Voigtlander Vitessa (L)

Camera opened and ready with fitted leather case.

Camera opened and ready with fitted leather case.

The Voigtlander Vitessa isn't a rare or valuable camera. It's a camera that caught my eye at a very early age of collecting because of its design. The camera is somewhat small and compact when closed, which makes it great for travel. There are many unique features like the pop-out lens and bellows in the design. Also, it incorporates a long film advance bar as opposed to the winding lever. It's also a very sturdy camera with fantastic optics.

 
Front view of camera.

Front view of camera.

Voigtlander has been around since before the beginning of photography. The company was started by Johann Christoph Voigtlander (1732-1797) in Vienna, Austria, in 1756. During the early years, they were producing mathematical and optical instruments. After his death, the company continued by his widow and children. In 1839, the year the invention of photography was being published, Voigtlander helped with optics and provided the first all-metal daguerreotype camera in 1840. In 1840, the grandson Peter Wilhelm Fredrick Ritter Von Voigtlander established Voigtlander as the leading photographic company during this period and also introducing Pretzval Optical lenses.

The Vitessa started in 1950 and has progressed through many different models and modifications. Initially, the Vitessa A didn't have a removable back. The pressure plate was on the camera body. There were no strap lugs on the side of the camera. Even within the "A" model, there were modifications. The A1 & A2 parallax correction was manual. On the A3, it was automatic in the camera. The A4 and on had the accessory shoe attached and the flash sync on the barn door. 

 The next model was the Vitessa N in 1954, where they changed from Compur-Rapid shutter to Synchro-Compur. They also added lugs on the side for camera straps. You also had the option of lenses, between an Ultron 50mm f2 or Color-Skopar 50mm f3.5. That same year they introduced the Vitessa L, which had incorporated an exposure meter in the camera. The first models had film speeds from 6-200 and the later models from 12-400. In 1957, they made the Vitessa T without the barn door feature, and they had a protruding lens instead of the pop-out. 

 
Voigtlander Vitessa_3 copy.jpg

The camera I have is the Model L with the Ultron 50mm f2 lens. My camera has an issue where the rangefinder isn't working, so when I use my camera, I'm always guessing the distance, which is difficult, but the images always seem to put a smile on my face. I should send it in and have it fixed at some point. 

 To open the camera, all you need to do is press the shutter button on top of the camera. By doing so, the lens pops out, and the film transport rod pops up too. The meter on my camera is the earlier version with film ISO from 6-200. Generally, I shoot with 100 or 200 speed, so it's not an issue. My meter is very accurate too. All the photos showed where exposures were using it. 

 On the top of the camera is the film advance rod on the far left. Plunging it once advances the film and cocks the shutter. Next to it is the accessory shoe. A thumbwheel then controls the focus distance just behind it on the back of the camera. On the far right is the exposure meter. On the backside of the meter is a wheel to set the ISO. The shutter release is also on the top.

To use the light meter. The meter's needle will point to a number for proper exposure. Around the lens is awheel and pointer, indicating numbers from 2-18. If the meter tells you number 12, you slide the indicator to 12. By doing this, you're setting the combination of shutter speed and aperture. You can still move the shutter speed dial, but this locks in the proper combination of speed and aperture. It makes the settings very quick and easy.

On the front of the camera with the barn door closed is the camera stand, located on the right barn door. Pull this out, and the camera stands on a table without needing a tripod. On the left door is the flash sync port, and under the viewfinder is the frame counter with a wheel to set for the kind of film loaded. With the backdoor removed from the camera, you align the diamond shape on the frame counter to the red dot on the camera body when you load a new roll of film. On the inside of the backdoor is where you set to the type of film you've loaded. The bottom of the camera has the rewind crank, the rewind button, opening latch, and tripod socket.

I enjoy using this camera and have taken some photos to show the quality of the images. I hope you enjoy this cand the other cameras I've been posting. I'd also like to hear your comments on what I can do to make it better or any questions or concerns. Until next Monday, please be safe. Here's a link to an instruction manual for the camera if interested.

Images from Camera

Next week's camera will be the original Hasselblad Supreme Wide camera.

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Robot Luftwaffen Eigentum

 
Robot Luftwaffen Eigentem w/7.5cm F3.8 Lens

Robot Luftwaffen Eigentem w/7.5cm F3.8 Lens

First and foremost, I want to take a moment and say if this post about a German camera explicitly made for the German Air Force during WWII makes you uncomfortable or upset, it is my sincere apologies. That's not my intention. I enjoy everything photographic, and this camera has always been one I've wanted to own, with so many others, but this one I can afford, unlike the grey Leica's or other rarities.

 In my opinion, Robot cameras are one of the best built and smoothest cameras to operate. They are a real work of art, feel solid, and are used with the fullest of confidence. I'm guessing that's because the original camera came from the Otto Berning and Co. manufactured clocks. Robot cameras have a clock spring advance on the top of the camera, one of the unique items about these cameras.

 
Robot Luftwaffen Eigentem_1 copy.jpg

Otto Berning and Co. started manufacturing amateur cameras in 1934. A young watchmaker in his 30's, Heinz Kilfitt designed the first compact camera Robot would be so well known for. He sold the design to Hans Berning, who was only 23 and worked for his father's company. The 35mm loaded film cartridge was invented in 1936. Up to that time, 35mm photographers had to load the 35mm film into film K-cartridges themselves. One cassette for the unexposed and one for the exposed film. The only camera companies using 35mm at this time were Leica and Zeiss Contax. There was a film format of 24x24mm that was offered to Kodak and Agfa, but they rejected the 24x24mm frame size, and it was sold to Hans Berning, who put it into the Robot cameras. A real advantage of the 24x24mm frame size was that the photographer could get 50 images on a roll of film instead of standard 36 on the traditional 24x36mm format. With a full wind of the top crank motor, the photographer could get approximately 25 images transported. Another advantage of the square film design was no need to turn the camera for vertical shots.

