Photography reference
Why a GRAFLEX Product booklet
Product booklet for Why a GRAFLEX. 23 pages in English. Read the original PDF, download or print a copy without registration.
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- Graflex
- Model / document
- Why a GRAFLEX
- Document type
- Product booklet
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- English
- Pages
- 23
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- 4.8 MB
- Category
- Photography reference
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Page 3 · Read text
The Camera
fo,
More lnteresf i*g Pictures
FOLMER GRAFLEX CORPORATION
ROCHESTER, NEW YORK
www.orphancameras.comView original page 3Page 5 · Read text
"{
You'll find jusr whar
! thesehave found-
r ' *
Euxplorer Home Loaer
Jrlaturalist Traaeler
Sportsman Hob,byist
Artist-Photographir
the many actual usersof Graflex \t /HAT
v Y camerassay of them is likely ro be, we
believe, more interestingto you than anything
) we ourselvescould say.
Here are che statemens of an explorer, an
artist-photographer,a naturalist, a sportsman,
a taveler, a home lover, and severalhobbyists
who explain che "whys" of a Graflex.
These men, as a resulr of long and varied
experience,know photography. W'e cire their
expressionsregarding Graflex becausethey ouc-
line rhe real reasoningbehind their selecrionof
the Graflex after having made a serious srudy
of all cdmerdequipment.
The operation of a Graflex is exuemely
simple. Anyone can make the kind of perfecr
picruresfor which Graflex is famous.
@
www.orphancameras.comView original page 5Page 6 · Read text
Martin instance Johnson,fo,
-|HIS world-famed explorer
r -you have probably rcad
some of his books or arcended
his motion piccure leccureson
Africa-has tried pracci cally
every type of cam era rnade any-
where in the world, and has
cakenthe scupendousnumber of
65,000 phocographsduring his
uavels.
He cook 600 picruresof lions,
not caprive lions, buc lions in
their native hauns, oh his mosr
recent trip co Africa. His long
experiencein the field has dem- The intrepid explorer, Marcin Johnson,
onstrared [o his endre sarisfac- who "captures" the mosc ferocious of
tion chac Graflex is uniformly ofwild" Cameralife wichTrailsa Graflex.in Africa,He is" rhe" Throughaurhor
dependable,sure of gerrirg rhe the South Seas with Jark London,"
piccureyou arc after. " Liorl,," " SAfAri,"booksand other famous
The fact char you can look in
che hood and seeon the ground glass exacrly how rhe picrure on your
negadve is going co look, and che fact rhar its unique shutrer is such a
sciendfic marvel of precision-chese rwo Graflex features are of un-
questionedvalue in securing"outscanding" resuls in your picrure-raking.
Martin Johnson'spersonal car'rreraequipmenr, wirh which he explores
for the American Museum of Natural Hisrory, is eloquenr. Ic includes
six Graflexes and sixteen SpeedGraphics, made by the Folmer Graflex
Corporation.
cArD
Boch at Home and Afreld, More Imteresting
PicturesAwair You
Regardlessof whecher your carr'erasubject is rhe unramed beasr of
che jungle, or che farnily terrior as he stalks a passing feline-regardless
'of whether your "shocs' are brimful of acrion, or calm srudies of
plant life-wich the Graflex, you have in hand the carr:'erafor more
interesting pictures.
