Voigtlander Superb

October 26, 2020

The Voigtlander Superb is a camera I owned for a short time, almost thirty years ago. At that time, I was buying and selling cameras rapidly and not using them. To me, at the time, it was more of a commodity. The Superb I owned also had a more rare lens, and someone was willing to pay me handsomely for it. At the time, with growing children, It's something I needed to do. Things have changed, and I've evolved in my appreciation for cameras.

Company Background

In my post about the Voigtlander Vitessa, I made a brief history of the camera company that you can see here. The thing that amazes me about Voigtlander is how early they got into the photography industry and the names and products associated with them.

In 1839, publications introduced photography to the public; Voigtlander's optics were the first mathematically calculated optics made by mathematics professor Josef Petzval. Peter Voigtlander gave technical advice regarding these lenses, which cut down exposure times to about one minute. That was revolutionary. By 1840, they were not only producing cameras, the all-metal Voigtlander Daguerreotype camera, they also introduced the first Petzval photographic portrait lens, with a maximum F stop of F3.6, know as the fastest lens of the time.

In 1923, Schering AG's photo division purchased Voigtlander, and by 1925, they started mass production of cameras and photo equipment. Voigtlander introduced such everyday items as the zoom lens, the 36–82/2.8 Zoomar in 1959, and the first 35mm compact camera with a built-in flash, the Vitrona in 1965. Voigtlander introduced the Superb model from 1933 until 1939. There weren't many modifications during that time. The early cameras had "bunny ears" as camera strap holders and the later years had a winged slot for the strap. You can see a version here, and there is an instruction manual here.

My Camera

Recently, a Voigtlander Superb became available to me, and the price was fantastic, so I immediately jumped on the offer. The seller stated it was in excellent working condition and also had the original case. Voigtlander made the Superb with two different lenses. The rarer and challenging to find 7.5cm (75mm) f3.5 Heliar, the one I owned previously. The more common lens is the 7.5cm (75mm) f3.5 Skopar, which this camera had. When I received the camera, there was no mold, mildew, or fungus on the lens, and indeed the camera was in fine working condition. Now it was time to take the camera out for a spin.

Using the Camera

It was time to get myself familiar with the camera again. Holding the camera is very comfortable. Popping up the viewfinder, I immediately noticed there's a bubble level in the upper right-hand corner. I liked that. The magnifier is held in place by a small clip, so it doesn't pop up when you press on the front of the hood like the Rolleiflex's do. At least mine didn't. You focus the camera by sliding a bar on the bottom of the taking lens. The focusing is very similar to the Minolta Autocord. I prefer this method as opposed to the focus knob on the side of the camera. It allows me to keep my hands under the camera when focusing. The viewing lens points down when you focus closer, which corrects for parallax. That's fantastic.

Looking at the shutter speeds around the Compur shutter, I noticed they are reverse. Then I noticed a small prism/mirror right next to the lens. Holding the camera and looking down allows you to see the shutter speed set in the window of the prism/window. That's genius. The shutter speeds go from 1/250 to 1 sec, along with 'T' and 'B.' The aperture settings are f3.5-22 and on a small dial to the right of the viewing and taking lens. When you're looking down from the top of the camera, you can see the shutter speeds and aperture settings without tilting the camera up to view them. You can easily see the focus distance, which you can see on the top of the viewing lens.

Here's where the camera gets fun, loading the film. The Voigtlander Superb has a horizontal loading and transport system. If not all other Twin Lens Reflex cameras, the majority use a vertical loading and transport system. On the left side of the camera is an angled bar that attaches to a metal nub on the back. Lifting the bar from the nub and opening it to the left exposes the take-up spool on the camera. Opening the back to the right reveals where you load the film in the camera. Put the fresh roll of film on the right, and pull the leader across the shutter area to the take-up spool on the left.

Just above the film chamber is an advance lever. Wind the lever to advance the film. Close the back. On the right side of the camera is the red window. There is an inside cover for the window. It's opened/closed by the square knob above the red window. I watch until the frame number reaches #1. Then I close the window. Above the square knob is a switch. This switch resets the frame counter, which you can see on the back of the camera. The film advance lever doesn't automatically stop at the next frame, so you need to advance it until you see the frame number which is five cranks.

Aperture setting and Focus control on bottom.

Images

I took the camera out a couple of times this week. Here are some of the images from the camera.

Conclusion.

