Boots

This article is a stub. You can help Camera-wiki.org by expanding it.

Unimatic II image by AWCam (Image rights)

Boots is a chain-store chemist (a drugstore like Walgreens in the USA) in the United Kingdom and elsewhere. It has sold a multitude of cameras and accessories made by many manufacturers, including Braun, Beier, Franka, Houghtons, King and Bencini, rebadged under the Boots name, going back at least to 1911.

For a large fraction of the twentieth century, Boots was a popular film retailer and photo processor in the UK, and continues selling photographic products in the digital era. However, most cameras sold by Boots recently (apart from disposable cameras) are under the original manufacturer's brand names, rather than Boots own.

Boots Beirette BL image by Gianni (Image rights)

A Boots-packaged IXUS FF image by AWCam (Image rights)

Boots 5000 image by AWCam (Image rights)

Boots 404-X image by AWCam (Image rights)

Boots 110EF image by AWCam (Image rights)

cameras

35mm

• Boots 300AF
• Boots 350 AF
• Boots 35F Compact
• Boots 35MF Compact
• Boots animal cameras: Bug, Giraffe, Polar Bear, Tiger
• Boots Beirette series
• Boots Beirette BL
•    Boots Big Shot 35FX
• Boots C35FF (made by Ricoh)
• Boots FF 100
• Boots FF 135
• Boots MD 200
• Boots Mini Zoom (Ricoh Shotmaster Ultra Zoom)
• Boots Pacemaker series (Franka and King)

APS

• Boots 1000
• Boots 3000
• Boots 3000 MZ
• Boots 5000 Advanced
• Canon IXUS FF
• Kodak Advantix range

120 film

• Boots Koroll II (Bencini)

126 film

• Boots 126c
• Boots Comet II (Bencini)
• Boots Comet 100
• Boots Comet 126x (Bencini)
• Boots Comet 200 (Bencini)
• Boots Comet 404-X (Bencini)
• Boots/Bencini Comet 404-X
• Comet 455-X
• Boots Pakmatic (Braun)
• Boots Unimatic II (Bencini)

110 Film

• Boots 110EF
• Boots 110MD
• Boots 110 Electronic MD
• Boots 110 Electronic WeatherFlash
• Boots 110 TeleFlash
• Boots 110FF
• Boots Mini 110EF
• Boots Pocket 110EF
• Boots Tele 110
• Boots Tele 110EF
• Comet 110

Disk film

• Boots Disc 115
• Boots Disc 215
• Boots Disc 415
• Boots Disc 515
• Boots Tele-disc 715

Disposable

Boots have sold and continue to sell a large variety of disposables, under their own brand and also others such as Kodak & Fuji

Links

• Boots bug camera and other animals, by Roland & Caroline Givan

Boots KL-6 selenium meter image by AWCam (Image rights)

Sold And Branded "Boots Cash Chemists" image by Dave Dockerill (Image rights)

Boots Cash Chemists Field Camera

Dates from Circa 1906. Construction is typical for field type folding cameras of the period, Boots had pharmacy branches in just about every town in England in the early 1900s. There are a couple of other surviving examples none of them carry a manufactures name they have a Boots label or like this one are marked B.C.C. (Boots Cash Chemist) It is certain that the cameras were made for the Pharmacy by one of the UK manufacturers no records have come to light to enable us to be sure which one made them. Important for two reasons, this was the first time a camera was sold bearing the retailers name not the manufactures (that set the scene for the next 100 years) and for the first time the serious amateur photographer could buy a sophisticated camera from a high street chain store, the link between the high street chemist shop and photography was forged.

image by Dave Dockerill (Image rights)

Technical Details

• Format : dry plate 3.25” x 4.25”
• Construction  : Mahogany and brass field type camera with full range of movements.
• Shutter : Blind type 5 speeds and T
• Lens : B.C.C. Planomat f8