 Since the Robot Luftwaffen Eigentum was made for the German Air force during WWII, they were created for reconnaissance or shoot control recording. The cameras were mounted on their airplanes due to the resistance of vibration and cold conditions. First and foremost, I want to take a moment and say if this post about a German camera explicitly made for the German Air Force during WWII makes you uncomfortable or upset, I sincerely apologize. I enjoy everything photographic, and this camera has always been one I've wanted to own, like with so many others, but this one I can afford, unlike the grey Leica's or other rarities.

In my opinion, Robot cameras are one of the best built and smoothest cameras to operate. They are a real work of art, feel solid, and are used with the fullest of confidence. I'm guessing that's because the original camera came from the Otto Berning and Co., who manufactured clocks. Robot cameras have a clock spring advance on the top of the camera, one of the unique features of these cameras.

 Otto Berning and Co. started manufacturing cameras for the amateur photography market in 1934. A young watchmaker in his 30's, Heinz Kilfitt designed the first compact camera the brand Robot would be so well known for. He sold the design to Hans Berning, who was only 23 and worked for his father's company. The 35mm loaded film cartridge was invented in 1936. Up until that time, 35mm photographers had to load the 35mm film into film K-cartridges themselves. One cassette for the unexposed and one for the exposed film. The only camera companies using 35mm at this time were Leica and Zeiss Contax. There was a film format of 24x24mm that was offered to Kodak and Agfa, but they rejected the 24x24mm frame size, and it was sold to Hans Berning, who put it into the Robot cameras. A real advantage of the 24x24mm frame size was that the photographer could get 50 images on a roll of film instead of standard 36 on the traditional 24x36mm format. With a full wind of the top crank motor, the photographer could get approximately 25 images transported. Another advantage of the square film design was no need to turn the camera for vertical shots.

The Robot Luftwaffen Eigentum was explicitly made for the German Air force during WWII. The cameras were initially created for reconnaissance or gun shoot control. The cameras were mounted on their airplanes due to the resistance of vibration and cold conditions. The camera was also considered "Automatic" with the film advance. The cameras stamped "Luftwaffen Eigentum," meaning "Air Force Property" on the back of the camera and the lens. The cameras were given an F (for aviators) as a code letter in front of the camera bodies' serial number.

 The camera I own has the original fixed focus Schneider Tele-Xenar 7.5cm (75mm) f3.8 lens. This camera measures just under 4.5" wide x 3.75" tall x 3.5" deep and weighs 1 lb. 4 oz. The camera is basic in its design. The top of the camera houses nothing more than the winding motor for film advance, the threaded shutter release, the frame counter, and a film advance knob which can be lifted to remove the K Cassette for film processing. There is an arrow on the top of the knob showing which direction the knob turns during film advance. Next to the shutter release is a tiny button that can be depressed to reset the frame counter. On the back of the camera is a small gear. I assume the gear has to do with some function when the camera was mounted in the airplane. It does turn when the film advances, but you cannot manually advance it.

On the front of the camera, there is just the shutter speed control. The shutter speeds go from 1/500-1/2 with B setting as well. There is a "U" shaped socket on the shutter speed dial, which I'm assuming was attached to the camera so the pilot could change the settings if needed. There is no tripod socket on the bottom of the camera, and on the side is a bar you move up to unlock the backdoor to load/unload film as needed.

The exciting thing about the camera I own that I noticed until years after I purchased it was that there was still film in the K Cassette. I developed the film, and it was fogged, and only one frame was somewhat viewable. There was also a name written on the cassette, which I guessed was the original.

Image found in camera.

Image found in camera.

Thank you for your time, and I would love to get your feedback on this or any other blog post on cameras. Until next week, please be safe. Next week's camera is on the odd Reflex-Box camera.

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Ricoh Golden "16"

 
Ricoh Golden “16” with case, reference manual, metal display case and original box.

Ricoh Golden “16” with case, reference manual, metal display case and original box.

"The most modern sub-miniature in the world!" That's what it says on the front of the reference manual, so I'm guessing that it's right in their eyes. Ricoh has a very long and fascinating history, and you can read more about it here.

 The original Golden Stecky camera was released in 1957, but within a year, they changed the name to Golden Ricoh "16" camera. This is a pretty fantastic camera for such a small camera. The camera comes in at 8.3oz with the lens and case and is really a tiny horizontal format mirrorless camera. The camera and lens size is 3 "wide x 2.5" deep and 1.5" tall.

Camera in case and metal display case.

Camera in case and metal display case.

This is an actual gold camera as the gold was electroplated on the camera body with black leather surround the lens and onto the back. Attached to the body with a thread mount, is the Ricoh Riken 2.5cm (25mm) f3.5 lens. The lens has aperture settings from f3.5-16. The reference manual says the 25mm lens will be in focus from 3.5" to infinity. It also states, "your negatives can be to 20 "x24" without any appreciable grain in the enlargement".

In the reference manual, they state there is also a telephoto lens available, a 40mm f5.6 lens. The telephoto lens has aperture settings from f5.6-16. This makes sense as when you look in the optical viewfinder in the back of the camera, there is a cropped viewfinder line you can see for using the telephoto lens.

The camera allows the photographer to pick four different shutter settings from 1/200, 1/100, 1/50, and "B". These settings are at the top of the camera and are selected by turning a raised dial with a red dot to pick the desired speed. The 1/50 is in red. This dial is very close to the center of the camera, and just to the left as your holding the camera is the "PC" socket for flashbulbs, and to the left of the "PC" socket, is the film frame counter which goes from twenty to zero. You set the dial to zero when you load the film, and the counter turns to the next number when you advance the film. The film advances are on the far right on the top of the camera. The shutter release is between the film advance and the shutter speed selector and more towards the front of the camera like traditional cameras. The shutter release also has threads for a conventional cable release.

