Tag Archives: film

roped in

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

Posted in history | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on roped in

gone fichin’

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

Posted in history | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on gone fichin’

something to think about

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

Posted in history | Tagged , , | Comments Off on something to think about

hi-yo kinamo

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

Posted in history | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on hi-yo kinamo

lucky seven

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

Posted in history | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on lucky seven

for the birds …

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

Posted in history | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on for the birds …

the thrill of movies

Toronto. Kodak got into movie cameras and projectors in the 1920s to sell its amateur movie films. This ad from the December, 1937 edition of International Photographer shows a sampling of Kodak’s line-up of both 8 and 16mm cameras. Kodak … Continue reading

Posted in history | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on the thrill of movies

go big or …

Toronto. For decades, I thought of Kodachrome as home movie or 35mm slide film. Journal editor, the late Ev Roseborough, corrected me as did another journal editor, the late Bob Lansdale. When Kodachrome was introduced (1935) it was limited to … Continue reading

Posted in history | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on go big or …

too little, too late

Toronto. In this June, 1934 advertisement in Popular Mechanics, Kodak announced its new SIX-20 folder. The camera had lots of features but ignored the growing ground swell of minicam sales. My dad bought a simpler version of the SIX-20 a … Continue reading

Posted in history | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on too little, too late

well, this is a bit awkward …

Toronto. The American Cinematographer for May, 1938 carried an ad for the new Eastman Focusing Finder. It was used in the 16mm Ciné-Kodak by swapping out the film magazine. The camera had to be on a tripod or use some … Continue reading

Posted in history | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on well, this is a bit awkward …