Rochester View Camera

[tom thomas]

I saw a "Rochester View" camera in a small camera repair shop this week. Looked great from a distance. Apparently from a company before Kodak bought the company. Does anyone have one of these? I asked if it were for sale but the owner was out.

I did find a photo of one online. The one I saw has a different lens/shutter and lensboard however but looks nearly as good as this one.

Tom Thomas

[Brian Stein]

I have a similar vintage korona which does just fine. For more info look at http://www.fiberq.com/cam/roc.htm

[ic-racer]

I have a similar vintage Century 8x10 which I enjoy because 1) I like the simple fold-up procedure (as opposed to the Deardorff method) and 2) it is very light in weight. I use mine with a modern multicoated lens.
http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/showthread.php?t=29267

http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6611&d=1192220902

[tom thomas]

Thanx for posting the URL's. I think one of them is where I borrowed the photo I posted. I hope the site owner doesn't mind.

I posted info about the camera in case someone might be interested. It's kind of a shame that the camera is gathering dust on a shelf when it could be brought back to life. I don't know if it's even for sale but I could inquire again if someone is interested. I'd try to get you in touch directly with the owner in Tulsa, OK.

Tom Thomas
Cro-Magnon were the first digital photographers.

[robocam]

I have a Carlton model 8x10 view, by Rochester that I acquired from a friend, in very mint condition. It has a decorative round brass tripod mount, surrounding the lensboard when the camera is closed, about 5 1/4' in diameter, with what appears to be notches for 3 legs of a tripod.

Does anyone know of a tripod head that I should look for to be able to use this camera on a tripod?

Do I need to find a "period" tripod from around 1900?

Thanks in advance!

[GPS]

...
I posted info about the camera in case someone might be interested. It's kind of a shame that the camera is gathering dust on a shelf when it could be brought back to life. I don't know if it's even for sale but I could inquire again if someone is interested. I'd try to get you in touch directly with the owner in Tulsa, OK.

...

You can get tens of them from Ebay. The shutter on your picture is completely unreliable for photography with modern films because of its defective construction.

[Ernest Purdum]

Robocam, the Carlton was advertised as an "English" style camera. The brass turntable in the bed was one of the most English features. Rather than a tripod as such, you attached three individual legs to the turntable.

The Japanese made cameras with turntables up into the 1970's. By this time, though, it was usual to provide an adapter by which a tripod could be fitted. You could probably work out something similar.

In the early 1900's in the United States, it was common for tripod legs to be separate from the head until setting up. The result was a lot of damaged cameras when someone kicked a leg out from under. There were some gadgets available to reduce the hazard.

[Ernest Purdum]

Robocam, if you want to see what an early American tripod set looked like there is one on eBay. Item number 250374665630.

[Stephen Collector]

I saw a "Rochester View" camera in a small camera repair shop this week. Looked great from a distance. Apparently from a company before Kodak bought the company. Does anyone have one of these? I asked if it were for sale but the owner was out.

I did find a photo of one online. The one I saw has a different lens/shutter and lensboard however but looks nearly as good as this one.

Tom Thomas

Hi,
I happen to have a Rochester View 11x14 for sale. The dark slides are damaged. The lens is fogged. The bellows does extend. It's a lovely old item. Lens board has a slight crack. It is more a conversation piece at this time than a functioning 11x14 view camera. Ready to post it to ebay unless you were interested?
See attached photos.