Difference between revisions of "Agfa"

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* [[Agfamatic 901E motor]]
 
* [[Agfamatic 901E motor]]
 
* [[Agfamatic 901S motor]]
 
* [[Agfamatic 901S motor]]
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* Agfa Tramp
 
* [[Agfa Traveller]]
 
* [[Agfa Traveller]]
 
* [[Snapper]]
 
* [[Snapper]]

Revision as of 01:10, 11 May 2012


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Agfa film and development advertisement in an old drugstore window
Image by Uwe Kulick (Image rights)
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9×12 Isolar Luxus
Image by eBayer Yalluflex
(Image rights)
Agfa Ansco PB20-Antar
Image by John Kratz
(Image rights)
Solinette II
Image by Bill Strong
(Image rights)
Click II with Clibo flash
Image by Goodimages
(Image rights)
Agfamatic 100
Image by Uwe Kulick
(Image rights)
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Agfa films and accessories:
Plenachrome, 1938
Image by Dirk HR Spennemann
(Image rights)
CN17 Rapid film,
Image by Jim Grey
(Image rights)
APX 100 35mm film
Image by Markus Winkler
(Image rights)
Natarix finder
Image by Siim Vahur
(Image rights)
Agfalux flash
Image by .Castor
(Image rights)


Agfa was a major producer of cameras and accessories as well as film and photographic chemicals, based in Germany.

AGFA is the abbreviation for Aktien-Gesellschaft für Anilin-Fabrikation, given in 1873 to a company that had been founded in Berlin in 1867. It produced chemicals for photography. Most famous is the film developer Rodinal introduced in 1892 and continued for 115 years.

In 1925, Agfa was one of the companies that merged to form Interessen-Gemeinschaft Farbenindustrie (IG Farben), a huge corporation covering many dye, photographic and associated industries. As part of the merger, Agfa obtained the Rietzschel camera works in Munich from Bayer, and badged all Rietzschel products with its Agfa rhombus. Several of Rietzschel's cameras were continued, including the Isolar and Ninon, but in 1926 the first real Agfa camera was introduced, the Standard, in both plate/film pack and roll film models. In 1927 the name Rietzschel disappeared from the products, though the heritage of Rietzschel can be traced in Agfa camera and lens names for many years after. In that year the successful Billy camera series was introduced. In 1928 the US division of Agfa entered a merger with Ansco, and over the following 15 years many models from the two companies were sold under the joint name Agfa Ansco.

In 1930 the first Agfa Box camera for 6×9 cm exposures on roll film was produced. In the following year it popularized photography in Germany by dumping the Box 44 for 4 Reichsmark, easily recouping its losses afterwards by selling Agfa 120 roll films. In 1937 it brought out its first camera for 35mm film.

Shortly after WWII, IG Farben was broken up by the occupying powers because of its close association with the Nazi government. Some of the assets located in the Soviet-occupied part of Germany were taken in reparations, but some continued to operate (for example, the plant in Wolfen continued, first using the Agfa brand, then renamed as ORWO).

Agfa improved its prewar camera models and introduced the new 35mm Solinette. In 1954 it modernized its camera design with the Silette series. The pre-War Isolette was the basis of the highly successful of medium format folders in the 50s, culminating in the Super Isolette and the Automatic 66 (a folding camera with aperture priority AE, in 1956!). In 1959 a 35mm viewfinder camera with autoexposure button followed, the Optima. In 1964, Agfa-Gevaert was formed with the merger of Belgium film and paper manufacturer Gevaert. The Rapid system was introduced as an answer to Kodak's 126 film. The company debuted cameras accepting 126 film in 1967.

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In 1968 Agfa introduced its red sensor point, a round membrane made of red foil and framed with a metal ring. Depending on the camera type, either a mechanical or an electromechanical shutter release button was hidden under the flexible membrane. Since then this touchpad-like shutter button was used on most of the company's models and became a familiar feature.

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In Germany Agfa had a huge success with its popular "Ritsch-Ratsch" pocket cameras, which accepted 110 cartridge film. A whole series of these Agfamatic cameras was launched twice, the first series using magicubes and the second, flipflash. Of course these cameras had the red sensor point as shutter release button.

