Baby Rosen, Rosen Four and Adler Four

The Baby Rosen and Rosen Four are Japanese folding cameras using 127 film, made around 1935–6 by the company Proud. The Baby Rosen is a 3×4cm camera, copied from the Goldi, a German 3×4 camera made by the company Zeh. The Rosen Four is a derivative taking 4×4cm exposures. The Adler Four (or "Adler IIII" or "Adler IV") is a name variant of the Rosen Four, sold by Riken Kōgaku Kōgyō.

General description

The Baby Rosen, Rosen Four and Adler Four are vertical folders. In addition to the folding bed, there is a square metal plate mounted on scissor struts and supporting the lens and shutter assembly. All the models have a folding optical finder and an advance knob at the left end of the top plate. The back is hinged to the left.

The Baby Rosen

The Baby Rosen (ベビーローゼン) is a direct copy of the Zeh Goldi. The film advance is manually controlled via red windows and there is no exposure counter. The front leather is simply embossed ROSEN.

The Baby Rosen was advertised in 1935 and 1936. An advertisement dated September 1936 listed the following lens and shutter combinations:

• Terionar f/4.5 lens, Argus shutter, T, B, 25–100 speeds (¥35);
• Corygon f/4.5 lens, Vario shutter (¥45);
• Corygon f/4.5 lens, S-Pronto shutter (¥55);
• Corygon f/4.5 lens, N-Compur shutter (¥80).

The Corygon lens was made by Friedrich and the Terionar lens name is frequently found on Fuji Kōgaku cameras. The Baby Rosen pictured in Sugiyama is the cheapest version. The Argus shutter is everset and the speeds are selected by a small wheel at the top. The release lever is directly attached to the shutter plate. The latter has a decorative pattern shaped like a labyrinth and the aperture scale is at the bottom.

The Rosen Four

The Rosen Four (ローゼン・フォアー) is a modified version taking 4×4cm pictures. It is said that it was the first Japanese camera taking 4×4cm pictures. There is a small black housing under the advance knob, containing an exposure counter, manually reset by a small button at the front. It is said that there is no automatic stop device and that the film advance was controlled by the exposure counter alone (some control device was necessary because the rollfilm paper backing was not marked for 4×4cm pictures at the time). The front leather is embossed ROSEN on this model too.

The Rosen Four was advertised in the December 1936 issue of Asahi Camera. The maker was mentioned as Proud-sha and the distributor as Ōsawa Shōkai. The following lens and shutter options were listed:

• Rosen Anastigmat 50/4.5 lens, Rosen shutter, 5–150 speeds (¥48);
• Corygon f/4.5 lens, New Vario I shutter (¥55);
• Corygon f/4.5 lens, Prontor II shutter (¥69);
• Corygon f/4.5 lens, Compur-N shutter (¥82);
• Corygon f/3.5 lens, Prontor II shutter (¥80);
• Corygon f/3.5 lens, Compur-N shutter (¥95);
• Corygon f/2.9 lens, Compur-N shutter (¥110).

The example pictured in Sugiyama and Lewis has the Corygon f/4.5 and Prontor II combination. The example pictured in the Omoide no supuringu-kamera-ten exhibition catalogue and in this page of the JCII has a Rosen Anastigmat 50/4.5 lens and an everset shutter giving 5–250, B, T speeds, engraved PKW at the top of the shutter plate, with a P or LP logo on the right. The meaning of these markings is unknown.

The Adler IIII

The 'Adler IIII is a rebadged variant of the Rosen Four, sold by Riken Kōgaku Kōgyō (predecessor of Ricoh). The only visible difference is that the exposure counter housing is chrome instead of black and that the front leather is embossed Adler IIII

This model was probably introduced in 1938, together with the 4.5×6 Adler models. It is said that it cost ¥65. The name "Adler" was clearly used to demonstrate Japan's alliance with Germany. During the war period, Riken often used such names (they also sold a Heil camera), or other "patriotic" names.

Two actual examples have been observed so far. One has a front-cell focusing Helios Anastigmat f/4.5 lens (focal length is 5cm or 6cm) and an everset Perfect shutter by Neumann & Heilemann giving 5–250, B, T speeds. The shutter plate has a Neumann & Heilemann nameplate screwed to the top, is marked PERFECT at the bottom and has a NH logo on the right. Another crescent-shape metal plate with the aperture scale is screwed to the bottom. This lens and shutter equipment is similar to the examples observed of the Seica.

On the other example, the shutter also gives 5–250, B, T speeds. It is everset and has the same features as the Perfect but the shutter plate is marked ADLER FOUR at the top and has a different logo on the right. This shutter is perhaps a rebadged Perfect. The lens is said to be an Adler Anastigmat 50/4.5.

Bibliography

• Asahi Camera (アサヒカメラ) editorial staff. Shōwa 10–40nen kōkoku ni miru kokusan kamera no rekishi (昭和10–40年広告にみる国産カメラの歴史, Japanese camera history as seen in advertisements, 1935–1965). Tokyo: Asahi Shinbunsha, 1994. ISBN 4-02-330312-7. Items 326–7. (The Adler IV is not listed in this book.)
• Lewis, Gordon, ed. The History of the Japanese Camera. Rochester, N.Y.: George Eastman House, International Museum of Photography & Film, 1991. ISBN 0-935398-17-1 (paper), 0-935398-16-3 (hard). P. 51.
• McKeown, James M. and Joan C. McKeown's Price Guide to Antique and Classic Cameras, 12th Edition, 2005-2006. USA, Centennial Photo Service, 2004. ISBN 0-931838-40-1 (hardcover). ISBN 0-931838-41-X (softcover). P. 804.
• Omoide no supuringu-kamera-ten (思い出のスプリングカメラ展, Exhibition of beloved self-erecting cameras). Tokyo: JCII Camera Museum, 1992. (Exhibition catalogue, no ISBN number.) P. 25.
• Senzen no rikō kamera – hoi (戦前のリコーカメラ・補遺, Prewar Ricoh cameras – appendix). Kamera Rebyū: Kurashikku Kamera Senka (カメラレビュー クラシックカメラ専科) / Camera Review: All about Historical Cameras no.14, October 1989. No ISBN number. Rikō kamera no subete (リコーカメラのすべて, special issue on Ricoh). Pp. 21–2.
• Sugiyama, Kōichi (杉山浩一); Naoi, Hiroaki (直井浩明); Bullock, John R. The Collector's Guide to Japanese Cameras. 国産カメラ図鑑 (Kokusan kamera zukan). Tokyo: Asahi Sonorama, 1985. ISBN 4-257-03187-5. Items 1241–2. (The Adler IV is not listed in this book.)

Links

• The Rosen Four in the Camera database of the Center of the History of Japanese Industrial Technology
• Adler IV in the camera list at the Ricoh official website, that also contains an article about Riken wartime camera names