Kodak Ektramax (1978-1981)

 By the late 1970s, Eastman Kodak Company had developed a fine grain, 400 speed, color print film and wanted a camera to promote sales of the film in the popular size 110 cartridge. The result was a manually controlled Pocket Instamatic with a fast, f/1.9 lens designed for available light photography. The Ektramax had a sophisticated lens for a consumer camera. Usually the surfaces of camera lenses form segments of spheres. The lens designer selects the types of glasses, the radii of the spherical surfaces, the thicknesses of the lenses, and the spacing between the lenses to design a lens that will make a sharp image. A fast lens with all spherical surfaces often requires six or more lens elements to produce a sharp image. To reduce the manufacturing cost of the Ektramax, Kodak decided to make one of the lens elements with a surface that was not a segment of a sphere. This reduced the lens element count from six (or more) to four and still produced a sharp image. The aspheric lens was made from acrylic plastic using new precision molding techniques. This camera had the first mass produced lens with an aspheric surface. About 500,000 lens sets for this camera were made. The Ektramax was in production from 1978 to 1981. The list price of $87.50 made it fairly expensive for a Pocket Instamatic. The lens has a focal length of 25mm. Setting the exposure control to "bright sun", "shade", "low light" or "flash" set the aperture and shutter speed to selected combinations of f/1.9, f/4 or f/8, and 1/30, 1/100, 1/125, 1/175 or 1/350 second, depending on the ASA rating of the film. The lens has a focusing scale that runs from 4 ft. to infinity. The viewfinder has a little window at the top that shows the focus zone and another little window on the right that shows the exposure control setting. The camera has a built-in electronic flash that takes two AAA batteries. The camera will take available light pictures without batteries. Size 110 film is 16mm wide and has a picture size of 13mm x 17mm. Kodak discontinued size 110 film 10 years ago. The Lomography company still sells film for 110 cameras. This camera is light and feels pretty plasticy.

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Kodak 35 f/3.5 with Rangefinder (1940-1951)

1946 Kodak 35 RF

In 1939 the Second World War interrupted supplies of the Retina and the rival Argus C3 with a built-in rangefinder also arrived on the scene.  A new camera was needed.  In 1940 Eastman Kodak Company created the new model by grafting a coupled, split-image range finder onto their Kodak 35 f/3.5.  The result was functional, but not beautiful.  

The camera has the bakelite body of the older Kodak 35s, and the same lens and shutter as the f/3.5 model.  The range finder worked on the same principle as the Kodak Pocket Range Finder.  The housing next to the lens contained a lever that transmitted the distance setting of the lens to the movable mirror of the range finder.  The small, toothed wheel on the front lets the photographer use his right index finger to focus the camera, and serves to keep him from blocking the range finder window as he does so.  A cam and feeler send the distance setting of the lens to the rangefinder.  When the lens is focused on a subject, the two halves of the subject line up in the eyepiece of the range finder.  After focusing the photographer has to shift his eye to the viewfinder eyepiece in order to aim the camera, and move his finger from the focusing wheel to the shutter release in order to take the picture.  The viewfinder shows an image about 40% life size.

The operations of loading and unloading the film, advancing to the next exposure and releasing the shutter are the same as in the earlier Kodak 35 f/3.5.  Some of the later Kodak 35 range finder model cameras have the lens marked "Kodak Anastar" instead of "Kodak Anastigmat Special." As far as I know this is just a change of name.

The 1940 list price of the Kodak 35 with range finder was $48, which had the buying power of about $1000 in today's depreciated dollars.  The Kodak 35 RF was replaced in 1951 by the Kodak Signet 35, which had an improved lens and range finder, and was more attractive.  The chief commercial rival to the Kodak 35 RF was the Argus C-3, which was 3/4 the price and outsold the 35 RF by about 5:1.

[Update] Here is a look at the rangefinder mechanism on a 1945 version.  A cam on the lens moves a lever that sends the distance set on the lens to the range finder.