In the early 1980s Agfa produced its last film cameras. The new models of the Selectronic series were manufactured by Chinon. Agfa gave up camera production in 1983. All later Agfa film cameras were OEM products.

In the mid to late 1990's Agfa sold low end compact digital photography cameras under the Agfa ePhoto name, while their desktop scanners were called Agfascan. In 1997, it had acquired Dupont's printing and graphic arts film business.[1] In 2001, they stopped production and ended support for both their consumer scanners and digital cameras.

In 2004, consumer film production ended.[2] A management buy out of the consumer imaging division was made to form the company named AgfaPhoto, soon after AgfaPhoto files for bankruptcy[3]. Some of the factories and machinery from Leverkusen were sold. AgfaPhoto is now a holding company and licences branding to other manufactures.

The AgfaPhoto brand is licenced by German photographic company Plawa which sells a modest line of AgfaPhoto Sensor compact digital cameras. Lupus Imaging[4] is another licence holder of the name AgfaPhoto, they produced the Vista line of 35mm color film that are Made in EU, by Ferrania.

Currently (2012), Agfa-Gevaert (Belgium) is still producing industrial film for the medical, semiconductor and graphic press industry. A couple of companies like Maco using the Rollei brand and Fotoimpex‎ using the Adox brand continued production on some of the film and paper products. In Japan, Powershovel has licensed the AgfaPhoto brand for Vista print and CT Precisa slide film. The films are sold and manufactured in Japan[5].

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Plate cameras

120 film cameras

Folding

Rigid

Box

620 & 616 film cameras

(Agfa/Ansco designations PB20 & PD16)

127 film cameras

35mm film cameras

Folding

Fixed lens

fixed lens, half-frame

Rangefinder, interchangeable lens

SLR

TLR

Rapid film cameras

126 film cameras

110 film cameras

The series 1000/2000/... accepted magicubes.

The series 508/1008/... accepted flipflash.

The sophisticated models had a special hot shoe for the Agfamatic Lux flashes.

APS film cameras

Digital

  • Agfa ActionCam (1995)
  • Agfa StudioCam (1995)
  • Agfa ePhoto 1280 (1997 0.7 megapixel)
  • Agfa ePhoto 1680 (1998 1.2 mp)
  • Agfa ePhoto 307 (1997)
  • Agfa ePhoto 780
  • Agfa ePhoto 780c
  • Agfa ePhoto CL18 (2000, 0.3 mp)
  • Agfa ePhoto CL20
  • Agfa ePhoto CL30 (1999, 0.9 mp)
  • Agfa ePhoto CL30 Clik! (1999, 0.9 mp)
  • Agfa ePhoto CL34
  • Agfa ePhoto CL45 (2001; 0.7 mp)
  • Agfa ePhoto CL50 (1999 1.2 mp)
  • Agfa ePhoto Smile (0.3 mp)

Accessories


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Advertisements for Agfa products in Asahi Camera February 1930 and Shashin Salon January 1934. (Image rights)

Bibliography

Notes

  1. ↑ Agfa-Gevaert in Film Deal with Dupont - New York Times, Aug 7, 1997.
  2. ↑ Agfa pulls out of photo film, shares surge - USA Today, Aug 17, 2004.
  3. ↑ AgfaPhoto files for bankruptcy protection - Sydney Morning Herald, May 30, 2005
  4. ↑ Lupus Imaging website
  5. ↑ Agfaphoto with PowerShovel

Links

Camera industry in Berlin
Agfa | Amigo | Astro Berlin | Bermpohl | Bopp | B+W | Foth | Goerz | Grass & Worff | Levy-Roth | Ernst Lorenz | Plasmat | Rudolph | Rothgiesser & Schlossmann | Rüdersdorf | Schulze & Billerbeck | Sida | Stegemann | Romain Talbot
Camera industry in Munich
Agfa | Deckel | Eder | Enna | Friedrich | Kilfitt | Leitmeyr | Linhof | Niezoldi & Krämer | Perka | Rex | Rietzschel | Rodenstock | Staeble | Steinheil
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