N ature provides endless camera. opportunities. To capture
the life and beauty of aII outdoors-qRAFLEx
4View original page 6Page 7 · Read text
Even beginners in phocography, and others who rake piccuresonly
now and chen, find an inscancand gratifyirg differencewhen rhey begin
using a QraJlex camera. Their compositions are so vasdy superior
from che first, due to the fact chat they can warch rheir subjeccsin rhe
ground glass, righc side up and full size, uncil che very insranr of ex-
posure. The pictures are uniformly far more nacural, far more artisric,
the kind of pictureschat everybody wanrs ro ger all rhe rime bur can ger
so rarely when focrsittg and composition are parcly guesswork. As one
amateur expressesic: "Every member of the farnily began wancing
prints from lny negativesafter I commencedusing the Graflex-though
of course they hadnlt the leasc idea what kind of camera I had been
using before or am using now. "
Graflex Photograph by Marcin Johnson. "The besc lion picrure I evcr
cook" says Marcin Johnson
You'rts't, stsand "i {{ffi ,' -:o"h:J,:trX:f,'yrfrt#; ; t trti
5
www.orphancameras.comView original page 7Page 8 · Read text
One of America's Most Famous
Art Photographers
IS photography was first a matter H
r r of necessitywhen, being unable
to b.ty illusuations for a book he was
writing, he purchaseda Gr:,flex camera
and made them. The first pictures
immediarely rcvealed the infinice possi-
biliries of the Graflex carr:'era as a
medium of artistic expression. He
made real piccuresof his children, of
vacation trips, and of innumerable
home activities. These pictures, when
seenby editors and arc buyers, decided
a new careet for the man who made
them.
This was ten yearc ago. Today he
has a fast-growing colleccionof photo-
graphs numbering well over 70,000
negatives-every single one of them
a Graflex picture-and covering an
arrrazlng range of subject matter.
H. Arrnstrong Roberts in a Graflex "To those who have never cried to
piccure taken on one of his rnany photograph dogs, especiallyhounds,"
carrleta Journeys writes Mr. H. Armstrong Robers,
"the accompanying photograph tr'ay not appear as any parcicular
achievement , y?t it was one of the most trying problems I ever had
with a car.r:'era,and I say this having photographed hundreds of dogs
of almost every vafiety, under all sors of conditions.
"These animals are French Fox Hounds, father and son, weighirg
about ninety pounds apiece, with a commanding scature and dignity,
but dmid creatures even in the presence of their master.
"To obtain the affangement and composition of this picture, to
record the character and dignicy of the hounds, to get them at the
instant when their rnuzzles were closed, to get chem both .with a\erc,
interested and natural expressions, unrestrained by ^ leash, and with the
light srriking in a manner rhar would yield rhe desired modeling-rhac
was the problem which required four hours of patient persiscence.
Its points of posititte scientific superiority malg the Qraflex the
perfect camera for wild-Iife photographs
6View original page 8Page 9 · Read text
"The picrure was made with a Graflex. Nothing shorcof a reflecting
canleracould be used in the makrng of such a picture. I use the Graflex
in rhe greaterparc of my work. I swearby ic, and having beena sailor,
that means somethittg."
An addicional inreresdng facr about Mr, Robers' famous dog picture
is rhac irs exquisite composition is said to have been "borrowed" by
more arrisrs, painters, and sculptors than any other known photogiaph
ln exstence.
The factrhar you can watch your composidon as it assembles,moves,
achievesirs peak of arcistic perfection, in the hooded ground glass of
your Graflex-seeiirg it at all dmes exactly as your negadve will "see"
ir, and in rhe same size, rhe moment you click the shutter-this estab-
lishes Graflex's superioricy as an art cam
One of the mosr famous dog pictures in existence
For truly artistic photography . Graflex is supreme. It puts
real " compositiom"within.,your reaclt
7
www.orphancameras.comView original page 9Page 10 · Read text
My Camera Made a Man of Me
By Richard K. Wood
(Extract. reprinted by permission. from Physical Culture Magszine)
"-fHE greatest lure to the ouc-
r doors is good health, and the
carrLerafurnishes an incentive for
being out-of-doors.'
" During my youth I was practi-
cally a weakli ng, ,,suffering from
the varied ills resultancfrom seden-
rary and studious habis.
"W'hen abouc the age of fifteen,
someone gave me a book on the
subject of oucdoor photognphy,
and, becomirg intensely interested
in the science-art-craft of picture
making, I savedmy sma[ earnings Richard K. Wood, of Chacranooga,
Tennessee, wirh his Graflex Camera in
and purchased a hand car.r:'eraof the Flo fida jungle
4 x 5, or half-plate size. That
:f,ff:iff:,'L:':',0.T:'ii:,1"t'r5':,-#:|;lI# ilHt Ti f,,ffi: subjects,in the acquiring of which I developed inco a hardy and heakhy
outdoorsman. It has now been ten yearsor more sinceI neededcheser-
vices of a physician; and for this period of exceptionally good heakh, I
am grateful to the camera, because ic was-and is-the incentive for
remainitg out-of-doors during all my holidays and spare momencs.