The Voigtlander Superb is an 80-year-old gem of a camera. It's easy to load and unload. The ability to see the shutter speed and aperture settings when looking down on the camera is excellent. I enjoy the bubble level in the viewfinder, so I know my camera is level. It fits nicely in my hand and isn't too heavy. The viewfinder is just a bit dark, but nothing to deter me from using it in the future. Another oddity is when I processed the film, and the images are across the film sideways instead of running top to bottom. It just kind of surprised me, but putting the negatives in my sleeves, they work better that way. If you run across one for a reasonable price, buy it, and I don't think you'll be disappointed. A great camera.

I truly appreciate you taking the time to read my post. It does mean a lot to me. If you have comments or concerns about the article or the camera, please drop me a line. I'd love to hear from you. Until next week, please be safe.

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Baby Al-Vista Panoramic Camera

October 19, 2020

I'm a big fan of panoramic images and cameras. In my collection, I own many panoramic photos, most likely in the neighborhood of 100 or so. There's just something magical about seeing a vast and sweeping image. It reminds me of what I see with our eyes when we look over a canyon or cityscape instead of a narrower vision in many photo images. One of my favorite panoramic cameras in my collection is the Baby Al-Vista camera made by The Multiscope & Film Company.

Baby Al-Vista compared to Al-Vista 5B and 35mm film.

Company History

The Multiscope & Film Company started in 1896 in Burlington, Wisconsin, by William Selig. Mr. Selig was an entrepreneur with interests in motion picture cameras as well as being a magician. The reason he formed the company was he purchased the patent for the Al-Vista camera from two gentlemen, Peter N. Angsten and Charles H. Gesbeck, in 1896, and 1897, they introduced their first camera. The Al-Vista camera uses a swinging lens, which produced an image on a 180-degree arc as the camera has a curved film plane. This concept was revolutionary for that time. This design and camera was the first successfully produced commercial camera of the time. At the end of 1908, they sold all patents, equipment, and rights to the panoramic cameras to Conley Camera Co. of Rochester, NY.

In 1900, the company had 25 employees making panoramic cameras. The Al-Vista camera model number signifies the height of the film in inches, and they had five different format models depending on the length of the photo taken. The sizes are 4,6,8,10 or 12. With this said, an Al-Vista 4B would have film 4 inches high, by either 4,6,8,10 or 12 inches long, depending on the mask used. On many of the cameras, there was an adjustable spring tension knob on top. Turning the knob controlled the swinging lens, which gave you four different shutter speeds depending on the spring tension.

My Baby Al-Vista Camera

The Baby Al-Vista was produced between 1906-1908 and used 120 size film and produces a 2 1/4" x 6 3/4" negatives. They came in two models. Model 1 had the adjustable spring tension control on the top of the camera to regulate shutter speed. Model 2, which I own, has something even better. You control the shutter speed by adding flags or fans that you put in a slot on top of the camera. The bigger the fan, the more air resistance you have and the slower shutter speed you have. Typically there are five different sizes of fans, but my model only has four. When sold initially, there were three different apertures you could put in between the camera and lens, but I only have one.

To use the camera is very basic. You cock the lens or move it to the taking position. The starting position is the lens pointing toward the left as you're holding it to take a photo. Remove the lens cap. Release the shutter by depressing the shutter release on top of the camera. Then put the lens cap back on before moving the lens back to the starting position. The fans are number one through five, with one being the smallest and five the largest. I'm missing fan number four. I believe the most challenging part is not knowing what the shutter speeds are for the fans used.

The camera's size is excellent for taking on trips as it's 6.5" wide x 3" tall and 4" deep. On top of the camera is the film advance knob on the far left, the slot for the fans, the shutter release, and a ball bearing level behind the handle. On the sides are just the locks to keep the front of the camera held to the camera body. Taking the front portion off is also where you load the film. The back also comes off to help in the process of loading film.

Results

Here is the good and bad news. I start to write my post early in the week, generally on Tuesday or Wednesday. I like to take photos with the camera, process the negatives, and digitize them in the article. As you can see in the images, the original bellows, leather material, have a few holes. I tried to patch them, first with a cloth tape. That didn't hold. Then I tried to glue a small piece of cloth, which wasn't pliable enough and made the hole worse. I tried three different kinds of leather and materials that didn't work except for one very dense negative.

I have since purchased a couple of other materials that I know will work, but for the sake of publishing this post, I only have one decent image to show, so my apologies. I will update this post with new pictures in a week or so when I've fixed the camera.

Conclusion

I owned a Baby Al-Vista about 30 years ago and sold it many years ago. Since then, I've been on the lookout for another Baby Al-Vista and found this one, a great and fun camera to use. I'm excited to put the final pieces back together and take the camera out for a good spin. The camera is light, easy to carry, and produces some fun images.

