Difference between revisions of "Kodak Super Six-20"
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{{Flickr_image | {{Flickr_image | ||
| − | |image_source= http://www.flickr.com/photos/ricksoloway/366036620/in/pool- | + | |image_source= http://www.flickr.com/photos/ricksoloway/366036620/in/pool-camerawiki/ |
|image= http://farm1.static.flickr.com/105/366036620_ec2445a70b.jpg | |image= http://farm1.static.flickr.com/105/366036620_ec2445a70b.jpg | ||
| − | |image_align= | + | |image_align= right |
|image_text= Kodak Super Six-20 | |image_text= Kodak Super Six-20 | ||
| + | |image_by= Rick Soloway | ||
| + | |image_rights= wp | ||
}} | }} | ||
| − | The '''Kodak | + | The '''Super Kodak Six-20''' is accepted as being the world's first camera with automatic exposure, despite its small production run. It was introduced by [[Kodak]] in 1938. |
== Description == | == Description == | ||
| + | {{Flickr_image | ||
| + | |image_source= http://www.flickr.com/photos/nesster/4340578290/in/pool-camerawiki/ | ||
| + | |image= http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4013/4340578290_6c43f09268_n.jpg | ||
| + | |image_align= left | ||
| + | |image_text= 1938 ad for "The camera with the electric eye" <br>showing the $225 price<br> | ||
| + | |scan_by= Nesster | ||
| + | |image_rights=pd | ||
| + | }} | ||
Exposure was controlled by a mechanical linkage from a [[selenium meter|selenium light meter]] to the aperture control. Pressing the shutter release first locked the meter needle, and moved a lever controlling the aperture up to the needle, before firing the shutter. | Exposure was controlled by a mechanical linkage from a [[selenium meter|selenium light meter]] to the aperture control. Pressing the shutter release first locked the meter needle, and moved a lever controlling the aperture up to the needle, before firing the shutter. | ||
| − | Adjusting the speed control moved a cover over more or less of the photocell<ref>Coe, Brian, ''Cameras, from Daguerreotypes to Instant Pictures'', p223, Nordbok, 1978</ref>. | + | |
| + | Adjusting the speed control moved a cover over more or less of the photocell<ref>Coe, Brian, ''Cameras, from Daguerreotypes to Instant Pictures'', p223, Nordbok, 1978</ref>. The film was [[film advance|advanced]] by a lever which also opened the [[red window]] cover and cocked the shutter, which "guards against double-exposures and blanks"<ref>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/nesster/4340578290/in/pool-camerawiki/ 1938 Kodak ad]</ref>. | ||
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The folding clam-shell design was by [[Joe Mihalyi|Joseph Mihalyi]] and styled by [[Walter Dorwin Teague]]. This incorporated crank [[film advance|winding]] and a [[coupled rangefinder]]<ref name="CoeK">Coe, Brian, ''Kodak Cameras, the First Hundred Years'', Hove Foto Books, 1988</ref>. | The folding clam-shell design was by [[Joe Mihalyi|Joseph Mihalyi]] and styled by [[Walter Dorwin Teague]]. This incorporated crank [[film advance|winding]] and a [[coupled rangefinder]]<ref name="CoeK">Coe, Brian, ''Kodak Cameras, the First Hundred Years'', Hove Foto Books, 1988</ref>. | ||
| − | The Super Six-20 was not a great success due to its enormously high price - $225 | + | The Super Six-20 was not a great success due to its enormously high price - $225 <ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120415004927/http://www.kodak.com/global/en/consumer/products/techInfo/aa13/aa13pg2.shtml Kodak's History of Kodak Cameras] (archived)</ref> (about $4500 in 2023), much more than a contemporary [[Leica]] - and a reputation for unreliability. Kodak employees had nicknamed it "the boomerang" for its regular returns for service<ref name="CoeK" />. |
It was withdrawn in 1944; production estimates vary between 714 and 725 being made; 719 is the most common guess. | It was withdrawn in 1944; production estimates vary between 714 and 725 being made; 719 is the most common guess. | ||
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| − | == | + | {{brl}} |
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| + | == Specifications == | ||
* Manufacturer: [[Kodak]] | * Manufacturer: [[Kodak]] | ||
* Country of Origin: USA | * Country of Origin: USA | ||
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* Film: [[120 film#620_film|620]], frame size 2¼ x 3¼ inches, 6x9cm | * Film: [[120 film#620_film|620]], frame size 2¼ x 3¼ inches, 6x9cm | ||