On the back of the camera is the optical viewfinder, which is in the upper left of the camera. To the right of the viewfinder is the back release button. In between the viewfinder and the back release button is an arrow showing the operator what direction slide the switch to release the back from the camera. The whole back of the camera slides down off the camera to expose where the film is loaded. Looking at the back of the camera, there is a pressure plate over the lens chamber to hold the film flat.

The camera has a 16mm film magazine, which allowed the photographer to either load their film. You could insert a factory loaded cartridge for more instantaneous photography. The camera case is a lovely brown leather case that screws into the side of the camera as opposed to the bottom as most cameras have. This is where you'd also screw the camera onto a tripod and mount the optional Ricoh B-300 flash unit. If you wanted to mount the camera and flash onto a tripod, you could install the flash bracket onto the tripod if needed.

If you have questions or comments, I'd love to hear from you.

Next week's camera will be one of my favorite cameras in my collection, the Kardon Camera.

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Brooks-Plaubel Veriwide 100

Being the very visual person I am, I'm generally drawn to cameras more by the visual appearance and quality of the camera than the technical aspects. The Brook-Plaubel Veriwide was one of these cameras as I find it visually appealing and have always wanted to own one from the very beginnings of collecting cameras. Still, after shooting with it, it's one of the best cameras I've shot. 

Veriwide_2 copy.jpg

I still remember the day my good friend and fantastic photographer, Michael Gray (www.grayphotoworks) called me. He said he was at a camera store in Texas, and they had one for sale at a reasonable price and wanted to know if I was interested. I told him I was, and he paid for it and had it sent to me. I quickly sent him the funds and received one of my all-time favorite cameras. 

The camera was a partnership between Burleigh Brooks of New York, and Plaubel of Germany. Plaubel is well known for 120 film cameras like the Makina press cameras, so the fit was great. Brooks-Plaubel Veriwide was made and distributed between 1959 to 1965, with a couple of minor modifications until it turned into the bulkier Brook Veriwide with smaller image size and, using Mamiya film backs.

 
Brooks-Plaubel Veriwide 100 with Case.

Brooks-Plaubel Veriwide 100 with Case.

The Brooks-Plaubel Veriwide is a very compact, panoramic camera that gives you an approximate 100-degree angle of view, which is equivalent to using an 18mm lens on a 35mm camera. The good news is this camera uses 120 film and gives you seven exposures with an image area of 56mmx92mm per frame. The camera incorporates a fixed 47mm f/8 Schneider Super Angulon lens in a Synchro-Compur shutter with shutter speeds of "B" to 1/500. The aperture range is from f8-f32.

The camera I have is a bit newer version with 3 bubble levels to cover the vertical and horizontal movements when looking from the top, then another on the body when shooting vertically to check the level. I understand the older version only has one bubble level on the top of the camera. My camera is missing the helpful Leitz Veriwide 100 viewfinder, which sits on the accessory shoe on top of the camera. The accessory viewfinder gives a better visualization of the image area than the pull-up finder and wireframe, which you can see in the photos. While thew wireframe and pull up viewer are useful if the finder isn't available. I'll need to wait until I can buy a proper Veriwide 100 viewfinder, so if there are others out there with one for sale, please let me know. I understand you can use a 20mm viewfinder for 35mm cameras, but there is a bit of a crop. The Veriwide is equal horizontally to an 18mm on 35mm. The accessory shoe on the camera has parallax correction for 2.5', 4.5" and 10'.

The lens on this camera is extremely sharp edge to edge at all aperture settings, with excellent contrast. On the lens barrel of the camera is the focus ring with indents for focus distances of 4.5' and 20', which is excellent for hyperfocus capabilities. There is no rangefinder as it's all guestimation on distance for focus. In front of the focus ring is the aperture settings on the right in red and flash sync setting for "M," "X," and "V," which is the self-timer. The flash sync is below the flash sync settings. On the very bottom of the lens is the cocking lever for the shutter.

First roll, and first shot with the camera.

First roll, and first shot with the camera.

One other oddity of this camera is that it has a unique loading system. The rear door opens from left to right, but you load the film backward from all the other 120 cameras I've used. You load the unexposed film on the right side and pull the leader to the left, and the winding knob on the camera is on the left. In this posting, I have shot with the camera and am posting some of the images to see that this is a real winner of a camera. It's small, compact, excellent optically, is panoramic, and uses 120 films for better clarity when enlarging. All of these features make this a camera you should seek out and start using. I'm confident you won't be disappointed.

Second photo with camera

Second photo with camera

I'd love to hear your input on this camera. If you have questions, concerns, or want to talk about this or other posts, please send me an email. If you have a spare Leitz Veriwide 100 viewfinder at a reasonable price, I'd like to know. Until next week, be safe and keep collecting.

In my backyard

In my backyard

UniveX Iris Deluxe Flash Candid Camera

Univex Iris Deluxe Flash Candid Camera w/lens extended & shutter release in position.

Univex Iris Deluxe Flash Candid Camera w/lens extended & shutter release in position.

Camera name

Camera name

I've always had a fondness for The Universal Camera Corporation of New York, NY. for a few different reasons. First, it was the company that made the first real camera given to me by my uncle when I was 11 years old, the Uniflex II. I'm also a fan of many of their different cameras, like the multi-colored versions of the Univex AF, the Univex Twinflex, and the Mercury cameras. All these cameras have a real uniqueness to them. 

 

The Universal Camera Corporation started in 1932 at 521 Fifth Ave. They moved the following year to 32-46 West 23rd St. New York, NY. It stayed in that location until it ran out of the office and manufacturing space in 1938. Starting in the depression era, they made reasonably inexpensive cameras that were well made that also used their film, the successful Universal six exposure #OO film for their cameras. Until 1938, The Universal Camera Corp. was making primarily smaller cameras like the Original Univex Model A camera, which sold for $0.39 and was wildly successful. In 1938, to revise the sales of #00 film, Universal Camera Corp came out with a line of Candid Cameras, which became increasingly popular during this time.