Thank you for taking the time to read this week's post. Please ask questions, or leave comments, and I'll reply as soon as possible. Until next week, Be safe.

Next week's posting will be on the Voigtlander Superb camera.

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Yashica Rapide

October 12, 2020

The Yashica Rapide is a camera I've had for a few years. Looking around on the internet, I don't see a lot of information on it. I'm excited to bring this camera to the forefront for others to be aware of and hopefully renew some interest in this oddball half-frame camera. I do like the design and compactness of this camera as it's something you can easily stick in your coat pocket and bring along for your weekend getaway or summer holiday.

Company Background

To think Yashica started from an investment of $566.00 in December of 1949. The original company had eight employees and started making electronic clock parts under the name Yashima Seiki Company in Osaka, Japan. A few years later, they started making camera parts, and by 1953, they introduced their first camera, Yashimaflex. A twin-lens reflex, medium format 6x6 cm camera. Tomioka Optical Works made all of the Yashica lenses under the name like Yashikor and Yashikon. Their relationship with Yashica lasted for many years and has some excellent optics. They were the optical company that made the professional lenses for Polaroid for their 180, 195 models.

Throughout the 1960s and into the 1970s, Yashica produced many fine cameras, like the Yashicamat and the popular Electro35 cameras. They never were huge success like Nikon or Canon. In the 1970s, Yashica collaborated with Carl Zeiss to make a professional SLR, the Contax RTS, a unique system. In 1983, Kyocera purchased Yashica, and by 2005, the Yashica, Contax, and other Kyocera product ended production.

The Camera

The Yashica Rapide is a different camera design than the Yashica Rapid made in the later 1960s. The Rapide is a vertical format camera, and the later Rapid has a more traditional 35mm form. The Rapide is an excellent and well-built camera with some smart and not so innovative features. The camera measures 5" tall x 2.75" wide x 2" deep, including the lens, and weighs 1 lb. 3.5 oz. with the lens cap.

The backdoor opens from the bottom upward to load the film. You put the 35mm cassette on the bottom. Then tuck the film leader into the film clip on the take-up spool, which is on the top of the camera. The film advances by pulling the leather "wrist strap" or tab on the bottom right of the camera as you're holding it to take a photo. I have difficulty calling the leather tab a wrist strap as you can barely get two fingers in the loop.

The shutter button is on the lower right side of the camera, so it's effortless to take a photo and advance the film to the next frame. I do like this feature of the camera. Just above the shutter release is the frame counter. On the other side of the camera are the rewind release button, rewind crank, and tripod socket.

The camera has a 2.8 cm lens (28mm) f2.8 Yashinon lens in a Copal SV shutter. The shutter speeds go from 1/500-1 sec. also B and controlled by two pegs that rotate to set the shutter speed. The aperture has settings from f2.8-22. The aperture sets by turning a knurled ring to select both the EV setting from the meter and the aperture setting. There is also a self-timer and settings for M or X flash sync.

The focus is a manual/guess focus lens that focuses from 1 to 5 meters and infinity. There is a green focus setting below the 1 meter, which is C (guessing "close-up"). There is also an indented focus setting of "P" between 1.5 and 3 meters, which is for (thinking "portrait"). The lens does take 24mm filters.

The not so innovative features are how to use the meter. On the one hand, I understand why they did it this way, and the other is somewhat maddening to use. To use the meter, you hold the camera face up and point the selenium cell towards the subject. In the upper right of the camera is where you read the EV value. You then turn the dial in the front of the camera to the EV setting from the meter. Put the camera up to your eye and shoot. It's not the quickest way to shoot but works none the less. The meter on my camera isn't in working condition, so I usually use the "sunny 16" rule or, at times, pull out my auxiliary meter and use that.

Photos from the camera.

Conclusion.

I enjoy shotting with this little gem of a camera. It's small, compact, and the images are sharp and fun to shoot. The camera is reliable, and the film advance is just brilliant and a hoot to use. Since the camera is half-frame, I was always concerned the film wasn't advancing the proper amount. When I look at the negatives, the transport is perfect. Great job, Yashica!!! I'm so happy to have this in my collection.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. I appreciate your loyalty to my posts, and until next week, please be safe and stay healthy. Next week's post will be on the Al-Vista Baby camera by Multiscope Camera and Film Co.

