Alain,
Jean

Such terrible news. Alain was such a wonderful fellow. We traded emails on occasion. He was a wealth of knowledge.

He will be sorely missed.

Steve

Really painful news about Alain, I still can't believe this...
The collector's world have lost a great individual indeed! We have lost a very close Friend - very knowledgeable, full of life and warm heart. My thoughts and condolences are with Mrs Claire Berry.

Rest in peace, Alain!

Such sad news. Alain had such a wide knowledge of Soviet cameras and was always willing to share it will all of us. I shall always remember the gathering at Bievres, which unfortunately will be my last meeting with Alain. We will all miss Alain's contributions to the forum. My sincere condolences to his wife, Claire.

David

(http://www.rcccuk.com)

He is the friend to whom I put my first question about Feds.
A while ago...
So long, Alain.

Toute mon amitiй, Claire.

Sincere condolences, I alas never met Alain, but did 'speak' to him through here -he will be very sadly missed. Richard

Samsung GX-10,too many Russian Lenses, A lot of Zenits, an Almaz 103 a few Yashica,and finally a Minox35GT

I have just seen this , it's so sad when someone who you see in a forum is just not here anymore .

*** Rest In Peace my dear friend Alain *** I will miss you always.





Regards, Bill

I just saw this. What a sad news! I will always miss you Mr.Alain.

Regards,

Zhang

Bill, that's a very nice shot of Alain.
Is there a story behind it?

Steve

Bill, that's a very nice shot of Alain.
Is there a story behind it?

Steve

A sad news, not much to add... I only met Alain once, in Beivres, but remember him very well.

Hi Steve,

I can't remember where I got that photo ... whether Alain sent it to me or from someone else. Maybe someone here at the forum will recognize it what camera show it was at.

Here are two more of the photos I have of Alain...

Working on his roof ...



Working on the Citroen he & Claire got for his daughter, at left (Feb. 2010 I think)...







Regards, Bill

Thank you Bill for these. It's nice to remember him. Please accept my condolences as well I know you guys were very close pen pals..

Very sad news. Unfortunately I have never met him, but I always read his comments here with a great interest. My condolences to his family.

Alexander

I never knew or met him, but I want to add my condolences in sympathy.

M Schekkerman

Yes, we lost a very knowledgeable russian cameras expert…

Besides Alain was a generous friend, he was also a great connoisseur in russian cameras and others.
I would like to quote some articles he published in the former magazine "Cyclope", here in France.
- Mounting a russian lens on a digital body.
- The real price of a collectible camera.
- The soldier's Kodak (Vest Pocket).
- The Photokonstruktor (Lomo).
- The four gems from Leningrad (Almaz).
- The donative russian cameras.
- Minicord and Kompacta.
- Digital despair.
- The Leicaflex was born in USSR (Zenit C).
- Russian-japanese agreement (Canon F801 mounted on a Photosniper and Taпr 3S)
- A soviet pionneer : Voomp.
- Lubitel.
- Compass.
- Uchenick.

I think that a lot of russian cameras collectors are undebted for such knowledge.

I met Alain nearly every month (and sometimes every week!) and it was a real pleasure to meet such a kind and generous guy.

His death is a cruel loss and we (I) feell his absence bitterly.