Reisekamera
Encyclopedia
The Reisekamera was a popular wooden bellows view camera
of the tailboard design, manufactured in large quantities in specialised cabinetmaker's workshops of the eastern regions of Germany from about 1860, but reaching peak popularity in the decades around 1900. These cameras would be distributed through well-known camera manufacturers situated in cities like Görlitz
or Dresden
, but would also emerge elsewhere and abroad, sometimes nameless and sometimes with the distributor or warehouse names attached, a fact causing considerable confusion with regard to origin.
wooden bellows tailboard view camera of almost standardised design, unlike the much lighter and more flexible field camera
, but not as cumbersome as the studio camera. A sturdy tripod
is always brought along, but it might just as well be placed on a tabletop. It has equally-sized rectangular front and back panels on a full-width double-extension baseboard that is hinged near the front. The front panel, holding the lens plate, has horizontal and vertical movements, while the back is tilt-suspended on brass standards running on brass tracks on either side of the baseboard, providing rack and pinion focusing on the film plane
. An almost non-tapering calico double-extension bellows
is employed; allowing the projected image to freely reach the photographic plate
regardless of lens offset position. The camera folds flat, after the back panel is brought forward to the lens panel, by folding the hinged base board up, and thus conveniently protecting the focusing screen
. For insertion of the wooden dark slide
plate cassette, the hinged focusing screen is swung up and away. The Reisekamera was made available for several plate sizes; most common are the 13×18 cm, 18×24 cm and 24×30 cm versions. Shutter
and lens
were normally not part of the original delivery. However, some were made available with a spectacular focal-plane shutter
, recognisable by the brass mechanisms either side of the back panel.
to bring along. The bellows extension would allow a selection of focal length
lenses to be employed covering the required field of view
. The back panel may be tilted and turned slightly, and at the front, the lens plate may slide vertically and horizontally to control perspective and distortion. The Reisekamera would be one of several cameras suitable for field assignments
focusing screen. After the picture is composed and focus
ed, the focusing screen is replaced by the plate holder
. The lens is covered with its cap, and the dark slide
removed from the plate holder. When all is clear, the lens cap is removed for the required exposure time and replaced. If an auxiliary shutter is present, it may perform the function of the lens cap. The dark slide is replaced, and the plate holder is removed and brought to the darkroom for plate development and copying. The camera would be supplied with a number of plate holders, each holding two plates, one on either side.
region of Germany around 1860, and in fact, many Reisekameras came from Dresden or Görlitz in particular. This region had a highly specialised woodwork industry well suited for camera manufacture. As the type became popular, manufacture of similar cameras took place worldwide, but these are more often than not clearly marked with the manufacturer's name. Possibly the best known Reisekamera is the Globus, manufactured by Ernst Herbst & Firl, Görlitz for the camera manufacturer Heinrich Ernemann in Dresden.
View camera
The view camera is a type of camera first developed in the era of the Daguerreotype and still in use today, though with many refinements. It comprises a flexible bellows which forms a light-tight seal between two adjustable standards, one of which holds a lens, and the other a viewfinder or a...
of the tailboard design, manufactured in large quantities in specialised cabinetmaker's workshops of the eastern regions of Germany from about 1860, but reaching peak popularity in the decades around 1900. These cameras would be distributed through well-known camera manufacturers situated in cities like Görlitz
Görlitz
Görlitz is a town in Germany. It is the easternmost town in the country, located on the Lusatian Neisse River in the Bundesland of Saxony. It is opposite the Polish town of Zgorzelec, which was a part of Görlitz until 1945. Historically, Görlitz was in the region of Upper Lusatia...
or Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
, but would also emerge elsewhere and abroad, sometimes nameless and sometimes with the distributor or warehouse names attached, a fact causing considerable confusion with regard to origin.
Description
The Reisekamera is a large-formatLarge format
Large format refers to any imaging format of 4×5 inches or larger. Large format is larger than "medium format", the 6×6 cm or 6×9 cm size of Hasselblad, Rollei, Kowa, Pentax etc cameras , and much larger than the 24×36 mm frame of 35 mm format.The main advantage...
wooden bellows tailboard view camera of almost standardised design, unlike the much lighter and more flexible field camera
Field camera
A field camera is a view camera that can be folded in a compact size. Modern designs are little different from the first folding field cameras from the 19th century. In general they have more limited camera movements than the monorail cameras used in many professional studios worldwide.Modern field...
, but not as cumbersome as the studio camera. A sturdy tripod
Tripod
A tripod is a portable three-legged frame, used as a platform for supporting the weight and maintaining the stability of some other object. The word comes from the Greek tripous, meaning "three feet". A tripod provides stability against downward forces, horizontal forces and moments about the...
is always brought along, but it might just as well be placed on a tabletop. It has equally-sized rectangular front and back panels on a full-width double-extension baseboard that is hinged near the front. The front panel, holding the lens plate, has horizontal and vertical movements, while the back is tilt-suspended on brass standards running on brass tracks on either side of the baseboard, providing rack and pinion focusing on the film plane
Film plane
A film plane is the area inside any image taking device with a lens and a digital sensor or film; such as a camera. The film plane varies in distance from the lens focal point in each manufacturer...