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Minolta Autocord CDS

October 5, 2020

I had purchased my Minolta Autocord CDS cameras about three months ago. There were quite a few questions about it when I bought it. The previous owner didn't know if it was working, even after giving them some tips to check. I took a chance and bought it. When it arrived, the shutter worked great, and the aperture moved as it should. A good friend told me the focus was notorious for hanging up. It moved smoothly and focused well. The meter didn't have a battery, so I purchased a battery for the light meter. When I installed the batter, it took some time for it to react to light. Eventually, it did and seemed close to accurate. Now I was excited to take it for a test drive.

A little background.

Kazuo Tashima founded Minolta in Osaka, Japan, in 1928 as Nichi-Doku Shashinki Shōten, which means Japanese-German Camera Shop. In 1931, the company updated its name to Minolta, which stands for Mechanism, Instruments, Optics, and Lenses by Tashima. In 1937, the company reorganized as Chiyoda Kogaku Seikō, K.K. At this time, they introduce their first Twin Lens Reflex (TLR) camera, the MinoltaFlex, based on the German Rolleiflex cameras. The MinoltaFlex was only the second TLR introduced from Japan after the Prince Flex by Neumann & Heilemann. In 1947, Minolta introduced rangefinder cameras like the Minolta-35, and in 1959, the Single Lens Reflex (SLR) SR-1 camera. In later years they sign agreements with Leica and come out with the first autofocus SLR, The Maxxum 7000.

The Camera.

The Autocord line from Minolta was their take on competing with the upper end of TLR cameras. In the 1950s, the TLR market was getting saturated with several different manufacturers. There were some features that Minolta had, which was unique. Their system had a crank wind advance with a shutter cocking mechanism, a tremendous four-element Rokkor f3.5 lens which competed with the similar Zeiss Tesar lenses, and a button on the side which allowed the winding lever to move backward, allowing the camera to cock the shutter. By doing this, it allowed the camera to offer double exposures.

Another unique feature is the way the camera focuses. It focuses by a sliding bar under the lens instead of a dial to focus on other TLR cameras. I like this from the standpoint of holding the camera. You slide the bar to focus, and the camera sits cupped in your hand. The winding lever also has a hinge at the top so you can tuck away the crank handle when not using it. The camera opens from the top-down as opposed to from the bottom up. Other TLR cameras like Rolleiflex/Rolleicord cameras open bottom-up. A button you pull on the top left side opens the back of the camera.

Shooting the camera

Taking the camera out and shooting with it was fun. I wasn't too sure if the meter was accurate but relied on it when shooting. Let me explain how the meter works. On the top left of the camera as you're holding it is a tunable dial. The meter setting is Off, Hi, and Low. On the side of the dial is a button to push for "battery check." I turned the dial to "Hi" for the majority of the images during daylight. Looking down at the meter, it gives you a number. On the left of the lens is a movable arm that points to corresponding numbers from the meter. By doing so, you are shutter/aperture settings. The same component also controls the shutter speeds, which you see in the window on top. A similar arm on the right side of the lens sets the aperture setting. I did have an opportunity to use the "Low" setting on the meter during a very shadowy and dark situation. It, too, seemed accurate, so I was delighted by the accuracy of the meter.

Images from Minolta Autocord CDS.

My Experience

I'd have to say; I enjoy shooting with this camera over any of the Rolleiflex, Rolleicord, Mamiyaflex, or other TLR cameras I've had the pleasure of shooting with over my career. The camera fits nicely in my hand. The focus is smooth, and once I got used to where the focus slider was, it felt more natural. The meter was easy to use and accurate. The case fits well, and there's even a cap for the meter area. My camera didn't have a strap, so I needed to carry in my hands the entire time or put it in my bag to carry. It looks like I'll be purchasing a strap and putting this gem in the rotation for shooting. It's an excellent camera. Pick one up if you're looking for a good TLR to use.

GemFlex I Camera

September 28, 2020

GemFlex I Camera

Front view of camera with the finder up.

When I started collecting cameras many years ago, I never really liked the smaller cameras. Looking through my collection recently, I noticed I have quite a few smaller subminiature cameras, so I'm guessing they've come to grow on me. On many of the more intricate ones like the one I writing about this week, I enjoy these little wonders' quality and workability.

I picked this camera for my blog post this week because of this subminiature camera's oddity and uniqueness, The GemFlex camera. It resembles a twin-lens reflex style of camera as opposed to other subminiature cameras. This camera's workability is excellent from the standpoint that it has aperture and shutter speed settings as well as a pop-up finder for top-down viewing.