"Early in my photographic careerI realized che commonplacenessof
such caft:.erasubjeccsas portrais, farnily groups, houses, erc. Land-
scapes, seascapes,bird and wild animal life, borany, woodcrafr,
entomology and zoology, were subjeccsaffording a vasc field for my
photographic efforts."
Mr. Wood adds that "che personwho desiresbetter pictures-picrures
more interesting than che routine-equipmenc so flexible chat no picrure
opportunity is beyond its scope-soon finds, as I did, thar the Graflex is
che most amazing all-purpose car'r:'era.
' 'lts
::::H::m;,';:ru1'ru,,,il"1ffiLi:"::focusing hood enableseven the beginnerto get real composition mome ntary expressions are almosc invariably the mosc inreresring
You actually " study your subject" in your Qraflex finder-Snap
tlt.eshutter release at the supreme, artistic moment
8View original page 10Page 11 · Read text
expressions. Above all, che professional and the amateur like rhe
Graflex for ex actly the same reason-che facc chac ic is the surest and
simplesr to operate. Some people have opporcunitiesco mke exrraordi-
naty piccuresoftener than ochers . but everybody has opporuuniries
to take extrao rdinary pictures somedme, and the carrrera for such
pictures is the Graflex. "
Mr. Wood has braved the elemencs of the Northland wich his
Graflex, when the, thermomecer was hovering around forty degrees
below zero; he has swelceredin Florida palmerro jungles-wairing for
a rare heron; explored the swampy environs of Reelfooc Lake; and
che fastnessesof the greacSmoky Mountains co photograph buzzards'
nestsabove the clouds. Like Martin Johnson,he has found the sciendfic
victories of the Graflex car'raeramake it the carr'erafor difficulc pictures
and for picturesthat you want to be sureof gerti.g chefirst time you uy.
A subjecc in focus in che Grafl,ex hood is in focus in rhe Graflex lens rhar's
the greac difference becween the Graflex ground glass and the
ordinary carnera finder. Whac a great Nature picture !
The litcle fellow means business!
The amaling types of pictures you can take when you own a Qraflex
are a constant inaitation to spend more time out-of -doors
9
www.orphancameras.comView original page 11Page 12 · Read text
CHILI
-fHE dearestexpressionsof childhood are s
I charming . they last lioo of a second
like adult expressionsand acrivities. Sporr
are strained, dictated ro, or posed, you *j
expressionsyou love most are lost. I
The Graflex is the one carrrerafor such pi
every movement, every facial expression, ev
There's a liueliness abouc a Graflex al-
bum which rnakes rhe sarisfaccion of
using this carr'era worth rnany, many
times its price. The rnornenr phoro-
graphed above is a Graflex rnomenc !
For characLer studies-no carrrera in the
world like the Graflex ! For in such pic-
tures che expression of a fl.eecingfracrion
of a second is ofcen rhe expression rhar
couches your hearr
A rnarvelous piccure for a splir
second-an instanc later perhaps
no piccure ac all Graflex
cameras are readv the inscanc the
picture it teady
the arrival of rhac exacr insunr which you
instanc in your ground glass, so will ic be ,q
Becauseof rhis exrraordinary facility attd
many professional exper$ in rhis cype of 1
prefercnceto any other equipmenr, so rhac {
their own home environmenr, inscead of ir
suange studio.
