Rapid Omega BOOKLET Product booklet

RapidOmega
the world's only 2l+" x23/q"camera
featuring:

 ' Automaticallycoupledf ilm transport/shutter
  cockingmechanism;
 ' Interchangeablelenseswith full rangefindercoupling;
 ' Single-windowrange-viewfinder,with moving,contractingf ield
  of view,and parallax-correctingframelinesfor different lenses;
 ' Interchangeableroll f ilm holderswith integralrapidf ilm-
  transportsystems;
 ' A uniqueautomaticretractingpressureplate.




 Form follows function.

 The RapidOmegasystemhas beenfunctionallydesignedto be
 readyfor anythingthe professionalphotographercan ask of it.
 Everysinglecamerafeature-f rom viewingto f ilm advance
 to format-ref lects a consciousdeterminationto make profes-
 sionalpicture-takingfast, easyand sure. Pick up a RapidOmega
 and it virtuallybecomesan extensionof your eye and your
 hand.lt is compactand lightweightenoughto hold comfortably
 for hours,shot after shot. All major controlsare locatedright
 whereyou can reachthem instantly,to keep you readyfor the
 rapid-fireshotsa pro must alwaysbe preparedto shoot.
 Film changingis just as fast, With the RapidOmega200, you
 can evenswitchits rollfilm holdersin mid-roll,in its light-tight
 film magazinehousing.
 Eventhe RapidOmeganegativeformat makesyour job easier.
  It enlargesin direct 8" x 10" proportionswithoutcropping.And
 without a lot of unprofitabledarkroomeffort. Which meansyour
 printswill containthe full compositionyou viewand shoot.
 Of equal importanceis the system'scomplementof lensesand
 accessories.The interchangeablelensesare world-famousfor
 their sharpness,contrastand excellentcolorf idelity.And the
 sensibleaccessoriesthat completethe extensiveRapid Omega
 systemleavenothingto be desiredby the commercialand pro-
 fessionalphotographer.
 RapidOmega.lt's the systemfor professionals.Because,to
 professionals,everyshot counts.

Professio  nal 21/q" x 23/a" format.


1 . 1 2 s q u a r e      RapidOmegacamerasuse convenient120 and
inches usable    220 rollf ilm, providingten exposureson 120
rmage area      and20 exposureson22Ofilm. But,unlikemany
of 35mm         othercamerasthat use this f ilm size,the Rapid
format. Wastes   Omegashoots,27+"x23/q"negatives.These
almost 20%       oversizenegatives,so vital in color work, give
of negative       you over 55% more usablearea than cameras
area, wnen        that shoot in the 2t/q" squareformat. And they
enlargedin       enlarge-in direct proportions-to8" x 10",standard
8"   x I0"          1 1" x 14" or 16" x 20" printswithoutwasted
proportions.      paperor cropprng.
             Youautomaticallycomposeyour picturesin the
                 viewfinder,then deliver lower-costproofsand
                   prints.In fact, the RapidOmega'snegativeis so
                 large (despitethe camera'scompact proportions
              and lightweight),that it can be retouched.





                  3.83 square inches, the usable image area of
                  2Y+" x 21/+"negative taken with a 120 reflex.
                Wastes 32% of the negative area, when
                  enlarged in 8" x 10' proportions.


                           5.88 square inches, the usable image area
                                   of Rapid Omega's 2Yq" x 23/+"negalive.
                          Large enough for retouching;uses 55%
                         more negative area lhan 21/c"'x 2la" format,
                             425"/"more than 35mm, when enlarged in
                                    8' x IO" proportions.