The GemFlex camera was manufactured in the 1950s by Shōwa Kōgaku Seiki in Nippon Toyko, Japan. Shōwa Kōgaku was started in 1938 by Nakagawa Kenzō, an engineer at Konishiroku, and obtained financing to create a new company. After WWII, the company changed the name of the company to Shōwa Kōgaku Seiki K.K. Their main claim to fame was a charming Leica copy named Leotax, which had several different models. Leotax line of Leica copies is still a very collectible camera today.

My version of GemFlex is a bit worn and a non-working version. This camera has higher quality than other "HIT" style cameras coming out of Japan during this timeframe. I purchased this camera in Honolulu, Hawaii, about ten years ago in a great antique store with several cameras. The owners are fun to talk with about antiques. Every time I go there, I make it a point to stop in and see what they have. If interested, the name of the shop is Antique Alley.

Let me tell you more about the camera itself. The camera is about 3" tall and 1.5" wide and deep. The top of the camera pops up like a regular TLR camera. If you slide the emblem on the top back, it even has a "speed" finder to use instead of looking down. On the top is the camera company logo, which is a stylized S and smaller K. Below the S.K. when opened, is the "GemFlex" name, which are chrome letters on a black field. There is a bump-out the portion of the camera where the two lenses are. The top viewing lens has GEM printed around it. The bottom lens is a 25mm f3.5 GEM lens. The lens is inside a Swallow shutter with shutter speeds of "B", 1/125, 1/150, 1/100, which are on a rotating collar. There is also a shutter cocking lever on the right as you face the camera. The shutter release is on the left of the shutter dial.

On the right side of the camera, there are two dials. The larger dial is the film advance knob, which has an arrow on the side with a clockwise direction to wind the film. Generally, on TLR cameras, this would be the focusing knob, but this camera is a fixed focus lens. The smaller dial is to set the aperture settings from f3.5-11. The aperture numbers on my camera are worn, I needed to get a magnifier to confirm.

On the left side of the camera is a button to release the top for viewing and another small knob to pull out to load the film. On both sides are places to put on a camera strap. On the bottom of the camera is the door release, which is more of a spring release, and a tripod socket. On the back of the camera is the camera nameplate with the company name and serial number. Also, "Made in Occupied Japan." The film counting window with a slide to open/close this window is on the rear too.

Like other TLR cameras, the GemFlex used a paperback roll film, 17.5mm, and took ten exposures per roll. Each frame was 14x14mm in size. Initially, when the camera was purchased new, it came with a leather case, lens hood, yellow filter, four rolls of film, and an instruction booklet. Initially, the camera had leather on the outside, but all of that is gone on my camera.

I hope you enjoyed reading a bit about this camera and would love to hear your comments. Next week's camera will be on the Minolta Autocord CDS. Until next week, please be safe.

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Hasselblad Super Wide (Early Version)

September 21, 2020

My early version of Hasselblad Super Wide.

Last week I mentioned that this week's post would be on the Hasselblad Supreme Wide Angle (SWA) camera. I intended this week's post to be about until I took the camera out, shot with it. I quickly noticed that this is indeed a Hasselblad Super Wide (SW) version of the camera instead of the Supreme Wide Angle, which is what I believe I owned. Let me explain the difference.

The Supreme Wide Angle camera was introduced in 1954 by Victor Hasselblad during his first visit to Photokina in Cologne, Germany. The purpose of his trip there was to introduce two new cameras. The original Hasselblad 1000F and their unique design, The Supreme Wide Angle, highlight Zeiss's spectacular optic with their Biogon 38mm f4.5 lens.

Because of the new lens design and the short distance between the rear element and the film plane, it wasn't possible to add this to their 1000F camera line. Hasselblad needed a more streamlined design utilizing the same film backs and other accessories and an optical viewfinder. This new camera design with the spectacular optics was called Hasselblad Supreme Wide Angle.

They made Supreme Wide Angle for two years from 1954-1955 when they made some modifications to the lens barrel and changed the camera's name to Super Wide starting in 1956-1957. Many people like to think of these cameras as the same with just some modifications made, which is generally done by manufacturers. Others feel these are two separate camera models because of the name change. I understand both views and am more inclined to go with the first thought that these are the same camera, just different modifications.

The main changes in the later Super Wide camera was an additional metal cylinder to the lens design. The lens barrel, which had a cut out in the barrel for the shutter control, also connected the lens's front to the rear. Another change was the focusing helicoid went from turning approximately 180 degrees in the Supreme Wide Angle to moving just under 360 degrees on the Super Wide versions.