There,sthetllrilIofalifetimeinthechiIdhoodma'Sterpieces
10View original page 12Page 13 · Read text
)REN!
uch fleedng expressions,wisrful, whimsical,
or )(ooo. Not to be governed and ordered
and narural rhe momenc rhey[aneous
no are parens know how cornpl ercly rhe
I
.cturesbecausein irs raised hood you watch
erytwinkle of an eye of your'subjecc,until
"Gurgle, $urgle"-a picture of a type
thac one would hardly acrempc wirh any
orher camera rhan ; Grafl& ! And ;
piccure brimful of joy for a lifecime
"Studying Nature"-an alburn of Gra-
flex piccures record childhood's actiuities
instead of just the "likeness. " Pre-
cious, fleeting seconds caprured by your
Graflex !
"Now I wonder who's corning?"
-Wirh a Graflex you can warch
your subjecr changing posirion in
your ground glass unril rhe very
instanc you click the shurrer
want to caprure for life ! As you see rhac
r your negarive!
! versatility in the raking of child piccures,
hotographyhave rurned ro the Graflex in
heycan take perfeccpicrures of children in
rsisringchar rhe children be broughr ro a
'icelesstredsures of baby days which Qraflex, best, cd,n td,ke
Ll,
www.orphancameras.comView original page 13Page 14 · Read text
"That's News!"
rnagazines and Roro- FISHERMEN'S
r gravure newspapersseldom have an op-
portunity to princ such a piccure! The
photographer, J. E. Stanley, of Miami,
Florida, did the nearly impossible in cacch-
ittg chis 79-Ib. sailfish in mid -aft jusr afrcr
J . E . S t a n l e y o f
Miami, Florida-
Needless to say
he's a real Graflex
enthusiasc
@ Stanlev & Baxley, Miami, Florida
One of the ffrosc frequencly reproduced pictures in che world.
Only a Graflex for such a picture !
ir had beenhooked. The ability ro seeit in his Graflex hood and ro snap
it in flighc in rr(oooof a second is rhe only ching thar made such a
camera miracle possible. Result: "This now famous picture has been
published over 200 rimes," wrices Mr. Stanley. "Our Chamber of
Commerce has a scrapbook showing about 60 Rotogravure and 160
newsprint reproductions."
It took 38 minutes to land this particular sailfish. Many others are
landed in Florida warers every year. But to snap such a picture as Mr.
Stanley snapped-thac is the opportunicy of a lifedme ! And to have
been equipped with any lesser carr.erathan Graflex would have been
tragic ! So often, the "picture opportunities of a lifedme" last for only
a split fracdon of a second. The Graflex is che one camera which makes
ic possibleto photograph chem.
Sport is made more fun . lts most thrillin g incidents endur e
for a lifetime . with a qRAFLEX
nView original page 14Page 15 · Read text
Slrorc Tnvels Last a Lifecime When You
Take Along a Graflex!
(Extract. reprinted by permission, from article in Nomad Magazine)
" F THE picrure ac home does noc T
r turn ouc parricularly well-you
can mke it over again. Bur wirh
travel piccureschere is so seldom
an opportunity ro go back afrer rhe
negatives have been developed. '' Newspaperphorographershave
acquiredrhe habit of using a certain
specifictype of camera becauseof
The scenethat srrerchesouc magnificenrly
below you on your cour remains to rhri[l
your future years, through your Graflex
When we travel-rhe possession of a
Graflex rnakes arcisrs of us all t The
washerwomen of France .
che fact that, in many insrances,
the loss of a picture opponuniry
lascing only a dny fracdon of a
second,would be uagic co rhem.
"Thac is why so many tavelers
arenow followirg the lead of news-
paper phocographers in carcying When you cravel, you seeso many quainc characrers. Wich a Graflex carnera you
along a Graflex whereverrheygo." bring back minutest derail . .
The " essential" cdmera for pltotographic satisfaction when
traveling-qraflex gets the picture the first time
13
www.orphancameras.comView original page 15Page 16 · Read text
A Few "'\ ,/'hyt" of a Graflex
By J. Peac Miller
(Extract from article in Australasian Photo-Review)
" AM known to have had many f
r years'experiencein most classes
of photography, and have used all
sorrs and conditions of cameras. I
am continually being made the
target for que$ions on Graflex
photognphy.
"A Graflex is the ideal camera
for the avetage arnateur becauseit
Poor lighring for a snapshor, ic is rrue.