Top off, ready to glue rangefinder mirror back in place

The pre-1946 shutters have a self-timer, while the post-1946 ones have a flash synchronizer.  The synchronizer uses the space formerly used by the self-timer.  Cameras also varied a little in trim.  The 1945 version has a black enamel finish on the shroud covering the feeler that transmits the lens distance setting to the rangefinder while the pre-war and post-war versions have nickel plate instead of the black enamel.  I think this might have been an attempt to conserve nickel, a strategic metal, although I don't know why they wouldn't have gone all black if that were really the case.  Some cameras were made with metric distance scales.

1945 Kodak 35 RF with black trim.

Kodak 35 (1938-1948)

Kodak 35 with f/5.6 50 mm Lens

Kodak 35 with f/4.5 51 mm Lens

Kodak 35 with f/3.5 50 mm Lens

Kodak was making 35 mm film by the mile for the motion picture industry when in 1934 they started to sell for still cameras 36 exposure rolls of 35 mm film in what they called a daylight loading magazine, and simultaneously brought out a made-in-Germany camera, the Retina, that used the new film.  The competing Zeiss Ikon Contax and Leitz Leica also could use the same film magazine.  Another Kodak miniature camera, the Bantam, which came out in 1935, used film that was 35 mm wide, but in an 8-exposure paper backed roll like the other format Kodak roll films already in production.  People who used other Kodak cameras were used to taking only a few pictures on special occasions, and apparently Kodak believed that the Bantam with an 8 exposure film would be more appealing to family snapshooters than a 35 mm camera with a 36 exposure film.  The 1936 Argus A camera demonstrated that an inexpensive 35 mm camera would sell very well, and Kodak was soon to follow.  In 1938 Kodak brought out their first 35 mm cameras to be made in the USA.  The Kodak 35 initially came with three different lenses and shutters.  All three versions have cast phenolic resin bodies with metal top and bottom plates and flip-up viewfinders. All have front cell focusing lenses.  Close focus on all is 4 feet.  The back of the camera comes off for loading film.  To advance the film the photographer presses a button on the top of the camera and turns the winding knob clockwise until it stops.  The film counter is reset manually and counts up.  The photographer lifts and turns the film winding knob a quarter turn to release the film advance mechanism  to allow the film to be rewound.   

The least expensive model came with an f/5.6 50 mm Kodak Anastigmat lens (three elements) in a Kodex shutter.  The shutter speeds are 1/25, 1/50 and 1/100 second plus Bulb and Time.  There is a socket for a cable release.  The shutter release lever cocks and fires the shutter in one motion.  There is no double exposure prevention and nothing to stop the photographer from advancing the film without first taking a picture.  This model did not come with an accessory clip.  List price in 1939 was $14.50.

The middle model came with an f/4.5 51 mm Kodak Anastigmat lens (three elements) in a Diomatic shutter or later a Flash Diomatic shutter.  The shutter speeds are 1/25, 1/50, 1/100 and 1/150 second plus bulb and time.  There is a socket for a cable release.  Advancing the film cocks the shutter, but it is still possible to advance the film without taking a picture.  A small red flag is visible at the top of the lens to remind the photographer that the camera is ready to take a picture.  Film has to be loaded for the shutter to work.  This model came with an accessory clip for a Kodak Service Range Finder.  List price in 1939 was $24.50.

The top model came with an f/3.5 50 mm Kodak Anastigmat Special lens (four elements in three groups) in a Kodamatic shutter or later a Flash Kodamatic shutter.  The shutter speeds are 1/10, 1/25, 1/50, 1/100 and 1/200 second plus bulb and time.  Like the f/4.5 model, advancing the film cocks the shutter.  This model also had an accessory clip.  List price in 1939 was $33.50.  Unfortunately the front surface of the lens on mine is damaged and it is no longer a good picture taker.  [Update] I replaced the front lens element with one from another 35 f/3.5 that had a bad shutter and recollimated the lens.  It seems to be OK now.

Although the Kodak cameras are arguably better, the Argus 35s out sold the Kodak 35s.  The Argus C3 was the biggest selling 35 mm camera made in the USA.