Like I mentioned earlier, I thought my camera was the SWA, as I like to have the original models in my collection. Unfortunately, my budget doesn't allow this to happen all the time. I purchased the camera many years ago. When I bought it, it had a very crude viewfinder mounted to the camera. All the shutter speeds worked, and mechanically and optically, the camera was in excellent condition. The viewfinder worked, and for the price, I was happy.

I figured I'd be able to take the crude viewfinder off and find an accessory shoe and original viewfinder to replace them. I did get the viewfinder and mount off, but finding the replacement has been somewhat challenging.

I do enjoy shooting with this camera. It's small, compact, and optics have excellent quality. The lens produces great contrast, low distortion, and crisp, sharp images. I also like the fact I can utilize the same backs I have for my 1000F and 1600F cameras on this body. The photos included in this article are shot with my A16 back, which produced 6cm x 4.5cm sized images on 120 film. This back also gives me an 8x10 format and 16 images per roll instead of 12 with the A12 back.

Using the camera is relatively easy and straight forward. When using the Hasselblad cameras, you always need to remove the dark slide from the back to fire the camera. There is no light meter built into this camera, or many of the Hasselblad camera unless you purchase a different finder. An external light meter is needed to get proper exposure. The shutter cocking lever is also on the top of the lens barrel.

The top of this camera lens barrel is both the shutter speed control on the farthest ring away from the camera body. The shutter speeds go from 1-1/500, and B. Coming closer to the camera body is the shutter cocking lever, which is separated by a toggle switch. When the lever is away from the camera body, the camera is in normal shooting mode. If the control is inward towards the camera body, the cocking lever can be moved to the farthest position putting into "self-timer" mode. This allows the photographer approximately 10 seconds before the shutter fires. Closer to the camera body is the aperture setting. Closest to the body is the Focus ring.

On the right side of the camera body is the film transport knob. You turn this knob forward until it stops, which advances the film. On the top of the camera is (typically) the viewfinder accessory shoe, and the left of that is a spirit level. The original viewfinders had a small prism in the finder so you could see the level in the viewfinder to make sure the camera was level when handholding it. Another excellent feature mine doesn't have.

To take the film back off, you need to have the dark slide inserted into the film holder. You slide the button on top of the holder to the right. You can then remove the film holder, and you replace it with another.

Images from my camera

Ernie in backyard

Backyard during fires. Very smoky.

Mister, Ernie's brother.

Smoky view of back yard.

As you see, my camera is "well used." It works, it's mine, and I enjoy using it. If you have any of the parts I discussed in this post and want to sell them, please contact me with reasonable offers. Thank you for taking the time to read this week's post. Please ask questions, or leave comments, and I'll reply as soon as possible. Until next week, Be safe. Next week's posting will be on the Sub-compact GemFlex camera.

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Voigtlander Vitessa (L)

September 14, 2020

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.

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.

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.

Front showing meter index numbers around lens.

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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KW Reflex-Box Camera

September 7, 2020

In this week's posting, the camera I'm discussing doesn't have the rarity or notoriety as the others either in my collection. However, it is a fun example of a cross over camera that never caught on, nor had the sales to justify keeping this type in the line up of the camera company. It's both a reflex and a box camera in one beautiful and functional camera.

The Reflex Box camera was manufactured by Kamera-Werkstätten Guthe & Thorsch, in Dresden, Germany. KW is what they are mainly known. The company was started by Paul Guthe and Benno Thorsch in 1919, just after WWI, where they focused on making cameras and associated photo products. Germany has always been a top-rated camera and optical manufacturing country, but Dresden seemed to have the majority, with Ihagee, Pentacon, Zeiss Ikon, Altissa, and several others.

The story of Paul Guthe and Benno Thorsch is an exciting tale. Before WWII, Benno Thorsch wanted to immigrate to the United States and placed an advertisement to that effect in Dresden. Charles Nobel, who ran a successful film processing business in Detroit, MI, answered the ad while visiting Dresden. They both agreed to exchange their interest in their respective companies, so Benno Thorsch moved to the Detroit Area. Charles Nobel moved to Dresden in 1938, where he rebuilt the factory in southern Dresden and renamed the company Kamera-Werkstätten AG, Dresden-Niedersedlitz. They were able to keep manufacturing through WWII, but in 1945, Charles Nobel and his son were arrested on unsupported spy charges by the Soviet occupying army. The factory was nationalized and became Pentacon VEB organization. Both men were imprisoned in labor camps until Charles Noble was released in 1952, and his son in 1955. Both returned to the US, but after Germany's reunification in 1990, the Noble family reclaimed their home and factory in Dresden.

