Semi Dak
The Semi Dak (セミダック) is a Japanese 4.5×6 box camera.
Description
The Semi Dak is inspired from the Kodak Baby Brownie, but it has a metal body and takes 4.5×6cm pictures on 120 film. It has a simple shutter and a fixed-focus meniscus lens engraved SEMIDAK and C.P.C.[1] The advance knob is on the left of the top plate and the folding finder on the middle. The camera has a curved film plate to compensate somewhat the lens aberrations.[2]
Date and attribution
Some sources say that the camera was released in 1947 but Kokusan kamera no rekishi mentions an occurrence in the January 1949 issue of Ars Camera.[3] Sources also disagree on the distributor: Sugiyama and Kokusan kamera no rekishi mention Asahi Shōten (朝日商店) whereas this page of the AJCC website says Chūō Shashin-yōhin. The C.P.C. marking on the lens could stand for Chuo Photo Company.
Notes
- ↑ Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p. 354, says that the shutter has B and I settings, but no such control is visible on the camera pictures in Sugiyama, item 584.
- ↑ Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p. 354.
- ↑ 1947: Sugiyama, item 4175, and this page of the AJCC website.
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. Item 584.
- 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. Item 4175.
Links
- Semi Dak in a page of the AJCC website (it is the box on the left in the picture)
