What camera is this?

[DrTang]

Picked it up off ebay, mostly for the lens that came with..but after receiving it...I'm thinking it's kind of nifty

it has no nameplate or stamps or anything..It looks refinished..but..could it be someone's project cam with old or old style hardware?

I might use it if I can find some film holders..which look either single sided..or two sided with a groove


oh yeah..it's a 4x5


CLICK FOR PIX (http://www.mericphoto.com/lfp/newcam/whatcam.htm)

[Rob Gibson]

British dry plate 1880- 1905 ?

[Jody_S]

Not sure what it is, but I have the twin to this upstairs. Half plate. Came without a back, also bought for the lens (a Busch). I thought it had some similarities to early Ross cameras.

[dsphotog]

Rieskamera, My spelling may be off.

[Bill_1856]

Gandolfi.

[DrTang]

After looking and looking..I believe it's an Ernemann Heag of some type.

It's not in any book, but there are several online that look really close and still have the badge on the front.


Now - about those plate holders

what's it gonna take to shoot film with it?

plate holders with film sleeves maybe? is that something? I think I had a 8x10 plate holder with a film sleeve in it once

[Peter Mounier]

I don't know anything about those old cameras, but one very similar caught my eye while watching the Martin Scorsese movie Hugo a couple days ago. Scorsese made a cameo appearance as the photographer ...

Peter

http://artsfuse.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/hugo-133255l.jpg

[dsphotog]

I found a thread started by Ash in July 2011, he adapted a modern (standard size) back to a 13x18 FKD Reisekamera, looks just like yours.

[Steven Tribe]

Apart from the use of oak (?), this is the standard design of the Continental reisekamaera (chambre de voyage) - whose era was 1890 - 1920. These are mostly in 13x18 and 18x24cm sizes.
Most of these do not have a makers name. Sometimes there is the shop name, but mostly no name at all. The only marks are often the stamped assembly numbers on wooden parts.
Usual materials are mahogany or walnut. There are two designs. One with the turning back mount (yours) and the other (especialy from France) with rotating bellows around the front standard with a loccking catch system on two sides of the rear standard.
There are at least 4 designs of locking for the plate holders - apart from + - mms in width. All are double holders. Dark slide systems vary including: tambour, reverse tambour, segmented mahogany slides (both with and without "book" openings. "Scorsese's" model looks like a genuine UK product with mahogany segment dark slides and two brass plates for horizontal and vertical adjustment.
You should be able to find film/plate holders for this. Width is?
Even if it was made for the UK/USA market (4x5, 1/2 plate, full plate) the width of the slide in GG and film holder will match with the cm size of the model sold in France and Germany (and Italy and ....).

[IanG]

It's definitely not a British camera,there's tell tale signs with brass and wood work that usually distinguish British cameras from US or Continental European cameras.

So as Steven and dsphotog have said it's a Reiskameran, but you have to remember that the hardware is often bought in, there were at least two UK suppliers of Brass camera parts and I's guess similar on the Continent (Europe) so many cameras look quite similar.

Ian

[wclark5179]

Nice find!