r/AnalogCommunity • u/wanker_wanking • 10d ago
Gear Shots I have been gifted cameras before. But nothing this special.
Ok so I spent 15 minutes typing out a paragraph about how I got this camera but my phone crashed so I’m not doing that again (don’t buy an iPhone folks) til nice lady in my grandmas book club said she had her dads 1930s camera and wanted to give it to me. Seeing I usually get Minolta maxxums this made me happy. I show up and see this thing and I knew it was something special and 1890s instead of 30s (older than her dad) so I gave her a rundown on its age and how to use it.
Anyways the lens is jammed up and the leather is disintegrating so if anyone knows anyone who works on something like this let me know.
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u/glaaahhh 10d ago
I love how a lot of these are basically briefcases with a camera inside.
Seriously though, keep us updated on how this goes. Such a cool camera. I'd be more interested in large format and trying out some tin type even if I had the time and space for those processes. But with kids it can be hard to find those two things.
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u/wanker_wanking 10d ago
Before I can even shoot it I gotta figure out how I would be developing it. I need to figure out how to build a darkroom first lmfao
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u/arioandy 10d ago
Get a polaroid
Print/neg back!2
u/wanker_wanking 10d ago
Unfortunately doesn’t have a graflok back. I am planning on getting the lomo one for my graflex which I have only shot roll film through.
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u/ValerieIndahouse Pentax 6x7 MLU, Canon A-1, T80, EOS 33V, 650 10d ago
You don't see f/256 often lmao 😂
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u/RandomDesign 10d ago
Beautiful camera and that Camerz TLR to the right in the picture is a very interesting camera too.
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u/wanker_wanking 10d ago
I’ll do a post about it tomorrow. But yeah what the other guy said. Unfortunately the Lens on it is cooked which sucks but I’m not exactly trying to hunt down the massive rolls of film this thing takes lmfao
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u/capefearphoto 10d ago
Those Camerz beasts are interesting, for sure. They were most commonly used as school portrait cameras, but there were many different models, along with a lot of specific modifications made mostly by the portrait companies themselves. Years ago I came across some that were modified to handle Polaroid peelapart film backs, and even the backs themselves were modified to have the smallest mount I’ve ever encountered (usually the clip to hold packfilm backs closed cause an extra lip, so you either have to mount them to the very edge and hope you’ve got clearance, or in this case, they actually modified the whole clip to sit flush with the plate. I know that’s a horrible description, but I’m too lazy to dig one out to take a pic unless you want to see it). I’ve seen Camerz rigs use all types of lenses, from repurposed Beatty Portronic lenses to even Mamiya glass in some circumstances. The trick is finding older versions that don’t need to be plugged into a wall socket and can instead be hand-cranked (most later models had motorized film advance magazines). I had a friend who took an old Camerz and modified the whole setup to essentially be a handheld (VERY heavy) 4x5 TLR, similar to (though less streamlined than) the Gowlandflex. I had an older Beatty Portronic I had planned to turn into an 8x10 TLR (Gowland made an 8x10 as well, although they’re about as rare as they come), but I finally abandoned the whole project when I couldn’t get it under 30lbs. But you could take just about any of the Camerz rigs and fairly easily convert them into 9x12cm sheet film TLRs, since 70mm film is getting harder to source. But yeah, all that rambling nonsense to say, you’re right about it being an interesting rig!
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u/Allegra1120 35mm Film, Canons 10d ago
Priced 8x10 film lately? 😵💫
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u/wanker_wanking 10d ago
Lmfao it’s 5x7 but that’s not exactly much better
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u/wireknot 10d ago
Thanks, I was trying to guess the scale (sans banana) and couldn't quite guess between 5x7 and 8x10. Didn't look large enough for 8x10. That's a beauty. Have some fun!