. An almost non-tapering calico double-extension bellows
Bellows (photography)
In photography, a bellows is the pleated expandable part of a camera, usually a large or medium format camera, to allow the lens to be moved with respect to the focal plane for focusing....
is employed; allowing the projected image to freely reach the photographic plate
Photographic plate
Photographic plates preceded photographic film as a means of photography. A light-sensitive emulsion of silver salts was applied to a glass plate. This form of photographic material largely faded from the consumer market in the early years of the 20th century, as more convenient and less fragile...
regardless of lens offset position. The camera folds flat, after the back panel is brought forward to the lens panel, by folding the hinged base board up, and thus conveniently protecting the focusing screen
Focusing screen
A focusing screen is a flat translucent material, usually ground glass, found in a system camera that allows the user of the camera to preview the framed image in a viewfinder. Often, focusing screens are available in variants with different etched markings for various purposes...
. For insertion of the wooden dark slide
Dark slide
The Darkslide is a skateboarding trick that is similar to a boardslide, but with the skateboard face up. The skateboarder thus slides perpendicularly on an obstacle, feet set on the face-side of the nose and tail....
plate cassette, the hinged focusing screen is swung up and away. The Reisekamera was made available for several plate sizes; most common are the 13×18 cm, 18×24 cm and 24×30 cm versions. Shutter
Shutter (photography)
In photography, a shutter is a device that allows light to pass for a determined period of time, for the purpose of exposing photographic film or a light-sensitive electronic sensor to light to capture a permanent image of a scene...
and lens
Photographic lens
A camera lens is an optical lens or assembly of lenses used in conjunction with a camera body and mechanism to make images of objects either on photographic film or on other media capable of storing an image chemically or electronically.While in principle a simple convex lens will suffice, in...
were normally not part of the original delivery. However, some were made available with a spectacular focal-plane shutter
Focal-plane shutter
In camera design, a focal-plane shutter is a type of photographic shutter that is positioned immediately in front of the focal plane of the camera, that is, right in front of the photographic film or image sensor.-Two-curtain shutters:...
, recognisable by the brass mechanisms either side of the back panel.
Usage
The Reisekamera might be considered the portable version of the studio camera, to be used outside the professional photographic studio, on assignment at location, for architectural work or documentation away from the studio, in homes or museums. It is collapsible, yet not small, and it is much too cumbersome and large for the travelling amateurAmateur
An amateur is generally considered a person attached to a particular pursuit, study, or science, without pay and often without formal training....
to bring along. The bellows extension would allow a selection of focal length
Focal length
The focal length of an optical system is a measure of how strongly the system converges or diverges light. For an optical system in air, it is the distance over which initially collimated rays are brought to a focus...
lenses to be employed covering the required field of view
Field of view
The field of view is the extent of the observable world that is seen at any given moment....
. The back panel may be tilted and turned slightly, and at the front, the lens plate may slide vertically and horizontally to control perspective and distortion. The Reisekamera would be one of several cameras suitable for field assignments
Operating the camera
When using the camera a black cloth is a helpful and often necessary accessory to keep stray light out while observing the image on the ground glassGround glass
Ground glass is glass whose surface has been ground to produce a flat but rough finish.Ground glass surfaces have many applications, ranging from mere ornamentation on windows and table glassware to scientific uses in optics and laboratory glassware....
focusing screen. After the picture is composed and focus
Focus (optics)
In geometrical optics, a focus, also called an image point, is the point where light rays originating from a point on the object converge. Although the focus is conceptually a point, physically the focus has a spatial extent, called the blur circle. This non-ideal focusing may be caused by...
ed, the focusing screen is replaced by the plate holder
Film holder
A film holder is a device which holds one or more pieces of photographic film, for insertion into a camera or optical scanning device such as a dedicated film scanner or a flatbed scanner with film scanning capabilities...
. The lens is covered with its cap, and the dark slide
Dark slide (photography)
In photography, a dark slide is a wooden or metal plate that covers the sensitized emulsion side of a photographic plate. In use, a pair of plates joined back to back were used with both plates covered with a dark slide...
removed from the plate holder. When all is clear, the lens cap is removed for the required exposure time and replaced. If an auxiliary shutter is present, it may perform the function of the lens cap. The dark slide is replaced, and the plate holder is removed and brought to the darkroom for plate development and copying. The camera would be supplied with a number of plate holders, each holding two plates, one on either side.
Origin
The Reisekamera is, regardless of the maker, quite similarly built and of almost standardised design, often without maker's identification. The collector's usual practice to identify some of these cameras by its name plate, if present, or even by the lens attached, results in almost identical cameras being attributed to more than one brand name. The original designer or manufacturer has not been ascertained, but it is thought to originate in the SaxonySaxony
The Free State of Saxony is a landlocked state of Germany, contingent with Brandenburg, Saxony Anhalt, Thuringia, Bavaria, the Czech Republic and Poland. It is the tenth-largest German state in area, with of Germany's sixteen states....
region of Germany around 1860, and in fact, many Reisekameras came from Dresden or Görlitz in particular. This region had a highly specialised woodwork industry well suited for camera manufacture. As the type became popular, manufacture of similar cameras took place worldwide, but these are more often than not clearly marked with the manufacturer's name. Possibly the best known Reisekamera is the Globus, manufactured by Ernst Herbst & Firl, Görlitz for the camera manufacturer Heinrich Ernemann in Dresden.