{{Flickr_image | {{Flickr_image | ||
| − | |image_source= http://www.flickr.com/photos/ricksoloway/ | + | |image_source= http://www.flickr.com/photos/ricksoloway/3428177707/in/pool-camerawiki |
| − | |image= http://farm4.static.flickr.com/ | + | |image= http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3367/3428177707_ea15d4eb49.jpg |
|image_align= right | |image_align= right | ||
| − | |image_text= | + | |image_text= 1936 Patent drawings |
| + | |image_rights=pd | ||
}} | }} | ||
| + | |||
== Sources == | == Sources == | ||
<references /> | <references /> | ||
== Links == | == Links == | ||
| − | * [ | + | * [https://collections.eastman.org/objects/52685/super-kodak-six20?ctx=c81b0f5e-1cef-4a6b-8f61-2d405b036e8f&idx=2 Super Six-20] on [http://collections.eastman.org George Eastman House site] |
| − | * [ | + | * [https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/objects/co8210879/kodak-super-six-20-camera-folding-camera Super Six-20] at the National Media Museum, Bradford, UK |
* [http://www.phsc.ca/Show_Tell_2001/Text_Files/Bill_Kantymir.html Bill Kantymir's Super Six-20 story] | * [http://www.phsc.ca/Show_Tell_2001/Text_Files/Bill_Kantymir.html Bill Kantymir's Super Six-20 story] | ||
| − | * [ | + | * [https://patents.google.com/patent/US2333807A/en?oq=US2333807A Design Patent 2333807] by [[Joe Mihalyi|Joseph Mihalyi]] filed in 1936, granted 1943 {shown on Google Patents} |
| + | * Kodak Super Six-20 listed at number 7 in [http://shutterbug.com/equipmentreviews/classic_historical/0708classic/index1.html Jason Schneider's Top 20 Cameras Of All-Time] on [http://shutterbug.com/ Shutterbug]. | ||
| + | * [https://www.leitz-auction.com/en/Kodak-Super-Six-20/AI-26-30741 Super Six-20 serial no. 1832] and [https://www.leitz-auction.com/en/Kodak-Super-Six-20/AI-26-31219 serial no. 2632], offered for sale at the [https://www.leitz-auction.com/en/Cameras/Past-Auctions/Auction-26/ 26th Westlicht Photographica Auction] (now Leitz Photographica Auction), on 22 November 2014. | ||
| + | * [http://www.butkus.org/chinon/kodak/kodak_super_six-20/kodak_super_six-20.htm Kodak Super Six-20 factory instruction manual in PDF format] found at OrphanCameras.com | ||
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== Postscript == | == Postscript == | ||
| − | + | Another auto-exposure patent pre-dates the release of this camera; | |
| − | [ | + | [https://patents.google.com/patent/US2058562A/en?oq=us2058562 US Patent 2,058,562] was granted in 1935 to Gustav Bucky and Albert Einstein! This covers a different, possibly impractical system using neutral-density filters to control light. The Super Six-20 remains the first auto-exposure camera to go on sale. |
In spite of the commercial failure of the Super Six-20, the "trap-needle" (Electric-Eye, "EE") system of auto-exposure eventually became popular from the late 1950s, until it was replaced by electronic systems in the 1970s. | In spite of the commercial failure of the Super Six-20, the "trap-needle" (Electric-Eye, "EE") system of auto-exposure eventually became popular from the late 1950s, until it was replaced by electronic systems in the 1970s. | ||
| + | {{Flickr_image | ||
| + | |image_source= http://www.flickr.com/photos/ricksoloway/3428988006/in/pool-camerawiki | ||
| + | |image= http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3303/3428988006_52f2c7d374.jpg | ||
| + | |image_align= left | ||
| + | |image_text= 1937 Concept drawings by [[Walter Dorwin Teague]]<br/><small>from the archives of [[George Eastman House]]</small> | ||
| + | |image_rights=wp | ||
| + | }} | ||
[[Category: K]] | [[Category: K]] | ||
[[Category: Kodak|Super Six-20]] | [[Category: Kodak|Super Six-20]] | ||
| + | [[Category:S|Super Six-20 Kodak]] | ||
[[Category: Super]] | [[Category: Super]] | ||
[[Category: 6x9 rangefinder folding]] | [[Category: 6x9 rangefinder folding]] | ||
[[Category: USA]] | [[Category: USA]] | ||
| + | [[Category: Walter Dorwin Teague]] | ||
[[Category: 620 film]] | [[Category: 620 film]] | ||
| + | [[Category:1938]] | ||
Latest revision as of 03:50, 1 February 2024
|
| Kodak Super Six-20 image by Rick Soloway (Image rights) |
The Super Kodak Six-20 is accepted as being the world's first camera with automatic exposure, despite its small production run. It was introduced by Kodak in 1938.
