Vintage TLR

I own this camera. My dad bought it for me at an antique store in downtown San Antonio, right across the street from The Alamo about ten years ago. Today, at work, our computer system went down, so I spent most of the day researching how to use this camera because it has been so long since I have even attempted. I've figured out what most of the levers and dials do, and I may have figured out its history, although the information on the Internet is either unreliable or in German, or both. It was made somewhere between 1939 and 1951. Some posts say it is the 1930s model, others say it is the 1950s. To me, it looks more like 1940s or '50s. Even so, it's a sixty-year old camera that appears to be in good working order. 

I've figured out how to attach a flash - I even have a flash that will work just fine - and I think I am going to take some indoor smokey bar pictures using a flash and an open shutter speed, just for kicks. It will take a lot of experimentation to get that sort of thing right, but I've been wanting to perfect it for years. I also have a tripod (and a tripod shoe - somewhere) and a cable release, so if I can find all of this stuff, I might be up for some night shots later on this week. I found my lovely, expensive light meter yesterday, so I shouldn't have any problems with exposure, even though this camera doesn't have a built-in light meter. It does have a rather cute chart on the side telling what the exposures should be from "May to August from 9 - 15 o'clock" in the Northern Hemisphere. It gives examples of exposure combinations for persons, landscapes and streets. For "streets," the camera makers even go to the trouble of specifying "narrow" or "ample squares." With my mostly expired 160 speed film, I will be sure to look for ample squares.

So tomorrow, I am going to buy some batteries and take some test shots, and see how they come out. I have a friend at Wolf Camera who can process 120 film for me, so I shouldn't have too long of a wait to see how they come out. I'm not expecting anything phenomenal for the first few rolls I take, as I am ridiculously rusty and clumsy-fingered, and I'm dealing with equipment not entirely familiar to me. I haven't really given this little camera a real chance in all the years I have had it, but I have seen some amazing links online to pictures taken with them. Even using modern film, the photographs have a dreamy, mid-century look to them, while still retaining a sharpness not possible with a plastic camera. 

Tomorrow, at some point, I have to venture into my attic to see what I can fish out. I know there are a couple of other old cameras upstairs that might be worth investigating. I have some ideas where I want to start content-wise, so I'll just head in the right direction and start shooting. I hear the weather is supposed to cooperate for the next couple of days. 

Well folks, it is 8:15 at night, and I am exhausted. I tried to go to bed early last night, as I was about to pass out tired, but I stayed up past the window of opportunity and then couldn't sleep. It's the equivalent of my Friday night and I will probably spend it in bed, possibly watching something on Netflix.