[Update] The shutters on the f/4.5 and f/3.5 models were cocked by advancing the film.  When the film is wound on it moves past sprocket wheels that rotate a shaft with a bevel gear.  The bevel gear turns another bevel gear that is on a shaft with a pinion.  This pinion turns a ring gear that cocks the shutter.  Motion of the sprocket wheels measures out the film and locks the winding knob when the correct amount of film is feed out, taking one rotation of the sprocket wheels.  A button on the top of the camera unlocks the winding knob to allow the film to be advanced for one more picture.  This also advances the film counter dial one position.  The f/5.6 model has a similar film metering system, except that advancing the film does not cock the shutter, which is an ever-set shutter.

  

The Alley in Percy Warner Park, Nashville, Tennessee
Kodak 35 f/4.5 model.

Kodak Six-20 Brownie

The Six-20 Brownie camera was made from 1933 to 1941 and originally listed for $2.50. The price had gone up to $2.85 by the time it was discontinued. The first Brownie came out in 1900 and the last in 1980, putting this model about the middle of the long line of around 100 different simple cameras named Brownie. I haven't seen a record of how many Six-20 Brownies were made, but the answer probably is a million or more. The "Diway" lens has a negative meniscus lens in front of the shutter and a positive meniscus lens behind the shutter. The effective focal length is about 4 inches. The front lens can be swung out of the way to take a picture of a subject 5 to 10 feet away. With the front lens in place, the photographer can take a picture of a subject 10 feet or farther away. Ten feet is about the right distance for a full-length portrait. For close-ups the photographer could get a portrait lens attachment to take a picture of a subject 3-1/2 ft away, which is about the right distance for a full-face portrait. A slide on the top lets the photographer set the aperture to roughly f/11 with the slide in or f/16 with the slide out. The shutter speed was about 1/25th to 1/50th of a second when the camera was new. It is hard to guess what the speed of the 80 year old shutter is now. A slide on the side can be pulled out to let the photographer make a time exposure. There is no tripod socket, so the photographer would need to find a steady table or some other support for the camera to make a time exposure. The finder on the top is for portrait-oriented pictures; the finder on the side, for landscape-oriented pictures. The picture size is 2-1/4" by 3-1/4". When the camera was new, pictures usually were contact printed to make album size prints. It was uncommon to enlarge family snapshots. The photographer holds the camera in both hands against the body to steady it and moves the shutter release with the thumb. It just takes one movement to make an exposure. The pictures are spaced on the film by looking through the little red window at the numbers printed on the backing paper of the film. 620 film is no longer available, but currently made 120 film can be re-spooled onto 620 spools. Slower film, ISO 100 or less, would be best for outdoor pictures.

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The Cone

To see that it is the photographer, not the camera, that makes the picture, look up the story about John J. Loughlin and his Brownie on page 32 of the April, 1944, issue of Popular Photography (on line at books.google.com).

En Plein Air

This old camera can still take a picture. The subject was a painter at work in Centennial Park, Nashville, Tennessee. The film used was Ilford XP2 Plus, which is rated at ISO 400, but which Ilford claims can be exposed from ISO 50 to ISO 800 and still give usable negatives.

Graflex Graphic 35 (1954-1957)

The Graphic 35 was made by Graflex, Inc. in Rochester, NY, from 1954 to 1957. Production totaled 68,269 cameras.  It came in two versions, one with an f/3.5-f/22 lens and one with an f/2.8-f/22 lens.  

