Tourist Photography

Image: Sanderson half-plate

Image: Mamiya 3C and subject

Posh box

All cameras are variations on the lens-in-a-box principle introduced by William Fox Talbot's experiments in 1839. That was itself based on the camera obscura principle used by artists to place an image of a view onto a ground glass screen over which a tracing could be made.

The professional's camera of the 1960s and 70s was often the twin-lens reflex like the Mamiya C3 shown above. The upper lens matched the lower but fed its (almost) identical image of the view onto a horizontal square of ground glass on top of the 'box'. Shielded by flaps from distracting light, the photographer could frame and focus the picture. Extending the bellows altered the focus. In this camera the lenses were mounted on a lens board which could be unclipped in order to change from wide angle to telephoto versions as required. High quality landscapes, as well as studio portraits, could be taken, though this heavy beast really needed a tripod and so was used for carefully composed work on medium-format film.
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Image: Brownie box and Zeiss folding cameras

Sun, Sand, Sea and Snaps

UK packaged travel after the war wasn't only to foreign parts by plane but traditional resorts around Britain by coach. The age-old attractions still proved to be the big draw - beaches were great places to laze around after greyer months in Britain. But a new element was being added in as photography became steadily easier, cheaper - and more attractive with shiny new cameras designed to be fashionable travel accessories.

Above left is a 1950s version of the long-lived Kodak Brownie camera. My own first snapper was one of these and there are a few curly black and white prints lurking somewhere in the house of trips to London and Scotland taken with it. Above right is a 35mm-film version of the Zeiss Nettar, a more compact development of the rollfilm bellows camera by this German firm. The Brownie was simple to use but also very basic. It also had to be carried by its leather handle or in a bag on the shoulder. The Nettar could slip into a pocket and be opened out when needed. It was more sophisticated, with a range of exposure settings and a choice of shutter speeds. On the other hand, though studio cameras like the Mamiya C3 (next above) remained wedded to the bellows, the tourist camera would soon become even more compact, slimmer and more pocketable.
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