The Universal Camera Corp is very well known for making minor adjustments and refinements to the initial design and selling these upgrades and approvements at an additional cost. The original Iris Standard Candid Camera sold for the whopping price of $5.95 and the case for an additional $2.00, but given that this was the depression, I'm sure it was quite a bit too many. One of the significant improvements Universal Camera made was the concept of internal photoflash synchronicity without external wiring and incorporating a hot shoe in cameras, which is the main addition to the camera. They added a hot shoe to the top of the camera and a swing-out shutter release, which can be triggered from the top of the camera as opposed to the lens. Also, there is a stop built into the camera body. When the lens is retracted, the shutter cannot be released, thus preventing wasting film and expensive flashbulbs by accidentally tripping the shutter. When the lens is retracted, you can swing the shutter release back to make the camera more compact. This addition to the camera came at a cost as this version of the camera was introduced in mid-1939. One last exciting feature on this camera is a holding compartment in the back of the camera to hold a spare roll of film.

Univex Iris_17 copy.jpg

The camera is relatively weighty for such a beautiful camera, weighing in at 1 lb. 5 oz. and measures 5" wide by 3" tall by 3" deep with the lens pulled out for exposures. The camera has a 50mm f7.9 Vitar lens with aperture setting from f7.9-22. On my camera, the lens can focus from 4 feet to infinity with a pin showing the focus distance around the lens. The shutter has three settings, "T," so you'll press the shutter release to open, and press again to close, "B," the shutter opens for the time you have the shutter release depressed, and "I" which is my guess 1/50 shutter speed. The shutter release is approximately 10 o'clock, with the ability to use a cable release directly below the shutter release button. The rear door is hinged and not removable, and there is a tripod socket on the bottom of the camera.

Much of the company information regarding this camera comes from the excellently written and only book that I'm aware of on The Universal Camera Corp, The Univex Story—written by Cynthia. Repinski. If you're interested, you can get a personally autographed version of the book here.

 

Please feel free to send me an email if you have questions or concerns regarding this or other items on my website. Thank you for taking the time to look through the post. Until next week, be safe.

Source: univex-iris-deluxe-flash-candid-camera

Kowa Ramera

Front View

Front View

With back removed

With back removed

I believe this week's blog post is another fun and unusual combination, which is a transistor radio and camera built into one unit known as the Kowa Ramera. The camera and transistor AM radio was made in 1959 by Kowa Optical Company of Toyko. This item was also sold as the Bell Kamra, distributed by Bell International Company, and came in four different color variations, Red, Black, Blue, and White. With the red, black, and blue models, there is usually a white back on the camera, but the white version can have either black, red, or blue back. When purchased, the camera/radio came with an earplug, case in either black or white, 9v battery, instruction manual, and small lens cap.

Nameplate

Nameplate

It's believed the Bell Kamra is a bit more desirable among collectors as they are a bit harder to find. Still, either way, both the Kowa Ramera and the Bell Kamra are not inexpensive and are a cherished item in many people's collections.

One of the best parts of this camera is it incorporates the Minolta 16 film system, so all you needed to do was purchase the Minolta 16 film, both B&W and color, which would work in this camera/radio.

As you can see, my version is a white body with a red back. The radio/camera measures 5.75" long by 2.75" high by 1.25" deep and weighs 14.8 oz with the 9v battery included. The front of the camera is the round speaker grill, which is 2" in diameter and has a kind of silver/gold tone. To the right of the speakers grill is the radio station, which is in red on my version. To the left of the speakers grill is a rectangular aluminum nameplate includes the lens and the camera name along with Prominar 1:23mm f=23mm on the bottom. Below the nameplate is the optical viewfinder. Above the nameplate is a PC flash sync. I have no idea where or how the flash would be attached as it must have clamped on as there's no place to put a flash.

On the left of the unit is the shutter speed dial, which has B, 50, 100, and 200, and to the left of that is the aperture settings from f3.5-11. These numbers are on an aluminum plate, which is also the film door that can be removed to load/unload the film. On the bottom of the camera/radio is the film door release button, the shutter release, and a pull-down film transport, which also cocks the shutter. The right side of the unit has the radio tuner, on/off/volume dials, and the jack for an earplug. The tuner on the radio is pretty standard and goes from the frequency range 535-1605 kHz, and the speaker has an output of 70mW.

The back of my Ramera has vents for the radio. The right of the vents is a frame counter, and below that is the tiny optical viewfinder. Written on the bottom of the removable back is "transistor radio & camera model KTC-62 made in japan". The back can be removed to replace the 9v battery, and all you need to do is put a coin on the little slot and twist, and the back pops off. As you can see in the photos, the unit is just a transistor radio with a small 16mm camera attached to the side. Nothing fancy or complicated, but it allowed the mid-century hobbyist to listen to the ballgame or music while taking family snapshots.

 

My Kowa Ramera is still working well. The transistor radio tunes to stations, the volume goes up/down, and the shutter still works on all speeds. I’d love to hear your comments and if you have any questions. Thank you for your time. Until next week, keep collecting.

Philips Flash Camera

Philips Flash Cam copy.jpg

Camera and Original Box

This week's posting is on a very simple and relatively rare camera to find in the U.S. and from what I understand even somewhat difficult to find in Holland and France where the camera was distributed. This week's posting is on the Philips Camera Flash.

Philips Flash Cam_6 copy.jpg

Philips N.V. is currently known as a multinational electronics manufacturer in the Netherlands. It now manufactures a wide array of products, mainly focusing on health products and other electronic products, including electric flash units. Back in 1950, when the Camera Flash was made, Philips produced flashbulbs for the camera market, and it is believed they made the Camera Flash to promote flashbulb sales in Europe. Philips Camera flash was made for only one year in 1950. It's very similar in design to the Spartus Press Flash, a camera made between 1939-1950 or the Falcon Press Flash, which was built 1939-1941, so the timing makes sense to me.


