CAMERAS 73 



ments. An out-of-focus condition that will not mar a contact print, however, becomes 

 excessively annoying when an enlargement of any reasonable magnification is made. 

 Folding roll-film cameras may be purchased in sizes from 35 mm. and half vest- 

 pocket up to postcard (3K by 5)4 in). Prices vary from a few dollars up to several 

 hundred. 



Table II. — Focal Length of Lenses Used on Roll-film Cameras 



Picture Size, In. Focal Length, In. 



(Approximate) (Approximate) 



1 X IH 2 



1^ X 2M 3 



2H X 3}i 4 



2y2 X 4M 5 



3}i X 4M 5ys 



SH X 5K 6M 



The better grades of roll-film cameras have rising and falling fronts (the extent of 

 rise or fall may be about one-fourth the height of the picture) which make it possible 

 to raise or lower the lens to include or exclude various portions of the foreground. 

 The better cameras have superior general construction, are heavier, and are more 

 sturdy. They often have two finders, a brilliant type and a wire type. 



The folding type of camera possesses several advantages over the box type of 

 camera. It is more compact; better models have better lenses and more adjustments. 

 Since the lens may be focused accurately upon the desired subject, enlargements of 

 considerable magnification are possible. 



Hand Cameras for Plates and Film Packs. — Approaching the professional view 

 camera in complexity, sturdiness, and general utility are the hand cameras designed 

 to use either film pack, plates, or cut film in plateholders. Such cameras have been 

 built in sizes as small as vest pocket, but the most popular sizes are the 6 by 9 cm., 

 9 by 12 cm. and 4 by 5 in. They are generally fitted with a shutter of the Compur 

 type; they carry well-corrected lenses of the anastigmat type with apertures of //4.5, 

 //3.5, and sometimes //2.8 and often have double extension bellows for making 

 pictures approaching natural size. They have fronts which can be raised or lowered 

 or moved sideways, and some of the more versatile have removable lens boards, 

 reversible backs, triple extension bellows and tilting backs. Such cameras differ 

 from a studio or view camera only in being more compact and less weighty. The lens 

 and bellows may be racked back into the camera frame and the front closed. The 

 camera then becomes very compact. A few models are thin enough to be placed in a 

 coat pocket. 



Cameras of this general type are often fitted with focal plane shutters and are used 

 for newspaper and sport photography. The popular Speed Graphic is of this type. 

 When equipped with a coupled range finder and a flash-bulb synchronizer, the graphic 

 type of camera is an extremely versatile instrument. They are available in sizes 

 from 23^ by 3J^ in. to 4 by 5 in. 



View and Studio Cameras. — The chief difference between view or studio cameras 

 and the better hand cameras lies in the compactness of the latter. View and studio 

 cameras fold up but not into such small space as the hand cameras. View and studio 

 cameras usually have frames of wood, hand cameras are usually built on metal 

 frames. View and studio cameras are made in sizes from 3}^ by 4^ in. up. The 

 lenses of these cameras are removable. Focusing from the back is possible. This is 

 of importance in close-up work (especially with wide-angle lenses) where the front 

 of the camera might obtrude itself into the field of view. 



The studio camera is heavier and bulkier than the view camera and is usually 

 mounted on a support which can be rolled about the studio on wheels. 