1 . R a n g e f i n d ewr i n d o w .                             1 1 Lens hood and depth-of-fieldscale.    3 2 D i s t a n c ei n d i c a t o sr c a l e .
    2 Accessoryshoes.                    1 8 Handgrip positioning set-screw.       3 3 . F o c u s i n gk n o b
    3 . F l a s he x p c s u r eg u i d e p l a t e .           1 9 . H a n d g r r pp l a t em o u n t i n gs c r e w s .     34 Distancescalesfor telephotoand
    4 V i e w f i n d e wr  i n d o w .                20 Flashsocket.                     w i d e - a n g l cl e n s e s
    5 Neckstrapeyeietsiots.               2 L S h u t t e cr o c k i n gc o u p l i n gc a m .         3 5 F i l m t r a n s p o r tk n o b .
    6 . C a b l er e l e a s ec l a m p .                                       aa aa  S h u t t e rc o c k i n gc o u p l i n gl e v e r .       36 Trinod sockets.r/q"and 3/e".
    7. Cablereleaseclamp set-screw.      23 Pedestal.                           3 7 . D a r k s l i d ec a r r y i n gs l o t .
    8 . H a n d g r i p                             z+ Viewfinder eyepiece.                 3 8 . F i l m m a g a z i n el o c k .
    9. Securitywrist strap.                25. F i l m - r e a d iyn d i c a t o r .                3 9 . D a r k s l i d eh a n d l e .
   10. Body release                     26. F i l m b a c k l o c k .                      40. Lens interchangelock.
      I  l Body releasesafetylock indicators   27. F i l m - t y p et a b h o l d e ra n d b a c k         41. Shutter-readyi ndicator.
   12 Body releasesafetylock stud.                               l o c k g u a r d .                          42. 72OI 220 indications.
   13. Cable releasesocket.             28 Back lock guard releasebutton.        43. Feed-spoolspindles.
   1 4 A p e r t u r es e t t i n gr i n g .              29. F r a m ec o u n t e r .                       44. T ake-upspool spi ndles.
          I 5  A n p r l r    r r n  / c h r r i t e r   c n p e . l        i n d i e    : t n r       30. End of f ilm lock release                    4 5  P r e c c . r r r o n l : t o
   16 . S h r r t t e sr p e e ds e l e c t o rr i n g .         3 1 .Distancei ndicatorarrow.            46 Film start-nrark.





44.

Photos courtesy of Bob Salomon.

PreloadingRollfilmHolders.                                             No pressurewhen f ilm is transported.

Boththe RapidOmega100 and the 200 accepteither I2O or 220 rollfilm in special
I2O or 220 rollfilm holders.
And the way they do it marks the most significant differencebetweenthe two cameras.
The 100 usesthe quick-changepreloadingrollfilmholder,whilethe 200 incorporatesa
fully interchangeablemagazinesystemwhich,if you everhaveto switchf ilm in
mid-roll,shouldbe your choice.
TheRollfilmHolder./t does more than just hold f ilm.fhe RapidOmegarollfilm holder
is uniquein waysthat directlyaffectyour results.lt holdsf ilm f lat under pressure
duringexposure.lttransportsthefilmon a naturalstraightpath,spoolto spool.Other         Pressureon film at moment of exposure.
camerastorturethe f ilm into a circuituousS-curve,necessaryto holdf ilm f lat against
its naturalcurl tendency.The RapidOmegarollfilm holderhas a uniqueintermittent
pressureplatewhich holdsthe film perfectlyf lat duringexposure,at the focal plane,to
assurecorner-to-cornernegativesharpness.Duringf ilm transport,the pressureplate
automaticallyretractsand releasesall pressure,to eliminateany chanceof
scratchesor static streaks.
The RapidOmega2OOmagazineconsistsof two parts:The preloadingrollfilm holder
for eitherI2O or 22Ofilm,and a separatemagazinehousing.Preloadany numberof
rollfilmholders,and you'rereadyto shootroll after roll withouttime-consumingdelay.
Or changef rom blackand whiteto colorf ilm, or f rom slowerto fasteremulsionanytime
-even midroll-by insertinga dark slideand switchingmagazines.Youwon't losea
singleexposure.
An exclusiveidentificationdeviceprintsyourcodeon the film bordersoyou can
identifyat a glancea particularassignmentor roll.And a convenientreceptaclein the
 rollfilmholderletsyou insertan end f lap from the box of f ilm you'reusingto remindyou
of its type.Also,on the rollfilm holderis an indicatorthat tellsyou if the f ilm was
advancedafter exposure.
TheRapidOmega100 usesthe identicalrollfilm holders,differingonly in its lackof a
magazinehousingfor mid-rollchanges.

