Chris Dodkin
West Coast Correspondent
Here's a real oldie, from the 50s - The Kodak Brownie Hawkeye
This version is the later Flash model, and had a fully synchronized, battery powered flash unit, that reminds me of old black and white movies!
The camera and flash are made from a dark brown/black Bakelite, with deco styling, and silver metal trim.
The flash takes electronic flash bulbs, with a bayonet fitting.
The flash is quickly removed from the camera body with a single knurled knob, when flash isn't required.
Kodak put a helpful cheat sheet on the top of the flash unit - reminding you to use C size Photoflash Batteries, and giving you a set of useful operating distances for the flash.
The camera itself is lightweight, weighing just 15.5oz - and cost $7 when new.
The Hawkeye has a waist-level viewfinder model, and uses 620 film (6x6).
The lens is a single element meniscus, with a focal range of 2m to infinity, and a simple sliding aperture disc.
The fixed shutter speed is around 1/30 sec - and there is also a 'bulb' setting for long exposures.
The lens and viewfinder are non-coated optics, but seem to have survived remarkably well.
The camera shell contains a light box and film spool mechanism, which although designed for 160 film, can also take 120 film with a little tweaking.
You would load the fresh film spool in a dark room, locating the full spool at the top, and threading the leader into the empty spool at the bottom.
All film changing would have to be done in the dark to avoid fogging - and the completed film roll would have a lick and stick seal to stop it unraveling in the mail on the way to the processing lab.
Not quite a Hasselblad - but then, what do you expect for $7!
This version is the later Flash model, and had a fully synchronized, battery powered flash unit, that reminds me of old black and white movies!
The camera and flash are made from a dark brown/black Bakelite, with deco styling, and silver metal trim.
The flash takes electronic flash bulbs, with a bayonet fitting.
The flash is quickly removed from the camera body with a single knurled knob, when flash isn't required.
Kodak put a helpful cheat sheet on the top of the flash unit - reminding you to use C size Photoflash Batteries, and giving you a set of useful operating distances for the flash.
The camera itself is lightweight, weighing just 15.5oz - and cost $7 when new.
The Hawkeye has a waist-level viewfinder model, and uses 620 film (6x6).
The lens is a single element meniscus, with a focal range of 2m to infinity, and a simple sliding aperture disc.
The fixed shutter speed is around 1/30 sec - and there is also a 'bulb' setting for long exposures.
The lens and viewfinder are non-coated optics, but seem to have survived remarkably well.
The camera shell contains a light box and film spool mechanism, which although designed for 160 film, can also take 120 film with a little tweaking.
You would load the fresh film spool in a dark room, locating the full spool at the top, and threading the leader into the empty spool at the bottom.
All film changing would have to be done in the dark to avoid fogging - and the completed film roll would have a lick and stick seal to stop it unraveling in the mail on the way to the processing lab.
Not quite a Hasselblad - but then, what do you expect for $7!