The significance of the Spartus Press and the Falcon Press Cameras is they were the first to have a built-in flash reflector built into the camera. While the Camera Flash resembles the Press Flash and Falcon Press, it is much sleeker and more refined. The camera is made from Philite, similar to Bakelite, and developed by the Philips company circa 1923. Philite originally was used for Philip's radio production. The camera is more compact in the design but does resemble the Press Flash as it has a large flash reflector over the lens. The camera produces a 6x6cm format image onto 620 film.

The layout of the camera is straightforward. The camera's measurements are 6.5" tall by 4.5" wide by 4" deep. The massive flash reflector takes up more than half the cameras real estate on the face of the camera, measuring 3.5" in diameter. Below the flash reflector is the lens, which has a set aperture of F11. The lens can be turned to either focus at 1.5-3 meters, or turning it the other way to 3" to infinity. Below the lens is the Philips nameplate.

On the left of the camera, as you'd be taking a photo (or from behind), is the small viewfinder that I find challenging to use. On the right side of the camera is the winding knob to advance the film. Once the photo is taken by the shutter release, which is just in front of the winding knob, a lock comes down in the shutter release area to lock the shutter to avoid double exposure. Just above the shutter release is a bar. When it pressed is set the shutter to 1/25th shutter speed. When it's pulled out, the shutter is set to "B."

On the back of the camera are two panels that can be removed. The lower is for loading and unloading the film. The top chamber is for the batteries for the flash. There is also a small swinging door over the red window, which you can slide over to see the film numbers when you advance the film to the next frame. On both the right and left side of the camera are lugs for the camera strap, which my camera doesn't have. There are also two slots on the top of the camera, which I cannot find out what their purpose is.

Id love to hear from you regarding this or any other post I’ve done. Also, if there’s a camera you’d be interested in knowing more about. I might even have it in my collection.

Source: philips-flash-camera

Duplex Super 120

As I've mentioned in the past, collecting cameras and other photographic items has always been a passion. While I enjoy stereo cameras for what they produce, I don't have many in my collection. The Duplex Super 120 camera is one I've always liked, more for the design of the camera, which I find appealing.

Duplex Super_3 copy.jpg

 

Of course, the design and manufacturing of The Duplex Super 120 in Italy. That's why it has such an appealing design. The camera was manufactured by Industria Scientifica Ottica S.R.L. (ISO) in Milan, Italy, in about 1956. The camera company produced other sleek and expensive cameras like the Leica copy Bilux and Reporter. These two cameras I'm still looking to purchase. The camera I'm showing is the third and latest version of this camera. There was the original Duplex 120, then the Duplex Super 120, and then the third version has the unique side lever, which I'll discuss later.

 

Duplex Super_4 copy.jpg


The Duplex Super 120 is not only a very sexy camera but also offers some pretty special and unique features. First of all, it's a vertical format camera, and it uses 120 roll film. The images are produced in pairs next to each other instead of skipping frames on 35mm stereo cameras to produce left and right images. The Duplex camera put the 24mm x24mm image on the same frame of film. This camera also allows the photographer to create 24 images on a roll of 120 film due to its set up, which is another unique feature.

 

When you load the camera, the take-up spool is on the top of the camera. On the back of the camera are two viewing windows to see the frame numbers. To take the first set of photos, you wind the film until you see the number in the bottom window. Take your stereo photo, then advance the film until you see the same number on the top window, then expose again for the next frames. This feature allows for twice the number of images on the same frame of film. There is an interlock to prevent double exposures.

 The camera has a unique layout. The viewfinder on top with the camera name under it. If you are facing the camera, below the name is the shutter release on the left. The shutter cocking mechanism is just behind the focusing knob in the center. The camera has two 35mm f3.5 Iriar lenses in the center of the camera body. Below the lenses on the left are the shutter speeds, which go from 1/200 to 1/10, and "P" on other cameras would be "B." On the other side of the camera from the shutter speeds is the aperture control, f3.5-f22. Below the two lenses on the underside of the camera body housing is an eyelet that holds the two lens caps. The other side of the camera is the PC outlets for flash with both "M" and "X" sockets. On the back of the camera is a lever that allows you to take the back off to load and unload the film. 

 

Some of the accessories I've seen for the camera are a pistol grip which mounts on the tripod socket, cable release with adapter, leather case, flash bracket, stereo viewer, film mounting press for both card and plastic mounts.

If you have comments, suggestions, or just general questions regarding this or any other cameras from my blog, I’d love to hear from you.

The Kombi Camera & Graphoscope

This week's camera is not only a camera but a Graphoscope too. A Graphoscope is just another word for the viewer, which they used in the late 1800s to early 1900s to view cabinet cards and photographs. So this camera is a camera and a viewer all in one tiny package. Let me give you a little information on the camera's manufacturer, and it's many accomplishments before I get into specifics about the camera.

Kombi_12 copy.jpg

This camera was manufactured by Alfred C. Kemper of Chicago, Illinois, USA, and the patent for the camera was approved in December 1892. It's believed the camera was manufactured and sold in 1893. This camera had quite a few accomplishments for its time. It was the first miniature roll film camera, and the first camera to use film manufactured by Kodak solely for cameras not made by Kodak. The Kombi was the first camera to combine taking and viewing photographs. The one I like the most is it's the first metal-bodied roll film camera. When you look at the instruction manual for the camera, you can see how complex it was to be a photographer in the 1890s. They tried to simplify the process and were successful in doing so. I don't have sales numbers, but I have read the camera was very successful.

