Photokina 1956

[nikkortorokkor]

Not that far off topic, but where to post? That is the Question.

I stumbled across this whilst researching the rather strange 1956 Montanus Tina, one of which is up for auction down here in grey hammertone and snakeskin finish!
Anyway, the 1956 Photokina catalogue is quite something -

home19.inet.tele.dk/riess/photokina.html

A project for the well heeled collector (not I) - Collect an example of every camera pictured. Good luck.

A project for the impoverished (me) - which camera from the '56 Photokina do you covet most. I'll not accept the obvious - no Leitz or Rollei products allowed! We could let you away with the Canon at a pinch.

Me, I quite like the Futura with Universalsucher attached, though the Dejur "Revelette" and Moller "CamBinox" make coosing difficult!

The range of technology and design engineering from the folding Dresden workhorses by the likes of Beier, to the dinky Mamiya 16 (& I thought Minolta were the innovators there) & the teched out Vitessa T is quite startling

[Just Plain Curt]

Hi Michael,
While not well heeled, I've picked up a few of these over the years. I have the Balda Baldinette, Altix V, Regula Cita III, Praktica FX2, Illoca Rapid IIL, Exakta Varex, Montanus Montana and Zeiss Contaflex. The one I'd really like? That would be either the Voigtlander Vitessa T or the Rollop 2.8. Had a Rollop almost in my hands at a church sale once only to have it grabbed up by an elderly gent with reflexes like a cobra. Regretted losing that one many times since.

[scott]

Michael, I think those old magazine ads and catalogs are fun to look at, too.

I admit to having several of those: the Arette (Xenar lens), the Baldinette, the Iloca Rapid II, the Regula Cita III (Tessar lens), and the Dignette (but mine is the re-branded Ilford Sportsman).

I was surprised what sharp images I was able to get with the 3-element lenses on the Baldinette and the Sportsman.

But of the ones I have, my favorite by far is the Regula.

[PeterW]

Hi Michael,

A project for the impoverished (me) - which camera from the '56 Photokina do you covet most. I'll not accept the obvious - no Leitz or Rollei products allowed! We could let you away with the Canon at a pinch.

Aw Gee, thanks! The Canon would be my first choice for Santa Claus. In second place I almost put the Linhof (lovely camera), but on reflection I went for the Exakta.

I love Exaktas. They really are beautifully made. I've got a Varex and also a 1936 Kine Exakta, both still working like clockwork - which they resemble inside.

I've also got two real basket cases, or box cases would perhaps be more appropriate. Some years ago I bought very cheaply a box containg two Exaktas, or to be accurate one Exakta and one Exacta (one of the less common ones with a 'c'), both completely in pieces. The poor misguided fellow had taken them apart and couldn't get them together again so he put all the bits in a box, all jumbled up. He assured me all the bits were there, but of course they weren't, and I didn't really expect them to be.

Exaktas aren't all that difficult to work on. They look complicated but they're very logical, and you don't need any special tools. It helps, of course, to have the factory training manual, which I have courtesy of my good friend, and gifted engineer, Thomas Ackermann. He even translated it into English for me because he said my poor German would probably lead me into traps and pitfalls.

I could have made one working camera from the two - except that one is 1949 and the other is 1951. This was the time when Ihagee was struggling to get back on its feet after severe bomb damage, and was making cameras from a mix of pre-war and post-war parts - some were pre-war inside and some were post-war. The insides look very similar but many of the different parts from each just don't marry, particularly the slow speed train and governor.

So I've still got the box of bits. One day I'll pick up a couple of non-working pre- or early post-war Exaktas 'for spares or repair'. Their unwarranted reputation for being complicated to work on puts a lot of people off non-working ones. They're nothing like as awkward as, for example, a Contax or Kiev, not to mention a Contaflex or Retina Reflex.

Then, maybe, I might have the luck to find some at least of the missing parts. Till then, I open the box occasionally, look inside, and sigh!

PeterW

[Francis in VT]

After 52 years the memory is still there like it was Yesterday.
The British Pound was $2.85 and the Italian Lira was about 625 to the dollar, I was just finishing a 30 day leave from my U.S.A.F. station in Fairford England. The Voightlander camera company had just celebrated their 200 year birthday and the Photokina was opening the next day in Cologne. My money was running low when one of the Voightlander officials asked me if I was going to the Photokina, and if so would I like a ride . Naturally I said yes. I said I would have to get my luggage at the train station when he said give the chauffeur your ticket and he will get it for you.

I was then ushered to a waiting Mercedes Limo where I sat in the rear with Dr. Frank Back of the Zoomar Lens Corp. while the front seat held
Dr. A.W. Tronnier, the designer of the lens system of the Voightlander Prominent. I had almost the entire set and kick myself every time for getting rid of it.

I was just an Airman first class but I was treated like a large dealer.
We had an interesting conversation and stopped for lunch then after dropping Dr. Back in Dusseldorf I was then taken to the tourist bureau where I got a room for the night. The next day I went to the Photokina, drooled over everything I could and then came home with a catalog which I still have.
Got out of the service in 1957 and in the Fall started working as a salesman which I did till I took early retirement 13 years ago.