Post by havoc on Nov 29, 2017 6:35:06 GMT -5
Got a bit sidetracked and forgot to put something up about this camera that is bugging the heck out of me. I bought it sight unseen from a little advert with a very tiny photo of it. Looked like a little known version of the Cxxx series of TLR's. Was cheap enough so I drove over to get it. In the meantime the seller had found "a few more backs and other spares". I found out that it was fate that had me take some family along to carry all the stuff back to the car. What I got into was this (the C330 with its 180mm is for reference):
They always say that the C330 is unwieldy large and heavy, but the Mamiya Portrait is in its casa behind it. And in that case is just the camera! You still need the viewfinder and at least one film back and the power supply to use it. Here is the beast with viewfinder and back:
And the backs go into another of those cases:
But you still don't have the viewfinder and psu along so there must exist an other case for those.
The backs take 30 meter spools of sprocketless 35mm film, good for 550 portraits. Now the camera itself has a few peculiar things. It is a 90-230 zoom lens, but you can not focus it. You focus by placing your subject at the correct distance. For that it has build-in a couple of cross beams. Sit in front or behind the focal point and you get 2 rectangles, sit at the right distance and they overlap. So much simpler than a tape measure.
Focus is at 2.3 meters. You can change aperture from f/8 to f/32.
Another funny thing is that the viewfinder is not directed at the photographer but at the subject to be photographed. The large hood has to be turned towards the subject. In the viewfinder there is an oval with an horizontal line at the top and a vertical one at the bottom. My guess is that the oval is to frame the face, the horizontal line to align a casket and the vertical one for a tie. This is but a guess but as from discussions I had these cameras were often used by the military it kind of fits.
Another strange item is labelled "number light". This illuminates through a couple of mirrors something onto the film below the portrait being taken. A very speculative guess is that this is to put the number of a punch card below the portrait, like when they show photos of convicts with their number. Reason I think this is that there is a slit that has just the width of a punch card at that place. It also fits with the presumed use.
Now what I'm missing is the power supply. This one isn't happy with a couple of AA batteries. The lamps in it are 24V, some components like the film transport motors look like they are AC types. But here all information stops. If anyone has more information on this camera, please let me know. From the numbers on the cases and backs I know there are at least 2 other ones.
They always say that the C330 is unwieldy large and heavy, but the Mamiya Portrait is in its casa behind it. And in that case is just the camera! You still need the viewfinder and at least one film back and the power supply to use it. Here is the beast with viewfinder and back:
And the backs go into another of those cases:
But you still don't have the viewfinder and psu along so there must exist an other case for those.
The backs take 30 meter spools of sprocketless 35mm film, good for 550 portraits. Now the camera itself has a few peculiar things. It is a 90-230 zoom lens, but you can not focus it. You focus by placing your subject at the correct distance. For that it has build-in a couple of cross beams. Sit in front or behind the focal point and you get 2 rectangles, sit at the right distance and they overlap. So much simpler than a tape measure.
Focus is at 2.3 meters. You can change aperture from f/8 to f/32.
Another funny thing is that the viewfinder is not directed at the photographer but at the subject to be photographed. The large hood has to be turned towards the subject. In the viewfinder there is an oval with an horizontal line at the top and a vertical one at the bottom. My guess is that the oval is to frame the face, the horizontal line to align a casket and the vertical one for a tie. This is but a guess but as from discussions I had these cameras were often used by the military it kind of fits.
Another strange item is labelled "number light". This illuminates through a couple of mirrors something onto the film below the portrait being taken. A very speculative guess is that this is to put the number of a punch card below the portrait, like when they show photos of convicts with their number. Reason I think this is that there is a slit that has just the width of a punch card at that place. It also fits with the presumed use.
Now what I'm missing is the power supply. This one isn't happy with a couple of AA batteries. The lamps in it are 24V, some components like the film transport motors look like they are AC types. But here all information stops. If anyone has more information on this camera, please let me know. From the numbers on the cases and backs I know there are at least 2 other ones.