 

Exploded View

Exploded View

When I say small, the camera is tiny, just measuring in at 1 7/8" T 1 7/8" W x 2 1/8" D include the protruding lens and winding knobs. The shutter control on the top of the camera adds another 1/4" to the height. The camera is made of 2 solid pieces and has vertical stripes running through the body. The front section being the lens and shutter, and the rear housed the roll film. The two pieces were held together by a brass clip that clips from the front of the camera to the back of it. The brass clip has the word "Loaded," so the photographer knew they were ready to shoot. The brass clip and many other items like lens cap, and circle photomask were accessories and were sold separately.

 

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Size of Camera

On the top of the camera was the shutter control, which in today's photo speak is either "B" for time exposure, or "I" for instantaneous or shooting at one shutter speed, which at my guess is right around 1/60 sec. That's just my guess. The shutter control consists of a metal spring half circle with two notches on it and a lever that you can put into one of the grooves. Facing the lens, when the bar is to the left, the exposure finished. When it's in the middle notch, it's on "B," To the right, you're in "I." Here is the fun part. Before taking a photo, you needed to put your thumb/finger over the lens, so you didn't expose the film to light when you set the shutter for time or instant. You'd then set the lever to the middle or right position for exposure. Point the camera at your subject, and take your thumb/finger from the lens. If you set the lever to the center ("B"), then the exposure starts. Pressing the metal spring half circle ends the exposure after the time you feel is the proper exposure. If you set the lever to the far right ("I"), pressing the spring half-circle takes the instantaneous shot. That wasn't too confusing.

 

According to the instructions, you'd wind the film until you hear three clicks, then you knew you were at the next exposure. You could send the film to the company for processing or sell you the equipment to process the film and make prints yourself. The cost of developing on a roll of 25 exposures was 15 cents. 

 

Since this is not only a camera but a Graphoscope too, if you were to use this as a Graphoscope, you'd have your images were printed on transparent film. You'd load the transparencies just like you would a roll of film, take the backplate off, and look through the lens from the front with the shutter in the middle ("B") position, which would magnify the images. Point the camera at a light source and view your pictures. Remember, this camera has two winding knobs, which is unusual for today's cameras. Having two winding knobs would allow the viewer to move the images forward or backward, depending on what they wanted to view.

Alfa-2 Camera by WZFO

Here’s an odd and unusual camera that comes out of the rarely talked about camera manufacturing country of Poland. It’s the Alfa and Alfa-2 camera from the company WZFO of Warsaw, Poland. Having the majority of my heritage from Poland and the surrounding area, this should be a fun post.

Alfa-2 Camera with case

Let me start with some background on the company that built the Alfa and Alfa-2, Warsaw Photo-Optical Works. In Polish, Warszawskie Zakłady Fotooptyczne or WZFO was an optical and instrument company in Warsaw that started in 1951, mainly in the Cinematography industry. In 1952, the company changed its name to Warsaw Photo-Optical Works and focused on camera and optics for cameras. WZFO was the leading photo manufacturing company in Poland where they started production on the Start camera in 1953-1954.

The camera from my collection I’m focusing on this week is the Alfa 2 camera. The production of this camera started in 1962. It’s an odd, vertical format 35mm camera that comes in many different colors, like red, pink, dark blue, light blue, light green, cream, grey, or brown, each with a striped chrome front panel with the name on the front. The body of the camera is a nice metal and is very sturdy and doesn’t bend or dent easily and measure 5.5” tall x 3.5” wide x 3” deep. The controls, shutter release, focus ring, shutter and aperture rings, and winding knob are all cream-colored, as well as the area around the viewfinder on the front.

Camera controls

The camera’s controls are pretty basic. The camera is equipped with a WZFO Emitar 45mm f4.5 lens. The shutter speeds are 1/125, 1/60, 1/30 & B, and aperture settings go from f4.5 to f16. The zone focus on the lens is from 1 meter to 10 meters, then infinity. It has no coupled focus so it’s all guesswork. The frame counter is manually set. When you load the camera, you’ll need to remember to reset the frame counter. There is a cable release socket just above the shutter release. There is also a PC socket above the lens to attach the PC flash cord. There is an accessory shoe on the side of the camera to put a flash on it. My guess given the manufacture date is it’s made for bulbs and not electronic flash.

I need to start this section by saying that my camera is a non-working model, meaning the shutter isn’t working. The camera came with the film cassette in it so the loading section is my guess, and not based on 100% fact, but my guess. Loading the camera is another interesting part of the camera. on the bottom of the camera is a button. Pressing the button, the front of the camera comes out of the body exposing where the film is loaded. There is NO take-up spool. There is also no rewind button that I can find on the camera. You can only move the film in one direction. My camera came with a cassette in it so my best guess is that you tape the film into the cassette, then use the winding knob in the direction of the arrow, advancing the film. If you turn in the direction of the arrow, you get a clicking/ratcheting sound. If you go backward, the winding knob pulls up and has no pulling function.

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The camera has a nice leather case with a strap that allows you to carry the camera horizontally. The reason I’m so attracted to this camera is the colors. When I started collecting cameras and other photo items, I started with the colored Kodak box cameras. I then moved onto their Rainbow folding cameras, then Petites, Beau Brownies, and now any colored camera, from red, blue, green, rose, tan, any color. I’m working on getting the other colors of this camera,m but they are getting pricey and not generally found in the U.S.

If you have questions, or concerns about this camera or any of the others, please feel free to comment or email me. I’m looking forward to hearing from you.



















Source: https://www.dancuny.com/camera-collecting-...

Minolta Miniflex Camera

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In the 1950s, the Japanese camera industry was seeing an influx of the 35mm cameras with a smaller, more portable, and affordable camera. Camera companies like Nikon, Canon, and Minolta making headway into the camera market. Not only in the 35mm marketplace but the Japanese were also making Twin Lens Reflex (TLR) cameras giving companies like Rolleiflex and Zeiss some real competition. Companies like Yashica, Mamiya, Kuribayashi, and Tougodo Optical Co. were making TLR cameras in the after war market.

