Category Archives: history

perhaps well named?

Posted on April 26, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. The December 1925 issue of American Cinematographer carried an ad for the Debrie Interview, model E camera called “The Greatest of all Motion Picture cameras”. It was said to be ‘light’ at 14 pounds. With a body made of … Continue reading →

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another rope trick

Posted on April 24, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. In a recent post, I noted the Hitchcock movie “Rope” and why it was significant. In this article from the November, 1948 issue of Popular Photography, Alfred Hitchcock himself wrote the compelling story about making “Rope”. The story and … Continue reading →

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trying to climb aboard the amateur photo express

Posted on April 23, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. Talk about bad timing! This ad for a cheap Agfa camera “made in U.S.A.” appears in the July 1941 issue of Popular Mechanics. A few months later in December of that year, Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, Hawaii and the … Continue reading →

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roped in

Posted on April 22, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. In 1948, Alfred Hitchcock produced a film called ‘Rope’. I saw it recently – twice – on TV. It seemed odd to me and I wrote it off as an early attempt to recreate  a play as a movie. … Continue reading →

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gone fichin’

Posted on April 7, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. We usually think of photography as synonymous with pictures. But it also had a very practical side as a means of record keeping – even before digital technology and EXIF el al file data. In the 1960s, when I … Continue reading →

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celluloid memories

Posted on April 6, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. The October, 1942 issue of Popular Mechanics magazine has a small article on a little plastic 35mm transparency or film strip viewer. I have a wooden transparency viewer of similar vintage that also uses a frosted screen to spread … Continue reading →

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something to think about

Posted on April 3, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. We are all movie/video/TV fans at heart. But consider this – movies  preceded the minicams of the day (and the smartphones of today). We often think of great movies, but seldom of the equipment used to make them. While … Continue reading →

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hi-yo kinamo

Posted on April 2, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. In April, 1923 this ad appeared in the American Cinematographer. ICA in Germany announced its 35mm (standard film) Kinamo camera – the smallest movie camera of the time. The Kinamo was designed for both professionals and (advanced) amateurs, hence … Continue reading →

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lucky seven

Posted on April 1, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. We occasionally see a SEPT camera offered at one of our events. The ad at left is from the January 1923 edition of the American Cinematographer. While the little Sept is described as a ‘movie camera’ in this ad, … Continue reading →

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for the birds …

Posted on March 31, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. Some ideas work; some don’t. In 1942, the third Reich experimented with pigeon photographers according to this article in the September, 1942 issue of Popular Mechanics . Cameras were attached to pigeons and set for automatic operation over a … Continue reading →

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