Well the above statement is a bit of an enigma... in as much what appears to be simple at first glance turns out to have a GREAT deal of thought behind it.That's why it's deceptively simple. On the other hand there are complex solution and in this instance i thought i mention German cameras from the early part of last century..yes anything before 1961!
I own a Clack..Made by Agfa and as far as a shutter camera as far as i am concerned i don't believe there is anything simpler.
On the other side of the Spectrum there is the Kodak Retina, of wich i happen to stumble upon in a second hand store. The more i look at it the more i am amazed at the complexities of the thing. It's a rangefinder, with a light meter, timer,viable shutter and aperture,leaf shutter lens basically everything you would find in a decent SLR. Everything is interlocked and codependant. In 1959 this was around 300 Deutsche Marks.
considering the average monthly wage back then was only about 600 marks this makes it a very expensive camera. That would make it in todays terms somewhere in the order of 2000-3000 Marks....and it's only for the amateur market. While it's not a Leica or Rollei it does have some brilliant design work and the engineering is to die for. I was going to sell it...but i think i'll hang on to it for a while and experiment whith it. it is actually quite a NICE CAMERA TO USE once you figured out HOW to use and then its an absolut dream
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Hallo Mad Owl, Spud...
Good to see that SBtF hasn't made an infarction on this sumptuous little shutter-blog.
German engineering is very nice, particularly when it comes to things mechanical, although I've not owned a Clack (or caught one as the case may be).
AGFA may have been hard up on names and decided that the sound the wee beasty makes would do until they came up with something else before release... oops!
I do own another German Marque that, on the whole, is a rather brilliant piece of kit, and has lenses second to none.
Not that it hasn't/isn't without it's problems, as it has developed a little fault of not fully winding on after each shot and resetting itself.
Hence the reason for the post. German Engineering of this kind is not without its problems, but seldom does this have anything to do with the camera, and more to do with service agents.
Easily overcome if you live on the North Island, and even easier if you live on that really big Northern Island, Europe, but a tad easier to resolve without losing the blessed instrument of 'drawing with light' box of prestigious origins whilst Hans Müller repairs the cranky thing.
BTW, seeing as this a blog about photography, why have thou and SG O'Hara not added some splendiferous imáge to the title header...
Tsk, tsk...
Keep on Clacking...
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