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This camera has a coated f/3.5 50mm Graflex Graftar lens made by Rodenstock (Munich, W Germany) in a set-and-release Prontor-SVS shutter made by Gauthier (Calmbach, W Germany). The Graphic 35 uses a coupled, split image range finder or a distance scale on the lens for focusing. It has unique push-button focusing. The photographer holds the camera with both forefingers on the buttons. Pressure on the left button moves the focus in and pressure on the right button moves the focus out. Close focus is 3 feet. The right middle finger pulls a lever to release the shutter. It is a different camera and takes a little getting used to. Shutter speeds are 1, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/15, 1/30, 1/60, 1/125 and 1/300. A lever can be set to M to synchronize the shutter with flashbulbs, X for electronic flash or V to engage the self timer. As is commonly the case with old shutters, the self timer on this shutter will not run, probably because it is gummed up with old grease. The camera has a flash exposure calculator coupled to the lens. The photographer sets the flash guide number on a scale at the bottom of the lens. The photographer focuses on the subject and a color code appears next to an index on the top of the lens. The photographer then sets the aperture to the same color code to have a correctly exposed flash picture. The back comes completely off to load film. Film has to be loaded for the shutter release to work. The plastic focusing buttons get brittle with age and you often find cameras with broken or missing buttons. List price for the f/3.5 version was $77.50 in 1955. The Graphic 35 was preceded by the Ciro 35. The next Graflex 35 mm camera, the Century 35, was made for Graflex by Kowa in Japan.

Construction in the neighborhood.

[Update] I've since acquired a Graflex 35 with an f/2.8-f/22 lens, also by Rodenstock.

Kodak Signet 35 (1951-1958)

The Kodak Signet 35 was made from 1951 to 1958 by Eastman Kodak Company in Rochester, New York. It replaced the Kodak 35 Rangefinder Model. The civilian version was a popular camera (more than 200,000 were made judging from the serial numbers I've seen) and is not hard to find today. The list price was $95 in 1951, and was reduced to $75 toward the end of production. Similar versions were made for the Army and the Air Force. The milspec versions (KE-7) are uncommon collector's items.

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Data Sheet for f/3.5 44mm Kodak Ektar Lens

Signet 35 Advertisement, Popular Photography, August, 1951.

Franklin, Tennessee, public square and Civil War monument

The body of the camera is made from an aluminum alloy. The base plate is molded from "Tenite" acetate plastic. The black surface is a synthetic, "Kodadur" material. The back comes off for loading film. It is held in place by a sliding latch similar to the one on many Kodak roll film cameras of the time.

The Signet 35 has a coated ("lumenized") f/3.5-f/22 44 mm Kodak Ektar lens in a Kodak Synchro 300 shutter. The design resembles a Carl Zeiss Tessar with four elements in three groups and the aperture stop between the second and third groups. The lens takes a screw-in Kodak No. 22 adapter or a 1-1/8" (28.6 mm) push-on adapter for Series V drop-in filters.

Shutter speeds are 1/25, 1/50, 1/100 and 1/300 second plus bulb. The shutter has two leaves. Unlike the preceding Kodak 35, the shutter is not cocked by advancing the film. The cocking lever is on the side of the shutter near the photographer's left forefinger when holding the camera with both hands. The shutter release is a paddle on the front of the camera near the photographer's right forefinger. The paddle is interlocked with the film advance mechanism for double exposure prevention. For a deliberate double exposure or to try again if the flashbulb failed to fire, there is a release lever on the bottom or a cable release could be used. The shutter has an ASA bayonet flash connector with an often lost aluminum protective cap. The shutter was "M" synchronized for No. 5 or No. 25 flash bulbs on earlier versions, or "MFX" synchronized for class "M" or "F" flash bulbs or electronic flash on later versions. Older shutters could be converted to "X" sync for electronic flash (Kodak Service Bulletin 768357, November, 1962). The socket for a cable release is on the shutter body. A cable release screwed into the cable release socket will block the shutter paddle from moving. To advance the film after using the cable release to trip the shutter, push and hold the rewind lever while turning the film advance knob about a quarter turn, then let go of the rewind lever and continue turning the film advance knob until it stops.

Film advance is by a thumb wheel. The film advance is interlocked with the shutter release to avoid accidental double exposures or skipped frames. Film rewind is by holding the rewind lever on the rear of the camera and rotating the rewind wheel.

The lens has a focusing knob (earlier cameras) or paddle (later cameras) and the lens helicoid rotates on 50 ball bearings for smooth action. The minimum focus distance is 2 ft. Rangefinder focusing is with a coupled co-incident range finder. The rangefinder has a bright, triangular focusing spot. For zone focusing the lens has a distance scale. The depth of field scale is based on a maximum circle of confusion of 1/500 inch (0.05 mm). The viewfinder is small, which is characteristic of viewfinders on 35mm cameras of the time, but seems reasonably accurate.