Description
|
| 1938 ad for "The camera with the electric eye" showing the $225 price scanned by Nesster (Image rights) |
Exposure was controlled by a mechanical linkage from a selenium light meter to the aperture control. Pressing the shutter release first locked the meter needle, and moved a lever controlling the aperture up to the needle, before firing the shutter.
Adjusting the speed control moved a cover over more or less of the photocell[1]. The film was advanced by a lever which also opened the red window cover and cocked the shutter, which "guards against double-exposures and blanks"[2].
The folding clam-shell design was by Joseph Mihalyi and styled by Walter Dorwin Teague. This incorporated crank winding and a coupled rangefinder[3].
The Super Six-20 was not a great success due to its enormously high price - $225 [4] (about $4500 in 2023), much more than a contemporary Leica - and a reputation for unreliability. Kodak employees had nicknamed it "the boomerang" for its regular returns for service[3]. It was withdrawn in 1944; production estimates vary between 714 and 725 being made; 719 is the most common guess.
Specifications
- Manufacturer: Kodak
- Country of Origin: USA
- Introduced: August 1938[3]
- Withdrawn: August 1944
- Lens: Kodak Anastigmat Special 100mm f/3.5, focus 4ft-infinity
- Shutter: Compur, 8 speeds up to 1/200; shutter priority auto from 1/25-1/200, slower speeds available manually
- Film: 620, frame size 2¼ x 3¼ inches, 6x9cm
|
| 1936 Patent drawings (Image rights) |
Sources
- ↑ Coe, Brian, Cameras, from Daguerreotypes to Instant Pictures, p223, Nordbok, 1978
- ↑ 1938 Kodak ad
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Coe, Brian, Kodak Cameras, the First Hundred Years, Hove Foto Books, 1988
- ↑ Kodak's History of Kodak Cameras (archived)
Links
- Super Six-20 on George Eastman House site
- Super Six-20 at the National Media Museum, Bradford, UK
- Bill Kantymir's Super Six-20 story
- Design Patent 2333807 by Joseph Mihalyi filed in 1936, granted 1943 {shown on Google Patents}
- Kodak Super Six-20 listed at number 7 in Jason Schneider's Top 20 Cameras Of All-Time on Shutterbug.
- Super Six-20 serial no. 1832 and serial no. 2632, offered for sale at the 26th Westlicht Photographica Auction (now Leitz Photographica Auction), on 22 November 2014.
- Kodak Super Six-20 factory instruction manual in PDF format found at OrphanCameras.com
Postscript
Another auto-exposure patent pre-dates the release of this camera; US Patent 2,058,562 was granted in 1935 to Gustav Bucky and Albert Einstein! This covers a different, possibly impractical system using neutral-density filters to control light. The Super Six-20 remains the first auto-exposure camera to go on sale.
In spite of the commercial failure of the Super Six-20, the "trap-needle" (Electric-Eye, "EE") system of auto-exposure eventually became popular from the late 1950s, until it was replaced by electronic systems in the 1970s.
|
| 1937 Concept drawings by Walter Dorwin Teague from the archives of George Eastman House (Image rights) |