The camera I’m focusing on this week is the rare Minolta Miniflex which was introduced by Minolta in 1959 and was made by Chiyoda Kōgaku Seikō, predecessor of Minolta


Minolta, like Rolleiflex, was manufacturing TLR cameras. Rollei started making TLR cameras as early as 1929, and Minolta as early as 1936-1937 when they introduced the Minoltaflex I camera which was the first Japanese TRL making a 6x6 image (2 1/4” x 2 1/4”) image on 120 film. Even in the 1930s, Minolta was giving Franke & Heideke a run for their money as they were producing some high-quality TLR Cameras.

In 1957, Rolleiflex introduced their "Baby Rolleiflex” camera which was a camera introducing their "4x4” format camera. The 4x4 format was using 127 film and the camera was producing 12-1 5/8” x 1 5/8” negative size. 127 film was also known as the “Superslide” and was short-lived during the late 1950s to early 1960s. The cameras were smaller and more compact. Yashica introduced their 4x4 camera in 1958, and Minolta introduced the Miniflex in 1959 which was their competition of the smaller format Yashica and Rolleiflex. Unfortunately, the TLR started to decline in sales around the same time and Minolta only produced about 5000 of the Miniflex cameras.

The camera is a very appealing two-toned camera with a blue body and silver grey-green leatherette on the camera body and the same color around the lens and hood. The camera has a Minolta Rokkor 60mm f3.5 lens taking lens, but a 60mm f2.8 View-Rokkor viewing lens for brighter focusing. The shutter is an Optiper Citizen MVL shutter with speeds B, 1 sec. to 1/500. It’s cocked by a small lever at the bottom under the lens and the self-timer lever is on the same side as the release button. The opposite side has a red painted M/X selector and a PC sync socket.

On either side of the camera are accessory shoes for either a flash attachment or the accessory sports finder. On the left of the body os a very large focus knob with the depth of field scale, and on the right is the frame counter as well as the advance wheel with an arrow showing the direction to turn the know. The viewfinder is not removable and is built into the camera body which was less expensive to make. There is a pop-up magnifying lens in the hood as most TLR cameras have.

The camera’s serial number is on the top of the camera, in front of the camera and just above the gold “minolta miniflex” hame which appears three dimensional with the clear plastic covering it on the front.

I hope you enjoy these camera blogs and would love to hear your comments. Please email me with questions or concerns.

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Panon 120 Panoramic Camera

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Today’s blog is on one of my favorite types of cameras, the panoramic camera. In this weeks post, I’m going to be discussing the Panon Wide Angle 120 camera.

The camera was made by the Showa Company which was started by Nakayama Shozo in 1952 in Tokyo Japan. The Panon camera went through several different revisions starting with the 50A in 1952, then there were the AIII, AII and in 1954 the AI. In 1964, they started making the Panophic, and in 1990 they made the Widelux 1500.

Showa’s best known camera is the Widelux cameras which they started in 1958 and in my opinion, the standard in 35mm panoramic cameras.

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The Panon is kind of a beast to use. It weighs in at 4 lbs, 14oz. with the case on and measures 6.5” wide x 5.5” tall x 4.5” deep. On the top of the camera are the main controls which are the shutter speed dial, the shutter release, pop-up viewfinder, bubble level, and winding knob. There is also a diagram of the angle of view you see printed on the top. Below are some views of the camera.

The camera comes with a 50mm f2.8 Konishiruku Hexon lens that rotates from the left side to the right when the lens is cocked and ready to go. To operate the camera, you manually pull the lens to the left, set your shutter speed, pull up the pop-up viewfinder to get the approximate view. I alway check the angle on the top, and press the shutter button. You have 3 needs to choose from when shooting, 1/200, 1/50, and 1/2 sec. The aperture settings are inside the lens area and you manually set that by rotating the dial from f2.8~11. There’s no meter so you’ll need to use and external meter for exposure.

Loading the film is a bit tricky. There’s a film insert which you take out once you take the bottom of the camera off which is held on with locking knobs. On the side of the insert is a diagram with arrows showing the direction of the film. Once you load the film onto the insert, you pop it back into the camera and put back on the bottom cover. If the insert is in upside down, the plate won’t go back on the camera. I’ve done this several times.

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The camera produces 6 approx. 2” x 4 3/8” images on a 120 roll of film. The back of the camera lets you know under the film viewing window which number to look for when winding the film. You go to each other number, so 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, & 11.

My wife and I went to Peru a few years ago and the Panon 120 camera was one of the cameras I shot with when we went to Manchu Picchu. It was a bit awkward toating it around and I received several stares and people asking what I was using when we were there, but the camera does produce some great images.

I’m always interested in hearing your comments or if you have questions about this or any of the other cameras in my blog.

Below is one of the images I took on Manchu Picchu. If you want to see more from this camera, you can see them here.

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Wonder Photo Cannon

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This is of the more unusual cameras in my camera collection. At least it’s the most unusual in shape, and size as this is one beautiful chrome and nickel cameras in the collection.

This odd camera was produced by The Chicago Ferrotype Company which was started by two brothers, Louis and Manuel Mandel in 1904. They produced the Wonder Photo Cannon between 1910, and 1928 as well as other “street” style cameras. The “street” camera was made so the photographer to produce a large number of images in a short time. It’s said the photographer could produce up to 360 images in an hour.

Emblem on the front of camera

Emblem on the front of camera

The name of the camera comes from the shape of a ship’s cannon and was also known as a magazine camera due to its ability to hold many ferrotype plates into the back of the camera at one time. This conical-shaped camera measures about 9 1/2″ tall from the base to the top of the viewing site and is about 13 1/2″ long.

One of the reasons I like this camera is it resembles the original Voigtlander daguerreotype camera. You can see a replica image of the camera here.

The photographer would load the 1” diameter ferrotype plates into the rear of the camera through the backs opening. They were held into place by a spring-tensioned rod that threaded into the back.