Humanengineeredto make your job easier.                 Fast,sure focus.

A pro seldomknowsf rom one day to the next what his assignments      You focusquicklyand easilywith an oversizedfocusingknob,
will be. A sportingeventone evening.A weddingthe next day.            groovedfor nonslipgripping.The knob projectsbeyondthe bodyof
Aerialphotosthe day after that. We built the RapidOmegasfor just         the camera,makingit easilyaccessible.lt has multipledistance
suchuncertainty-toprepareyou for anything.                         scalesfor each of the lenses.Focusingis accurate,too, even in dim
Consideraerialphotography,for example.Mostaerialshotsare               light becauseboth camerasgive you a large,clear viewfinder
takenwith the photographerawkwardlybracinghimselfas the           combinedin a singlewindow,with a brightspotfrom a wide-base
planebanks,his handstrozenstiff or encasedin gloves,tryingto           rangefinder.As you turn the focusingknob, the two superimposed
adjustthe camera.Easy-to-handlecontrolsand bellows-free              rangefinderimagesof your subjectwill mergesharplyinto one.
constructionmake RapidOmegaa favoriteamongaerial               The viewfinder is similarlyfoolproof. As you focus,it compensates
photographers.                                                 simultaneouslyand continuouslyfor horizontaland verticalparallax                                                               and, by contractingor expandingits luminousf rame lines,corrects 1
                                                                   the lensf ieldof viewat all distancesfor the normaland telephoto
                                                                  lenses.The accuracyof SLRf raming,plusthe advantageof                                         L                                                                rangefinderfocusing.





                                                         90mm field
                                                           135mm field
                                                           180mm field
                                                                        Superimposed
                                                                               rangefinderimage




 The focus knob fits
  naturallybetween
 your fingers.lt has
  big distancescales
  for all lenses.





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Rapid pull-pushfilm advance.

            Film-advanceand shutter-cockingoperationsare alsoso well
            human-engineered,so ideallydesignedfor speedand comfort,that
             a RapidOmegais as easyto use in f rigid upperaltitudesas it is
                 in shootingthe ttight of a bridal bouquet.You can f ire off several
             shotsin the time it takesto readthis sentence.The RapidOmega
                split secondpull-pushf ilm transportand lenscoupledshutter
             cockinggivesyou this rapidactioncapability'
           The uniquerapid-advanceknob nestlescozilyin your palm.A single
             pull-pushstrokeadvancesthe f ilm for the nextexposure,cocks
             the shutterand activatesthe exposurecounter.
           The f itm advance/ocksafter the last exposureto signalthe end of
              the f ilm so you won't keepshootingon the papertrailer.





\
I

l8OMMF/4.5 ULTRA-TELEPHOTOLENS.
Angleof View: 28' (diagonal)
MinimumFocus:12'
ApertureRange:'tI 4.5 -f   | 32
FilterSize:SeriesVll
OpticalConstruction:5 Elementsin 4 Groups.
        withSupplied            LeatherCase, Front Cap,                  Rapid Omega Lenses.          Hood.Built-lnLens





                                              The interchangeableRapidOmegalensesare world-renowned
                                                              for theirclarity,brilliance,contrastand exceptionallyhigh
                      \                                        resolution.Theirelementsare criticallygroundf rom the Iatest
                                                       rare-earthopticalglass,and anti-reflectioncoatedon all
                                                    surfaces.The breech-lockmountholdsthe lenssolidlyand        fl                         positively,and changesfasterthan many 35's.
                                              Eachlensis equippedwith a silky-smooth,quiet leaf shutter,
                                                        with speedsfrom 1 secondto 1/ 5OOand "B". Shutterscock
                                                      automaticallyas the f ilm is transported,but may be hand-
                                                cockedfor intentionaldoubleexposure.
                                              The lensaperturesettingring and the shutterspeedselector
                                                          ringon all lensesare alignedto a commonindicator,and run in
                                                    oppositedirections.Oncean aperture/shutterspeedcombina-
                                                           tion has beenset,allyou needdo is graspboth ringssimul-
                                                    taneouslyand rotatethem to keepthe sameexposurevalue
                                                       whilealteringboth settings.Or, of course,each ring may be
                                                       rotatedindividuallyif a differentshutterspeedor lensaperture
                                                                      is desired.