The Reflex Box is a basic camera that gives you 8, 6x9 format exposures on 120 roll film. There is a light-tight viewer or chimney that pops up on the top to view the ground glass, which also allows for focusing and composing the photo. The camera has three shutter speeds, 1/100, 1/50, & 1/25, along with "B" for time exposure. These settings are at the top of the camera. They are changed when you depress the button and slide the lever to the desired speed. The shutter release is the same lever for adjusting the shutter settings to "B" or "T," but instead of sliding it to the desired function, you depress it to fire the shutter. There is an opening next to the "T" setting, which I'm guessing is for a cable release, but I don't see a threaded button. Just an opening. When I depressed it with a pencil, it did fire the shutter. Also, on top of the camera is a spirit level and the film advance knob.

On the front of the camera is the Steinheil Wunchen Actinar 10.5cm f4.5 lens, which focuses from 5' to infinity. Above the lens is a sliding bar that sets the aperture from f4.5-16. The lens's focusing is viewed through the chimney on the top of the camera, but since the lens stops down manually, you should keep the lens wide open for the brightest viewing for focus, then stop down to the desired aperture before shooting.

On the right side of the camera is the reflex mirror cocking arm, which also cocks the shutter. You press the lever down, and the mirror comes down for viewing. The handle is also on the right side of the camera. There is a tripod socket on the bottom and two red windows on the back to see the numbers advance. You'll need to go two numbers to get to the next frame since you're shooting 6x9cm. When I received this camera, there was a roll of film inside. I enjoy it when this happens as I get the opportunity to see what's on the film. When I processed the film, there was one fair image on the roll. To see how this camera performs, I shot a roll of film through it as well. I've included some of the pictures in the post.

Remember to wind the advance two numbers.

I hope you enjoyed learning just a bit about this camera as much as I did using it. If you have questions, concerns, or general questions about this or any of the other cameras on my posts, I'd love to hear from you. Thank you for your time, and until next week, please be safe.

Next week's camera is the Voigtlander Vitessa, which I'll be shooting with over the holiday weekend and share images in next week's post.

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Robot Luftwaffen Eigentum

August 31, 2020

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.

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.

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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Kardon Camera

August 24, 2020

The Kardon camera is one of the rarer 35mm cameras to have in your collection. As far as a rarity in cameras goes, it's on par with the Kodak Super Six-20, The Bell & Howell Foton, and a few others because they were in limited production. The Kardon has a pretty exciting and involved story, much better told by Dean and Sandy Ritz. There is also a great book, and almost as difficult to find as the camera, The Kardon Camera Story by Jerome Katz, 1975.

The short version of the Kardon story is at the beginning of WWII. The U.S. government took control of the New York branch of the German E. Leitz company and wanted to build a camera similar to the Leica IIIa. Unfortunately, it wasn't available to the government due to the war. They figured they had the machinery at the E. Leitz branch, but by 1943 they determined the production machinery to manufacture the cameras wasn't in good working condition and unrepairable.

During this time, Russian-Immigrant and President of Premier Instrument Corporation, Peter Kardon comes into the picture. In a way to help the war effort, they took on the task of redesigning the Leica IIIa and came up with the Kardon camera for the U.S. government. The cameras came with the extremely sharp Kodak 47mm f2.0 Ektar lens and were known as the "American Leica." The cameras were initially being made for The Signal Corp. and delivered in 1945. Shortly after the war had ended, the government canceled the contract for the remaining cameras on order. The original cameras have a plate on the back with Signal Corps, U.S. Army, PH-628/UF, and the serial number. To sell the cameras to the public, they made a short run of cameras without the plate and the serial number on the top plate of the camera. Due to the very high price of the camera, which was just under $400 at the time, It's my understanding there were less than 2000 cameras made. The Kardon camera was a technical triumph, but a financial disaster.

The camera I have is missing the back nameplate, and there are holes in the back where the plate is attached with chrome studs, I've not shot with the camera. Also, on the lens, the outer ring is dented slightly and needs to be straightened. It looks like someone tried and failed, but that's OK because I bought it for a very reasonable price and always wanted one for my collection.

The Kardon Camera is an exceptionally well designed and masterfully made camera. The camera measures 8" wide x 6" tall x 6" deep with the lens., and weighs 3 lbs. The loading of the film is very similar to any Leica film camera. The camera comes with the pull-out take-up spool and the removable bottom plate. On top of the camera, the film advance wheel is much larger and more comfortable to advance. Inside the film advance, is the frame counter with two protruding knobs to turn to set. The shutter speed dial on the top ranges from 1/1000-1/20-1, and "B" The slow shutter speed dial on the front of the camera ranges from 1/20-1 sec. The rangefinder on the camera is bright to view and easy to focus. Next to the rangefinder, is the optical viewfinder.