But your Graflex masrers poor lighring
And depth of focus-scop it way down
and the background is as clear as the fore-
ground-che most versatile of cameras
will do anything any other hand
carnrcrawill do, and do ic better.
" V/hy is a negative made with a
Graflex becter than one made by
any other hand carrtera?. The
answer: Becausea Graflex is fitted
wirh a high -gradelens and you can
! MonsterSpeed Onrushing of the rails ! focus right up to the moment theThere is only one caffrera for such a
picture-Graflex . . exposure is made."
Amateurs and experts alik pref er Qraflex because " it' s the one
camera that malgs dfficult pictures ed,sy"
L4View original page 16Page 17 · Read text
What CameraShall I Ruy?
By Roberc T. Pound
(Extracts from article in The Photo Era Magazine)
" DECIDED ro get a car,r:rerathac would make speedpictures. The f
I ourfic musr be capable of making good-sized pictures of mountains
15 miles disranc-che ever-changingSnowy Mountains in Montana are
jusr rhar far ftom my home. Hardescspecificacionof all, the camera I
wanred was obliged to be able to make accurate catclepictures. Then,
roo, I wanred an exuemely portable outfit. In order to caffy che carr'era
on horseback,ic had,to be lighc in weighr and small in size. The reflecc-
ing carrrcraselection finally forced
me to settle on Graflex. Ic does
my work" and Pdys its way. "
Distanc rnountain peaks-nearby land- There is both action and art in the rnove-
scapes-ro get both in clear focus in the rnent of the swan. Graflex excells in
sarne piccure is possible with the versa- capcuring both accion and arc . .
tile Graflex .
Soft shadows-peaceful
scenesro delight the heart
of a painter-are yours
with a Graflex .
Business and personal pleasure pictures cd.nboth be achievedby
the same camera-qKAFLEX
L5
www.orphancameras.comView original page 17Page 18 · Read text
Graflex Afield !
By Dr. J. B. Pardoe
(Extract from article in Camera Craft Magazine)
"IF I had to confine myself to one carr'era ic would be a 4 x 5 Graflex,
r with long bellows, rising front and revolvittg back. I cannorspeakcoo
highly of the Graflex. This is a fine carr'eraro use and hunr picrures of
wild-life.
"S.tpposeyou had to stop and set your carr'era,focus, pur in a plare-
holder, draw slide, etc., the bird or animal mighr be in rhe nexr councy
by thac time. Wirh rhe Graflex
everythirg is ready. You see your
subject as you like ic, pressrhe uig-
get,andyou've baggedyour game !"
For the close-up^rnoscfocus required co rnake
"Sure I'l[ Pose !" A Graflex rnakes a butterfly fill of yo,,rr negacive,
Nature pictures simpler , easier, a hun- instead of an insignificanr spor-
dredfold more certain Graflex .
The inscanc thac chrills.
The Graflex enables you
to capcure for a lifecime
the rnornenfs chat count
most
Qraflex is the all-purpose cd.mercl. A true precision instrument
so simpl" that anybody can mdster it
L6View original page 18Page 19 · Read text
Why a Graflexl
Two Scientffc Fgatons!
A Shutter as Fine as the A K"flecting Method that Ends
Costliest Watch! quesswork Focusing!
a_RAFLEX is built around two oucscandingdifferenc feacures,wirh
\f rhe additional qu alny of superior lensesto support these features.
The first of chese features is che Qrafle* K"flecting Mirror. As you
look inco the raised hood of your Graflex you seeon your ground glass,
righc side up, the same size as the film iself, che scenetoward which the
camera is direcced. You can waic, as che 5ubjeccsmove before you,
uncil che very inscanr ac which the composition is bescto your liking.
The piccure as you see it on the ground glass is exacdy che picture as
your negative will "see" ir the inscanr you click rhe shurter. This
i*,Li
,,,fT 'l +tt
+##"i
fiffi....,ttlt-ii#
ffitr,r iiiii.
