tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post4760533227209496389..comments2024-03-04T06:12:38.695+13:00Comments on Photo-Sleuth: Sepia Saturday 169: Keeping a Kodak Story, the Autographic cameraBrett Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07706734864792449845noreply@blogger.comBlogger30125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-76302910344672379372013-05-19T11:32:39.173+12:002013-05-19T11:32:39.173+12:00Wonderful find, anyjazz, although you'd think ...Wonderful find, anyjazz, although you'd think that the photographer might have written their names, rather than the dissociative "Twins." I'm planning a follow-up article which will include those that have cropped up since writing this one, so your contributions will be very much appreciated.Brett Paynehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07706734864792449845noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-50810275225925000932013-05-19T11:21:58.034+12:002013-05-19T11:21:58.034+12:00I found another print that included the notation. ...I found another print that included the notation. I added it to the original page featuring these. You are welcome to use if it is interesting.<br />http://lostgallery.blogspot.com/2013/03/the-autographic-camera.htmlanyjazzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03319237414264543250noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-42200210974269051172013-04-11T17:13:00.451+12:002013-04-11T17:13:00.451+12:00I think the problem with the Nikon one is that, un...I think the problem with the Nikon one is that, unlike the old Kodak, it pretty much just puts "graffiti" on your image. It really doesn't feel useful as a way to label images.Tattered and Losthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00208918251232477186noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-86955310602991890682013-04-04T19:52:07.365+13:002013-04-04T19:52:07.365+13:00And thank you, T+L, for enlightening me about the ...And thank you, T+L, for enlightening me about the Nikon Coolpix stylus, which I'd not come across. It seems they have brought the stylus back - how exciting.Brett Paynehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07706734864792449845noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-85585778503379803132013-04-04T19:50:16.359+13:002013-04-04T19:50:16.359+13:00I have a similar problem, with old photographs, bu...I have a similar problem, with old photographs, but I do have a good memory, so am slowly going through the archives and adding dates, comments, etc. where I can.Brett Paynehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07706734864792449845noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-67884984816409907742013-04-04T17:29:38.177+13:002013-04-04T17:29:38.177+13:00You have truly enlightened me. I had no idea this ...You have truly enlightened me. I had no idea this even existed. And I too wonder why the images are never found. I will keep an eye open for them. <br /><br />My current little snapshot camera from Nikon has a little "stylus" that allows writing on the digital images. I have never used it.Tattered and Losthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00208918251232477186noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-43037618225080731832013-03-29T02:49:17.485+13:002013-03-29T02:49:17.485+13:00Wow, you learn something new every day! I have ne...Wow, you learn something new every day! I have never heard of this type of camera and will be on the lookout for these types of photos.<br /><br />I wish I had something like this when I took over 4000 photos on my trip to Scotland 3 1/2 years ago. I tried each night to document where I had been each day, but when I returned home after 2 weeks still had trouble identifying all my photos. :-(<br />Teresa Wilson Rogershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07340825601857084302noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-31939307510108099662013-03-27T20:11:55.467+13:002013-03-27T20:11:55.467+13:00Bruno - No use crying over spilt milk, or the pote...Bruno - No use crying over spilt milk, or the potential fortune you might have missed out on. You may well be right about the stylus being easily lost - I can't quote sales statistics, but I can tell you that only three out of the nine Autographic cameras that I've catalgued so far in my locxal museum collection still has the stylus attached. Mr Gaisman was also partner with Mr Gillette ... yes, THE Gillette. "<i>He retired from the Gilette Safety Razor Corporation in 1938, at which time he was reputed to be worth more than 25 million dollars.</i>" Brett Paynehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07706734864792449845noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-90992034220698642902013-03-27T19:52:47.431+13:002013-03-27T19:52:47.431+13:00Fellow Sepian Anyjazz has posted four Autographic ...Fellow Sepian Anyjazz has posted four Autographic photos on his LostGallery blog <a href="http://lostgallery.blogspot.com/2013/03/the-autographic-camera.html" rel="nofollow">here</a>.Brett Paynehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07706734864792449845noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-36270080066904689952013-03-27T14:06:36.854+13:002013-03-27T14:06:36.854+13:00PS:
I think the only one who's happy about al...PS: <br />I think the only one who's happy about all of this is the one who sold his patent for $300 000. Big money for the time!!<br />:)~ <br />HUGZBruno Lalibertéhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09607511642101907283noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-9601997998634450402013-03-27T14:04:15.221+13:002013-03-27T14:04:15.221+13:00FASCINATING POST!!
