United States 1895 – Box Camera – Custom film – Rare. The Kombi camera was produced at the end of the 1800s by Alfred C. Kemper from Chicago. It was meant to be mass produced and an advertisement of the times mentions that more than 50 000 were produced in a single year. The … Read more49 Kemper
The Kombi
Early mass production
Italy 1952 – Compact – 127 film – Rare. Some designs are just Italian. Period. And sometimes design makes everything. Bencini, established in Milan in the late 1930’s was one of the flag bearers of the Italian camera market in the middle of last century. Most of the Bencini cameras were variations of a traditional … Read more48 Bencini
Comet III
Japan 1950 – Reflex TLR – Bolta film – Rare. The Tanzer was produced in the early 50s in Japan by the Nomura optical company. Not much is known about the Nomura company, which apparently only produced this camera in two versions (with and without flash synchronisation) and did not leave a notable mark. The … Read more47 Nomura
Tanzer “smile”
Japan 1978 – Subminiature – 110 film – Infrequent. Launched in 1978, the Pentax Auto 110 was a very exciting camera, causing quite a stir among photography fans. It was indeed a (super cute) miniature version of a 35 mm interchangeable lens reflex. Pentax engineers were the first to release a 110 reflex, equipping it with … Read more46 Pentax
Auto 110
France 1937 – Subminiature – Custom film – Rare. The Eljy and Super-Eljy cameras were produced by Lumiere (from the Lumiere brothers) from 1937 and are among the most recognizable French miniature cameras. They were extremely popular cameras as they were built with almost no major evolution from 1937 to 1951 when they were replaced … Read more45 Lumiere
Super Eljy
Germany 1936 – Reflex TLR – 35 mm – Very Rare. Introduced in 1935 by Zeiss Ikon, the Contaflex was an innovative 35mm twin-lens reflex (TLR) camera that stood out for its advanced design and built-in photoelectric cell. At the time, it was a groundbreaking development that captured the attention of photographers, despite its steep … Read more44 Zeiss Ikon
Contaflex
6000 Produced
Germany 1957 – Reflex TLR – 127 film – Rare. Descendant of the Rolleiflex Baby of 1931, this version popularly known as the “Grey Baby” Rolleiflex, was introduced in 1957, it was then replaced by a black version in 1963. This model helped kick-start a brief boom for 38 mm “super slides” whose slide mounts … Read more43 Rollei
Rolleiflex “grey baby”
France 1949 – Compact – 35 mm – Infrequent. At a time when the first 35mm single lens reflex were beginning to appear, the most renowned cameras were the Leicas, with their high quality mechanics and lenses. But France had something to say with the appreciated Foca Universel. In 1938, the French government had limited … Read more42 Foca
Universel
Switzerland 1957 – Subminiature – 35 mm – Rare. The Tessina, produced in Lugano in 1957, and is probably the smallest half-frame 35mm camera ever built. And possibly the strangest. It is a twin-lens reflex with pop-up viewfinder and a clock-work motor drive designed for waist-level inconspicuous photography. The almost 400 parts used in making … Read more41 Tessina
Automatic
Like a luxury watch
Japan 1961 – Compact – 35 mm – Rare. The Nikon F, introduced in April 1959, was Nikon’s first SLR (Single Lens Reflex) camera and one of the most advanced cameras of its day. Camera of choice for most photojournalists across the globe, very few cameras scream adventure and travel as much as the Nikon … Read more40 Nikon
Nikon F
The legend
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