On the Signal Corp camera, they came with a removable extended shutter release, which sticks up much higher. The personal Kardon camera didn't come with the extended shutter release. The standard Kodak 47mm f2 Ektar lens is mounted in a premier focusing mount with a knurled wheel on the outside to make it easier to focus. The fitted camera case is a lovely brown leather and excellent stitching to hold it together under extreme conditions. I always enjoy playing with this camera and only wish it would have been around for a while longer, as I believe it's one of the best-made cameras I own. Come to think of it. I'm going to cover up the holes on the back of the camera and take it for a spin this week. I'll report back on the images I took from it.

If you have questions or comments about this or any other camera posting, I'd love to hear from you. For now, until next week, please be safe.

Next week's blog post will be on Robot Luftwaffen Eigentum camera from my collection.

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Ricoh Golden "16"

August 17, 2020

"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.

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.

Film casette in camera. Pressure plate down.

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

August 10, 2020

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

UniveX Iris Deluxe Flash Candid Camera

August 3, 2020

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.

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

July 27, 2020

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.

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

July 20, 2020

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 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

July 13, 2020

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.

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.

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

July 6, 2020

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.

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.

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.

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

June 29, 2020

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.

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.

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.

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

June 22, 2020

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.

Panon 120 Panoramic Camera

June 15, 2020

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.

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.

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.

Camera Collecting Blog

For this camera collecting blog, I want to give you a little background on my interest in anything photographic.

I can still remember when my uncle gave me my first camera. I was nine years old. It was a Univex twin lens camera, and I was mesmerized looking down through the waist level finder. Everything was backward, but my brain quickly figured out left was right, and right was left. I took that camera on vacation to Alaska shooting 620 films and still have the negatives and photos.

Fast forward to when I'm 16. I find myself in the front row at concerts like Traffic, Humble Pie, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, Queen, and all the classic bands of the '70s. My three friends and I went to see bands at least a couple of times a month. I first was published in Rolling Stone, Musician Magazine, Guitar Player, and other publications. In later years, we published a blog on the shows we saw and also have images on my website. I'm in the process of writing a book on my experiences and pictures from this period.

My passion for all things cameras and photographic started when I turned 18 and started working at the local camera store. I worked there for almost 20 years. I sold all the classic cameras of the 1970s and '80s like Canon AE-1, Nikon F, Minolta SRT, Pentax Spotmatic, Topcon Super D, and many large and medium format cameras. To this day, I can tell these camera cameras even from the outline they have. During this time, I started to collect anything photographic, but the real passion is for cameras and lenses.

I've had a great career in the photo industry, which has lead in many different directions. My different positions were, Professional Photo Lab Manager, PrePress and high-end scanner salesman, Representative for Sinar and Broncolor, Leaf Digital back representative. The most recent job was the Profoto Rep for the US, West Coast, for almost 15 years. During these times, I've had the opportunity to travel. I always found some time to seek out cameras or photo items in the town I've gone to. I've also had the chance to meet and work with some fascinating photographers over my career. Mary Ellen Mark, Jim Marshall, Dan Winters, Annie Leibovitz, and many, many others.

Currently, my camera collection is around 500-600 cameras. It includes many exotic and colorful Kodaks like the full line of the Beau Brownies, the very rare, Super-Six Twenty, the 35mm Ektra model and lenses, and the string set models. I also have 10-12 Leica's from the original A, the hockey stick models, into the M4 black paint, and some of the newer digital. I own from the subcompact models through to many 8x10 cameras with exotic brass lenses.

I've devoured the McKeown's camera guides and own most versions of the camera bible going back to 1984. I own a collection of camera collecting books in the neighborhood of about 100, including camera manufacturing books. I collect cameras, but my photographic collection includes 200 or so panoramic images, several hundred Daguerreotypes, Ambrotypes, original glass negatives, camera advertising, figurines with camera, and many, many more items. I started the Camera Collecting page on Facebook.

When eBay started back in 1996 or so, I was an early adopter using its platform. In 1997 when I joined them, my seller number was 1034 and currently still sell on eBay under Clix, which is my seller name.

Due to recent tragic events from the Covid-19 lately, my career with Profoto ended, and I'm onto the next chapter. One of the options was to start writing articles on camera collecting, which has always been my passion.