Foolproofflash, too.

Becauseyou shoot indoorsso f requently,we made the
RapidOmegaeasyto use in eventhe dimmest light.
Rangefinderfocusing,of course,is much quickerand more
accuratethan reflex focusing-a vital advantageindoors.
Eachlens has largeshutter-speedand f / stop scalesclearly
visiblef rom the top. And the lenseswon't permityou to
makesynch-delayselectionerrors:the M-Xselectionlever
 is recessedso it can't be movedaccidentally.
Becauseyou often shootwith the f lashoff-camera,the
 RapidOmegasystemoffersa coiled S-footsynchcable with
a terminalthat screwsonto the camerato preventinad-                Recessedsynch lever.MX
 vertentdisconnect.
The RapidOmegaalso providesyou with a handybuilt-in
 f lashcalculator,alsoviewedf rom the top, which givesthe
 correctaperturesettingsat all focusingdistancesfor the
 f lashunit you use.
And,whateverthat unit is-Ascor, Honeywell,Graflex or
 similarf lashunitswith quick-releasemountingplates-the
 optionalRapidOmegauniversalflash bracketis predrilled
 to acceptthem all. Withoutinterferingwith back or lens
 changing.
 BothRapidOmegasalsoprovidethreeaccessoryclips,so
 you can mounta smallelectronicf lash,a sportsor wide-
 anglef inderand a meterat the sametime.
 Speed,safety,convenience,accuracy,fail-safefeatures.
              RapidOmegarecognizesthe pressures
                    you face, and relievesYou
                            of all it can.




                                                                           Screw-on
                                                                       synch cable





                                                                                  F lash
                                                                           exposure
                                                                               gu ide
                                                                                             plate.
Rapid Omega 200
shown with
Ascor Candid
Elec t ronicF la s h .

A completesystemat your service.

UNIVERSALSPORTSFTNDER.convenient,collapsiblef inderwith      FLASHGUIDEPLATES.Replacementf lashcalculator,permits
f ramesf or 9Ommand 18Ommlenses.Teleframefoldsaway           inscribingcorrectf / stopat all focusingdistancesfor f lashunit
whenusedwith normallens,foldsf lat on camerawhennot rn         beingused.Alsoavailablepre-engravedfor GuideNumbers140
use.Click-stopparallaxcorrection.                          and 200 (fullandhalf powerGN'sof Ascor,CandidElectronic
AUTO-UPCLOSE-UPATTACHMENTS.Precrsionopticalclose_up        F l a s hU n i tw i t hC P Sf i l m - 1 0 0 A S A ) .
attachmentswith built-lnrangefindercompensatingprisms.
Permitsuseof the camera'srangefinderfor focusingat closeup     CABLERELEASESHeavyduty 8" cablereleasewith lockf its
distances,eliminatingthe needf or guessworkor tapemeasure.       handgripmountingclip for convenientshutterrelease.
Usedwith 9Ommstandardlens,AUTO-Up#I givesa continuous     NECKSTRAPHeavyduty braidedNylonneck strap,with pivot
focusingrangetrom 23Yq"(127/8"x IOYz"f ield)to 40,,               connectorsfor cameralugs.Letsyou f ree both handswhen
(275/e"x225/e"f ield).AUTO-Up#2 focusesf rom 17V+',(B.elo,,x          desired,f or changingrollfilm holders,writingnotesor any other
7" field) to 223/a"ft3r/16"x 1 1 " field).                             time you wouldhaveto let go of yourcamera.