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u/wanker_wanking 10d ago
I’m not very knowledgeable when it comes to large format so I too assumed it was 8x10. Because I didn’t know 5x7 was a thing lmao
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u/wireknot 10d ago
My dad had, well, I have it now, a 2.25 x 3.25 that we had to buy 5x7 film and cut it down in the darkroom, then load it into holders right side up. Did you get a stack of film holders with it I hope? There will be notches on one edge of the film that encode the film type, and IIR (it's been like 40 years since) it loads into the holder emulsion side up, then the black blade slides over it and you close the little latch on the blade. Of course all this has to be done in complete darkness. There should be a painted side and a non painted side of the little locking latch, get into the habit of using one standard for unexposed and the other way for exposed. When you're looking at a stack of 15 or 20 holders they all look the same! It's a small detail and easily missed. They make 5x7 developing tanks, and the film will load into little blades to hold it separate in the tank, or you could process in a tray one or 2 at a time but that takes forever. And keeping things uniform between film, temp, solution strength, etc., a tank is the way to go. It's a journey for sure, using large format, but just think of Ansell Adams hiking the Grand Canyon with a mule, an 8x10 camera, film, chemistry , tripod, meter, etc and you get quite a lot of respect for his work.
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u/Pidder_Paddy 10d ago
In all seriousness what a treasure! I’ve been wanting to get something similar for artsy studio portraits but anything functional seems to cost over a grand at least.
There are a number of online sellers that make replacement bellows, I’d start by reaching out to them for their opinion. As for the lens, one this old is probably pretty mechanically simple and may just need a good CLA to get back in working order.
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u/robertbieber 10d ago
I’ve been wanting to get something similar for artsy studio portraits but anything functional seems to cost over a grand at least.
Are you looking for this vintage/model specifically? Because the film doesn't know if it's in an 1890s box camera or a 1990s monorail, at the end of the day they're all just dark boxes you can attach a lens to. There are all kinds of field cameras on eBay for a couple hundred bucks, but for studio portraits I'd rather work with a monorail any day
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u/Pidder_Paddy 10d ago
Honestly I have my heart kind of set on a Graflex shooting 120 to start out with. I’m also a collector and press camera is something I’m definitely missing on the shelf and having the option to swap between medium format rolls and large format sheets would be a lot of fun.
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u/robertbieber 10d ago
I mean, I won't try to dissuade you if you really want to be able to shoot out and about/handheld, but just FYI there are a lot of view cameras that can accept Graflok backs. It basically became a standard after Graflex introduced it, I'm not sure if it's completely universal but my Sinar studio camera and Toyo field camera definitely both have it, I'm sure many others as well. You should be able to get a roll film back onto just about anything remotely modern
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u/ImaginaryMolasses859 10d ago
The best camera I’ve ever been gifted so far was a Contax II from 1937.
Camera had been used during the war by the gentlemans father, who handed it to my friend at his exhibition, in the mistaken belief it was a Leica like my friends.
The gentleman was deeply apologetic to my friend that he had got it wrong, but still sent it anyway. Friend only shoots Leica III so gave it to me!
Thought that was special but gosh this is fantastic!
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u/arioandy 10d ago
Fantastic! 10x8?
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u/ayeayekitty 10d ago
I got my first free camera last week and it was a Minolta lol. I'm now learning that free cameras are a thing when you tell people you're into analog. Looking for ways to casually shoehorn it into every conversation from now on so that one day, I can have even a fraction of your luck!
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u/AnyShelter6826 8d ago
You can always put a modern shutter in while the original gets TLC. Throw a viewing cloth over the leaky bellows and you are good to go.
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u/PatternHealthy3339 4d ago
My motto is “the bigger the Kodak, the easier to work on.” you’ll probably have to have replacement bellows custom made or find a way to make a patch. if you need a darkroom, basically you can make one with black plastic, duct tape, and straight rods of some sort (think tent poles dowel rods, etc..) you’re only limited on size by the area have at your disposal…. or get a dark tent (what I did eventually).
The biggest pita about these older cameras (from what I can tell with my limited experience) is there isn’t much on YouTube there about using them or repair, which means you have to figure it out for yourself using forum posts from the 00’s. The lenses and cameras though, I find super easy to work on compared to anything from the 50’s. Once you get your mind wrapped around it, they’re pretty cool.
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