So you want to be Weegee:
Get yourself a pre 1947 Speed Graphic and some #2 flashbulbs and blind the world! These are the earlier 1930’s and 1940’s cameras that are still widely available. Serial numbers on the Graflex cameras can be used to find a date range for the particular camera in your possession here.
I have not been able to find a serial number on this particular Anniversary Speed Graphic, but the age of the lens is easy to determine. The Kodak Ektar 127mm lens follows a serial number pattern that Kodak created for these lenses. The letters C-A-M-E-R-O-S-I-T-Y represent the manufacture year in the pattern 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-0. You can see the serial number at the bottom of the lens begins with EO, so we can conclude that at least the lens dates to ’46 (as in 1946).
The lens is mounted in a Supermatic No. 2 shutter with some interesting features. On the top of the shutter, the flash bi-post fitting has the plug that leads to the flash – this is the contact that closes when the shutter opens and causes the flash to go off. Right below it you will see a red arrow that is pointed to an (upside down) “20”. This particular shutter can set the delay on when the flash fires in relation to the shutter opening. Think about why we would want this. The flashbulb, as discussed in the flashbulb section is a powerful incendiary device that begins to burn and has a light output life cycle. Here is one for the Press 25 bulb:
You can see that the shutter should be open around 20 milliseconds after the flash fires to get the maximum amount of light when the shutter exposes the film. The light output profiles of popular (Sylvania) flash bulbs can be found on the Dealer Sheet.
But I digress…..
A final major feature of the Speed graphic is a rear shutter. A tension adjuster and setting for curtain slit width is used to create a set of shutter speeds as shown in the chart on the side of the camera. All of the permutations of shutter speed derive from the tension and aperture adjustments above and below the chart. So you can use a lens that is not mounted with a shutter (what is referred to as a “barrel” lens) and use the shutter on the back of the camera.
So what’s not to like?
First of all, the back is just a spring loaded back, referred to as a “Graphic” or “Spring” back. It will hold a regular 4X5 2-sided cut film holder, but not much else. Other back designs allow for a wider variety of holders, which we will cover in discussions about 1947 and later cameras.
I modified the basic holder by turning it upside down so the “tangs” hang out on the left side rather than the right and put in longer screws to allow the back to accept thicker holders. There are Polaroid backs and 6 sheet backs I use with this camera. They get appropriate clearance with this mod, but later cameras have a more flexible back design, dubbed the “Graflok” back. We will look into this back on the later models.
Finally, the side handle does not accommodate removal for the addition of a second flash unit:
As you can see in comparison to a newer Graphic, the side strap on the right hand camera can be removed in order to mount a flash unit on the left side of the camera. You can also see the more advanced Graflok back with a 120 roll film adapter on the newer Crown Graphic:
So while the Speed Graphic has been a fun camera to have around, the limitations of the back and side strap have been a hindrance to what I have been trying to accomplish.
A complete run down of this particular model can be found on Graflex.org
Next up: Crown Graphic