Object detail
Accession number
2021.23
Description
Large wooden bellows camera with a metal lens protruding from the front. At the back of the object, a wooden panel folds outwards allowing the back panel to fold down revealing the camera sight. The sight is comprised of an opaque plastic screen with three transparent circles across the centre fixed to a wooden panel which is attached to the body of the camera on hinges allowing it to be moved. A metal rod is placed on a pivot between the hinges and can be rotated to lock the moveable sight panel in place. The back panel of the camera pulls outwards from the lens in an accordion style.
Brief History
The first cameras manufactured in quantity, Daguerrotype cameras, used a sensitized copper plate on which the image was exposed. This undated half plate camera would have used a glass plate as its negative. Glass was first introduced as a negative substrate in 1846 and remained in use beyond the introduction of roll film in 1888, in whole plate, half plate and quarter plate sizes, which initially corresponded to the size of the photographic print.
As roll film improved in the early 1900s the use of glass plates declined, although they remained in use for certain scientific applications, including astronomy, into the 1980s. Glass plates in these applications were eventually replaced by digital photography.
As roll film improved in the early 1900s the use of glass plates declined, although they remained in use for certain scientific applications, including astronomy, into the 1980s. Glass plates in these applications were eventually replaced by digital photography.
Media/Materials
Credit Line
Camera, 2021.23. The Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT).
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