Ami (WZFO)

Front view of an Ami image by Ivan Ruggiero (Image rights)

The Ami is a toy viewfinder cameras made of plastic by the Polish firm Warszawskie Zakłady Fotooptyczne (WZFO).

Made around 1960, the Ami takes 6×6 cm exposures on 120 film. It has a 75/8 simple, fixed-focus meniscus lens, and only one shutter speed of 1/50 sec (with flash synchronization for flash bulbs only). Aperture is f/16 for sunny and f/8 for cloudy. According to Michał R. Adamczyk, "[its body] was made of 'styropol' - Polish high impact polystyrene, which bettered aesthetics and reduced weight" compared with the Druh. The camera was intended for use with 40-50 ASA (17-18 DIN) films on clear days, with aperture 16 in the sunlight and 8 in the shadow or under light clouds. On cloudy days, 100-200 ASA (21-24 DIN) films and aperture 8 were recommended.

There is no word ami in Polish. French was a widely studied foreign language in Poland during the Communist period, and the name of this camera was probably intended to evoke the French word ami ("friend").

There was a Flash called Amilux designed for the Ami series, Powered by 22.5v battery it used type "lb-2" Bulbs.

Was followed by the Ami 2 in the same year and by the Ami 66 in 1969.

Specifications

• Frame size: 56x56 mm (120 film type)
• Film advance: manual, with red window
• Lens: fixed, meniscus, 75 mm 1:8
• Focusing: fix focus, from 2 m to infinity
• Aperture: 1:8, 1:16
• Shutter: two leaf everset shutter, one 1/50 s shutter speed
• Cold shoe and standard PC socket
• Flash sync: flashbulbs only
• Tripod thread: 3/8"
• Dimensions: 143x82x100 mm

Bibliography

• Mariusz Jedynak (2018). Polskie Aparaty Fotograficzne 1953-1985. Wydawnictwo MS. ISBN 978-83-61915-67-6.

Links

• Ami, Ami2 and Ami 66 at Polskie aparaty fotograficzne (in Polish)

Sources

• Ami camera instruction manual