            U N I V E R S ASL P O R T SF I N D E R


                                      HEAVY.DUTYLOCK.ONFLASHCORD





                                           CABLERELEASES





                                           NECKSTRAP

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RUBBEREYE-CUP.Fits into accessoryshoeoverviewfinder         HEAVY-DUTYLOCK-ONFLASHCORD.Five.footcOiIEdf IAShCOrd
   window,providinga rubbercushionand blockingextraneous          permitsgreatestf lexibilityin f lashpositioning,especiallywhenH     light.Protectsfaceagainstmetalcontactin extremecold.            usedwith quick-releasef lashbrackets.Synchconnectoris
                                                              standardPC typewith threadedlockingcollarfor RapidOmega
   UNIVERSALFLASHBRACKET.Heavy-dutybracketf its both Rapid         that preventsaccidentaldisconnect.Standardright-angle
   Omegamodels,predrilledto acceptAscor,Honeywell,Graflex         2-prongparallel-bladeplug at f lashgunend.
    or similarquick-releasemountingplates.Dualanchorslockto
   cameraand won't interferewhenchangingbacksor lenses.The      CoMPARTMENTCASE.Strong,vulcanizedf ibre construction,
    larggknurledknob,which locksthe bracketto the tripod socket        holdscameraswith magazine(and/orrollfilmholder),lensand
    on the camerabaseplate,is threaded,and may be usedas a              grip attached.Threeextramagazines/roll holders.Extralenses,
    supplementarytripodsocket.FLASHBRACKET-His predrilledfor                 f ilters,generousf ilm supply,miscellaneousaccessories.Sturdy
    Honeywellmountingplateonly.                              enoughto standon, for specialshotsrequiringextra height.





                                                   COMPARTMENTCASE

OrderingInformation


RapidOmega200
706-526 RAPIDOMEGA2OOII2OCAMERASYSTEM
         With one I2O Magazine,dark slideand 90mm
                   f / 3.5 lens
706.527 RAPIDOMEGA2OOI22OCAMERASYSTEM
         With one 220 Magazine,dark slideand 9Omm
                   f / 3 . 5 l e n s
706-725 120 MAGAZINECOMPLETE
706-726 220 MAGAZINECOMPLETE
Rapid Omega100
706-501 RAPIDOMEGA1OO/120 CAMERASYSTEM
         Withone 120 roll holder,dark slideand 90mm
                   f / 3.5 lens
706-502 RAPIDOMEGA7OOI22OCAMERASYSTEM
         With one 22O roll holder,dark slideand 9Omm
                   f / 3.5 lens
Accessoriesfor both RapidOmegamodels
706-7OT 120 ROLLHOLDERWITHCOVER
706-702 220 ROLLHOLDERWITHCOVER
                 't15.6706-681 58mm    WIDEANGLELENSWITHFINDER
         With leathercase,and built-inlensshade.Includes
          opticalwide anglef inderwith case
706-691 9Ommf 13.5LENS
         With built-inlensshade,withoutcase
706-683 135mm f / 3.5 LENS
         With leathercaseand built-inlensshade
706-685 18Ommf /4.5 LENS
         With leathercaseand built-inlensshade
706-170 FILTERRETAININGRING-SERIES6
         For 9Omm lens
706-771 FILTERRETAININGRING-SERIES7
         For 135mm or 18Ommlenses
706-T72 FILTERRETAININGRING-SERIES8
         For 58mm lens
706_908 RUBBEREYECUPASSEMBLY
706-906 SPORTSFINDERFOR90, 180mmLENSES
706-902 AUTOUP NO. 1
706-905 AUTOUP NO.2
706-903 UNIVERSALFLASHBRACKET
706-115 FLASHBRACKET.HFORHONEYWELLQUICK
       RELEASEPLATE
706.214 FLASHCORD5 FT. HEAVYDUTYCOILED
706-911 FLASHGUIDEPLATE-GNI4OI2OO
706-904 FLASHGUIDEPLATE-BLANK
706-901 CABLERELEASE,8"WITHLOCK
706-907 NECKSTRAP
706-921 COMPARTMENTCASE
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