The camera back has an exposure calculator for Kodak films. The films shown on the calculator changed over the production life of the camera as new Kodak films were introduced and old films discontinued. Tri-X (introduced 1954 in 35mm) did not make it onto the calculator on the cameras I've seen, I think because film selector slide couldn't shift right far enough for Tri-X. Tri-X shooters could have used the calculator in the pocket Kodaguide or just followed the instructions packed with the film.

The camera is small and cute, and the lens is sharp. An article in the August, 1953, edition of Fortune magazine described the lens as "just about the finest f/3.5 lens anyone could wish for." Taking a picture is a process. You need to set the shutter speed, set the aperture, cock the shutter, focus, aim the camera, release the shutter and advance the film. To simplify things a little, the camera has settings for ordinary, sunny days highlighted in red: 1/50 shutter, 15 ft. distance, and f/11 for Kodak Plus-X film or f/6.3 for Kodachrome. The Signet 35 was marketed between the Kodak Retina IIa on the high end and the Kodak Pony 135 on the low end. The closest US rivals were the Argus C-4 and the Bolsey B-2.

The old Ransom Mill Dam, Stones River, Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

Argus Rapid Film Advance C-four (1958)

The rapid film advance model of the C-four was made only in 1958. This is a relatively uncommon camera because only about 6,000 were made. The original C-four has knobs to advance or rewind the film and was made from 1951 through 1957. The other differences are that an Argus CM-2 light meter could be attached to the shutter speed dial and that the shutter speeds were changed slightly. The plain C-four has 1/10, 1/25, 1/50, 1/100 and 1/200, but the rapid film advance C-four has 1/15, 1/30, 1/60, 1/125 and 1/300. The C-four has a coated f/2.8-22 50 mm Argus Cintar lens (three elements) that focuses from 3 ft. to infinity using a coupled, co-incident range finder. There is a hot shoe for an Argus flasholder or an electronic flash. Flash synchronization can be set to "M" for type M flash bulbs or "X" for type F flash bulbs or electronic flash. As far as I know, Argus did not offer an electronic flash. The camera uses regular 35 mm film. The back of the camera comes off for loading film. The exposure counter does need to be manually reset when film is loaded. This camera has a noisy shutter - not as loud as the one on a C3, but a close second. You get a ratchety snick instead of a clang. The shutter does have a bulb setting and you can attach a cable release to the shutter release. For daylight snapshots you could load the camera with an average black and white film and use the settings marked in red: shutter speed 1/125th of a second, aperture f/8, and focus 15 ft, to be ready for ordinary family photos in sunny weather. For color pictures, which in those days usually meant Kodachrome slides, you would change the shutter speed and aperture settings to the ones marked in yellow, 1/60th of a second and f/6.3, half-way between f/5.6 and f/8. The camera was made by Argus in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The old factory building, remodeled as an office building, still stands and houses a small museum devoted to Argus cameras. The Kodak Signet 35 (1951-1958) probably is the closest domestic rival.

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Bolsey Model C (1950-1956)

The Bolsey Model C was sold by the Bolsey Corp. of America from 1950 to 1956. Unusual for a 35mm camera it was a twin lens reflex. The great majority of twin lens reflexes used medium format 120 film, a few used the smaller format 127 film, and very few used 35mm film. The camera has a coated f/3.2 44mm Wollensak Anastigmat lens in a Wollensak Alphax shutter. In addition to the waist level reflex viewfinder, it has an eye level viewfinder and a coupled split-image range finder. The back is removable to load film and has a combined film reminder dial and depth of field calculator. List price in 1950 was $99.50 or about $1,067 in depreciated 2018 dollars. Bolsey cameras are small and cute, and supposedly were popular with lady amateur photographers.

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Reflex Viewfinder with Focusing Magnifier Flipped Down

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Jacques Bolsey (1895-1962) also designed the famous Bolex motion picture camera and the first of the Swiss-made Alpa 35mm single lens reflex cameras.