The photographer would photograph the subjects, and the ferrotype plate would then drop into the film processing chambers under the camera. There is a rotating arm that allowed the photographer to drop them into 2 different chambers.

On the right of the camera is a rod, and on my version, it appears this sets the shutter to either “T” or “B” for exposure. On the lower left side of the lens is where the photographer could put in the bulb release to expose the images.

The Wonder Photo Cannon in my collection

The Wonder Photo Cannon in my collection

I purchased this from a person in the Seattle area that said this was his father’s camera and he had had it for many, many years, and used in when the father was younger and had it put away for years. Here are some images of the camera in my collection. It’s missing the rear finder, but overall a great addition to the collection.

If you have comments, concerns, or questions, I look forward to hearing from you. If you have items you’re looking to move, please email me on my contact page, as I’m always looking. Thank you for your time.

Bell & Howell Foton Camera

A tremendous post-war 35mm rangefinder camera with the capability of a 6 FPS motor drive. This beautiful brown and chrome camera is a bit larger than the usual Leica, Nikon, and Canon rangefinders of the days, measuring 5.75” wide, x 4” tall and 3.25” deep with the normal Cooke Amotal 2” f2.2 lens made by Taylor, Taylor & Hobbs Ltd of England. The camera weighs in at a little over 2 lbs. (2 lbs. 2 oz.), but it fits into your hand nicely. The price tag at release was around $700.00 which was very high for that time period.

The camera was Bell & Howell foray into 35mm cameras and was introduced in 1948. The camera had some really advanced features. The ringsider focus was on the front of the camera and rolled up and down next to the shutter release making the ability to focus and shoot very easy. Nikon, Leica, and Canon had similar features, but they were on the top of the camera as opposed to the front.

The shutter release area had a few different functions. On the top of the shutter release, you could pick between single frame with the top knob in the lower position, and sequence shooting with it in the upper position. Below the shutter release was another switch that allowed the user to lock the shutter so you couldn’t fire the camera when it’s locked position. On the other side of the lens on the front of the camera is the shutter speed dial, which goes from “B” to 1/1000. The shutter speeds under 1/250 drops to 1/100, then 50, 25, 10, 5, 2, 1 as opposed to what’s normal now. The camera has an odd vertically traveling shutter with a secondary guard in front of it which you can see when the lens is off.

The two small openings on the back are the rangefinder focus and 50mm viewfinder which doesn’t have parallax correction. On the bottom of the camera is the motor drive winding mechanism. You can get up to a total of 17 exposures on a full wind, which is impressive.

The camera normal lens is a screw mount lens and employs a T-stop system which is mainly used in the commercial cinematography world. This makes sense for a company known for manufacturing motion picture cameras. The telephoto lenses use the outer bayonet which is around the lens.

The back of the camera opens from the right to the left, which is unusual for the majority of the 35mm cameras made, but the camera loads like any other 35mm camera.

For the camera collectors, this is a fairly difficult and pricy camera to find. They stopped production in the early 1950’s because sales for the camera were very slow. Sources say there were less than 17,000 made, but they are extremely well built and when found, they are generally in working condition which is a testament to how well they were made. I’ve had the pleasure of owning 2 so far. One was purchased in a “lot” of items purchased. I noticed the Foton in the photos but the camera was on its side and had to ask the seller if that was a Bell & Howell camera which they confirmed. Luckily I bought the entire lot for under $100.00.

Kodak Super Six-20

This is my fist of what I’m hoping to be weekly posts on cameras in my collection as well as what my interests are in collecting, which are pretty much anything photographic with a few exceptions.

In my posting, I’d rather let you know how I came across certain cameras and the story behind it as opposed to physical facts on the camera which are pretty easy to find on the web. If you have questions, concerns or comments about my collection, as specific camera, or just want to discuss your collection, I’m always open to comments here.

In this post, I wanted to discuss what is one of the rarer cameras to have in my collection, the Kodak Super Six-20 camera. It’s estimated this camera was produced for 6 years, from 1938-1944, and due to the expense of the camera ($225.00) during these days, there were only about 720 made. It was also the camera that started “Auto Exposure” in production cameras. I think one of the neatest thing about this and other Kodaks, was it was designed by Joseph Mihalyi and Walter Dorwin Teague. Walter Teague designed the Kodak Beau Brownies, and one of my all time designs in a camera, the Bantam Special along with many other cameras, radios and other products.

How I got this beauty, or at least the first one as this is the second. When I was in Los Angeles, I read on Craigslist there was someone selling one which peaked my interest. I called and talked to the owner a few times after emailing back and forth. We finally determined a good place to meet where I could finally see this camera they were touting as in “great condition”. We met and the pewrson had the camera in a case and when they pulled it out, I was slightly disappointed as the camera was in pretty rough shape. The camera was missing a few screws and wouldn’t stay open and the stand on the front door was missing. After discussing with the owner what was wrong with the camera, they knoew it was fairly valuable, so we agreed on a price for it which was OK, not great, but I now own one which made me happy.

I put it on my shelf and had it for about a year or so when my wife and I moved to a new location. After getting settled in, I saw the local camera collectors were having a swap meet. Something I love doing. I signed up for the swap meet which was a couple hours away from where we live. I packed up the night before and added the Super Six-20 in the camera tubs to bring with me. At the show was kept circling back at least 3-4 times and looking at the camera. We started up a conversation and he said he’s always wanted to own one and he even had a copy (photocopy) of the instructions. He said he didn’t mind the imperfections with the missing screws and foot on the camera. He said he’d even send me a copy of the instructions if I’d sell him ths model.

Soon after I sold this version, I saw another for sale on eBay which had the box, foot and was in better physical shape with the exception of some minor leatherette missing on the front door which you can see in the photos below. The price I sold the first one allowed me to purchase the newer one with the box and now a photocopy of the instructions as well.

If you have comments, concerns, or questions, I look forward to hearing from you. If you have items you’re looking to move, please email me on my contact page, as I’m always looking.