..EYES OF THE BYRD EXPEDITION''
Graflex phocographicequipmenc caken co the Antarctic by Commander
Richard E. Byrd and his staff
There's d. certain liveliness about d, Qraflex album that gives it
maximum interest in future years
L7
www.orphancameras.comView original page 19Page 20 · Read text
removes all guess'work in focusing-brings focusing not simply co an
approximate exactness, but co che %oo of an inch-shows you the
sparkle of an eye, or the glinc of sunlight on golden hair as thesecan be
recorded in a film only when the focus is absolutely, to the tiniest
fraction of an inch, perfecc. Focusing is under conscancconcrol. The
distance from carr'erato subject rr'ay change conscandy, but the fin ger-
tips on the focusing knob keep the im agesharp and clear up to che very
instanr ar which you wish co record the action on your h€gadve.
The second of rhe greaL fearures of diff.erence around which the
Graflex is constructed is the Qraflex Focal Plane Shutter.
This shutter is an opaque curtain that runs in fronc of the film , b"-
tween a ratchet ro[er and a spring roller. The spring can be wound to
any of six tensions. In the curtain are five openingsof different widths.
During an exposure, one of these openings flashes across the film,
admicirg che rays of light. Whac could be simpler?
The five openings and six tensions produce twenty-four speedcom-
binations from %o to l(ooo of a second. Such a range of speeds,
rr(supplemencedby a slow of about second and any time exposure
required, placeswell within che range of the Gr aflex every conceivable
picture opportunity-fasc action to calm portrait.
The very bescbetween-lensshutcertakes time to open and shuc. The
phorograph ac the top of this page illusuates a fact of tremendous im-
portance to any photographer, experc or amateur. Made from accual
photographs wich identical lenses, during exposures of %ooo of a
second, these strips graphi cally tell the story of why so much care and
powerful mechanical precision go into che construction of the Graflex
shurcerand irs rensionsprings,etc., making this alone a bit of mechanism
as fine as the cosdiescwatch.
The reasonsfor the superiority of Qraflex pictures are easily
understood. The deltghtful results speak fo, themselaes
18View original page 20Page 21 · Read text
The upper strip, made wich a Graflex Focal Plane Shucter, shows
uniform illumination chroughout che whole period of exposure. This
meansrhac rhe cornersof the negaciveare exposedin absolute uniformicy
wich rhe cenrer. It means that, if but an inscant, a ciniescfraction of a
second,was all rhe cime available for che picture, the absolucemaximum
amounr of lighc was rransmitted co every corner of your negative during
rhat infinicesimal period of cime. (And many of che pictures that are
cherishedfor a lifei;me musc be snappedin l(ooo sf a second.)
The lower srrip indicates thac che best becween-lensshutter is wide
open during che fifth and sixch flashesonly. (ltt boch of thesescripstotal
exposureis l(oo of a second,and each flash representsl(ooo of a second.)
The Graflex Shurcer is wide open for che entire ten flashes; che
berween-lensshutter is wide open for only tv{o flashes,or one-fifth of
the toral number. This means more picturei'with the Graflex. And
better pictures.
Look inco che focusing hood
and you see a reflecced irnage
of the subject, righc side up,
full piccure size.
"S/hen rhe irnage on the
ground glass is sharp, focus is
sharp ; if cornposition is cor-
rect on the ground glass ic will
be correcc in the picture.
The tilted mirror refleccs
the irnage to the ground glass
above. When the exposure
lever is pressed che mirror
swings upward ouc of the
wty , releasing shutter curtain.
Focal plane shutcer has
speeds rlo to )4oooof a sec-
ond and"f passesabout one-third
rnore light rhan does any ocher
cype of shurcer.
Focus is under easy con-
crol until the inscanc of ex-
posure.
Finger'"fiiloilf
oq'#:";!::T#:,X!,,::;!:/;"x:!,"'tclear
L9
www.orphancameras.comView original page 21Page 23 · Read text
FOLMER
GRAFLEX CORPORATION
ROCHESTER, NEW YORK
www.orphancameras.comView original page 23From the M. Butkus archive. Original publisher and archive notices are retained.
Check the model and edition against your equipment.
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