8 The Camera and its Accessories 



From the lens and the shutter let us turn our atten- 

 tion to the other end of the bellows, for here we meet 

 with no little difficulty in the form of the plate-holder. 

 The unsuspecting are inveigled into purchasing a 

 light holder, because the weight of the outfit is thus 

 somewhat decreased. All such plate-holders as the 

 "Fairy" and the "Feather-weight" should have no 

 room in the closet of the real nature photographer. 

 They are toys, and should be treated as such — mere 

 jokes at the expense of the purchaser. I have ex- 

 perienced the saddest realities with such plate-holders, 

 as well as with slides that in sunlight were not light- 

 tight for half a minute. Certain compositions of 

 rubber and celluloid are probably the best for slides, 

 but these need careful treatment. Great care must 

 be exercised in the selection of plate-holders, and 

 even then they need careful watching; for parts that 

 are supposed to be automatic do not always work. 



A very essential part of the field camera is what it 

 rests upon— the tripod. The tripod that I have us(ed 

 for some time is known as the "F and S crown tripod 

 number three." Various parts of this I have rein- 

 forced with screws and metal. To many this may 

 seem unnecessary, but having seen two serious 

 mishaps to valuable cameras from the use of poor 

 frail tripods, I speak feehngly upon the subject. 



