Help in ID'ing Japanese 5X7 Wood Camera

[griffenn]

I picked up a wood View camera from an estate sale. The camera is 5x7 format, wood, has red bellows, and has no manufacturer's plate on it. The background on the estate owner. He was WWII US Army and had 2 Speed Graphics, so I'm assuming that he was likely an Army photographer. I'm also guessing that he was stationed in Japan post-war where he may have picked up the 5x7. The red bellows should narrow the possibilities, but the last clue is the film holders. They are also wood and don't have the usual dark slides, instead, they have tambour dark slides (think roll-top desks). The dark slides pull to the top and just drape over the back of the camera. They do not come out of the holders completely. I've never seen this on a camera before and hope that this oddity will finally assist in identifying the manufacturer of this camera.

[grat]

Someone else recently posted about problems they were having with the dark slide on their camera, which they believed was a "Gilles-Faller" model from the 1950's.

Since I'd never heard of that manufacturer, I looked it up, and remember seeing a number of red-bellowed, wood cameras, with roll-top style film holders.

That's my completely random stab in the dark.

[Tin Can]

Welcome to the forum

Pictures would help

Recently I posted about my Japanese 1/2 plate camera and book style holders

[griffenn]

Welcome to the forum

Pictures would help

Recently I posted about my Japanese 1/2 plate camera and book style holders

I did check out the pevious posts, but none were similar, especially yours. Mine came with film holders and they fit.

Thanks though.

[Jim Andrada]

Pictures would help a lot - is anything on the camera written in Japanese? If so I could probably figure it out.

[Tin Can]

Mine looks like this

I have both types of slotted holder, plate book style and Matuo DDS film, they fit very well


Japanese 1/2 plate is close to 5X7 but slightly smaller All bought direct from Japan for peanuts, last year

I also live in ILL

Untitled by TIN CAN COLLEGE, on Flickr

Untitled by TIN CAN COLLEGE, on Flickr

[griffenn]

Mine looks like this

I have both types of slotted holder, plate book style and Matuo DDS film, they fit very well


Japanese 1/2 plate is close to 5X7 but slightly smaller All bought direct from Japan for peanuts, last year

I also live in ILL

Untitled by TIN CAN COLLEGE, on Flickr

Untitled by TIN CAN COLLEGE, on Flickr

Hi Tin Can,

Nice looking camera, but very different from mine. I used the ball head off that same Bogen tabletop tripod for my modified Bogen 3221. Big enough for an Olympus E-M5II and the lenses that I use. I didn't mean to sound critical of your camera, I got from your post that the film holders weren't an exact fit and that aspect contrasted with mine. Mine are also made of wood with that strange tambour darkslide. I will post photos of the camera as soon as I get a chance. I just found this site and wondered whether my camera would be easy for someone to ID from the odd points in the description. I've had this since the 80's or so and can wait a bit longer to appease my curiosity. I'm out of Naperville, BTW

[Willie]

Without posting some photos of the camera you are asking the near impossible.

[Tin Can]

I used to live inside Chicago

Now far downstate

Hi Tin Can,

Nice looking camera, but very different from mine. I used the ball head off that same Bogen tabletop tripod for my modified Bogen 3221. Big enough for an Olympus E-M5II and the lenses that I use. I didn't mean to sound critical of your camera, I got from your post that the film holders weren't an exact fit and that aspect contrasted with mine. Mine are also made of wood with that strange tambour darkslide. I will post photos of the camera as soon as I get a chance. I just found this site and wondered whether my camera would be easy for someone to ID from the odd points in the description. I've had this since the 80's or so and can wait a bit longer to appease my curiosity. I'm out of Naperville, BTW

[griffenn]

Well, Here are the images of the missing 5x7 Japanese field camera. , , , ,
Does anyone have an idea of who the manufacturer could be? It looks well made based upon the brass inlays in the camera and the film holders. The tambour flaps on the film holders are unusual in my experience.