aCyclopsEye

Here I describe my cameras and discuss some brands and models in particular. These cameras are pieces of the history of photography, but I still use some of them frequently. Old cameras are fascinating objects that tell us interesting stories and exemplify the technical and technological development of photography. My emphasis is on cameras from the beginning of the 20th century until World War 2. I do not intend to collect randomly without purpose, or to even try to build a representative collection of the period. Instead I focus on specific camera types and models, and I construct the collection over the lines of evolution of such models.

Having a background and being active in scientific research I cannot escape having a methodological attitude towards collecting (although acquisition is often opportunistic rather than planned!). I thus tend to be attracted to models and evolutionary lines where knowledge gaps are evident. I then pursue methodically (or try to...) these gaps by searching for missing links and analysing representative samples of cameras. Camera types typically appeared as booms that represented circumstantial markets' pressure. The dead ends and deviations from mainstream are often the most interesting. As any collector knows, the rare and most sought after cameras are usually those that proved unsuccessful, thus being made in low numbers for brief periods. The best cameras where produced in high numbers and usually have nowadays a lower market value.

TLRs are one of my main current interests, and in particularly the Rolleiflexes and Rolleicords of Franke & Heidecke, with clear emphasis on early models and their development. But other good TLRs also interest me, such as those from Zeiss-Ikon, Mentor, Foth, KW, Welta or Tokyo Kogaku, just to name a few.

Other current interests are vest pocket cameras, either using 127 rollfilm (4x6.5, 3x4 or 4x4) or plates (4.5x6), and strut folding cameras that were the typical press cameras of the beginning of the 20st century.

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