I did test a few keywords and i...FASCINATING POST!!<br />I did test a few keywords and indeed, little comes up... <br />But I had an idea. <br />(You know the kind I get...) <br />What if most buyers of those cameras [quickly] lost/misplaced the stylus for making such inscription? Was it available as a separate purchase? Are there statistics on those sales?<br /><br />Or, as it is most likely, was this only a marketing "wetdream" by those in charge of marketing at Kodak? Such things happen, when people come up with what seems to them a good idea but the idea falls flat or even worse, causes controversy. Ad agencies are funny sometimes. I should know, this was I was meant to do but change my mind about that... but I still know people in the business and I've been to a few focus groups to test those ideas. Advertising is not an exact science. It has to promote something while striking a chord with its target audience. No easy feat!!<br /><br />Again, great post!!<br />And in my quick research, I came across something VERY similar to my grandfather's camera, which I threw away!! I could cry now.... <br />Oh well!! <br />:)~ <br />HUGZBruno Lalibertéhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09607511642101907283noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-44779427375902632212013-03-25T09:49:27.654+13:002013-03-25T09:49:27.654+13:00Kathy M. - I hope you too will share these photogr...Kathy M. - I hope you too will share these photographs if they are indeed Autographics.<br /><br />Karen S. - Well, as you can tell from the time elapsed since Kristin's photo originally appeared on her blog, the article has been gestating for quite a while. I agree that the cameras were indeed prized possessions - Titania's mother thought so too.<br /><br />Boobook & ScotSue - I learnt a lot about the Autographic feature and various print formats during the course of researching this post too.<br /><br />Tony - Yes, I think we have to assume it did. Digital cropping, while perhaps rendering photographs more aesthetically pleasing, also has the effect of removing a lot of pertinent information - in effect, much of that <i>voice</i> which you talk about is lost, even though it may not consist of words.Brett Paynehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07706734864792449845noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-17810582838349405322013-03-25T09:49:17.584+13:002013-03-25T09:49:17.584+13:00Kristin + Postcardy - Judging by the number of una...Kristin + Postcardy - Judging by the number of unannotated photos in practically all collections, perhaps because the majority of people just can't be bothered.<br /><br />Nigel - Actually, I felt uncomfortable about many of the Kodak adverts, which rather played on emotions. I suppose they are tame compared to today's "in your face" ad campaigns, but I don't like those either.<br /><br />Wendy - How exciting - that was just the response that I hoped to elicit from readers. I hope you'll share some of the photos with us in due course. If you scan them including the full extent of the print and provide some measurements, I may be able to identify the camera with which they were most likely taken.<br /><br />Bob + Little Nell - I hadn't heard of it either until fairly recently, and I think it's largely forgotten. I am hoping that now they know about it several readers will find examples in their collections. Of course there were photos that added a date to the corner, but that kind of ruined the prints, I felt. I think I've read of technology on cameras that lets you add metadata to an image after taking it, but it must still be rather fiddly, detracting from the whole "point and shoot/click" ethos.<br /><br />Nancy - Nice that you have an Autographic that's still working - the 3A is a nice large format camera, designed to produce 'postcard' size contact prints. If it is the Special, rather than the Junior, it will have an excellent lens and a rangefinder. Sadly, you can't get 122 film very easily any more. Did you use B+W or colour film, I wonder? I have read that the highly sensitive colour films of recent years don't work well with the lenses of those old cameras.<br /><br />Joy - In the collection of cameras that I'm currently helping to document, most of the Autographics have lost their stylus. Yes, I hope that Sepians will come up with some more examples.<br /><br />Mike Brubaker - Yes, I've started delving into the whole "print format => camera type" question recently, and it can indeed provide a wealth of information, relevant or not. With the development of better and better quality film, print enlargements (as opposed to contact prints) became more and more common, and eventually the norm. I'm currently researching another article on Box Brownies, so look out for that in due course.<br /><br />Titania - I'm guessing that by 1930, the Autographic feature had pretty much gone from Kodak cameras. Having used 35mm SLRs for most of my life, I changed to digital about 10 years ago, and had a Kodak until fairly recently, when I upgraded to a digital SLR. It wasn't a bad camera.<br /><br />Alan - Judging by the number of old cameras available on eBay, most of them were prized possessions to their owners. Sadly, even though many may still be in working condition, the film is unavailable, and the means by which to process them even more difficult to find. I suppose it is a tricky thing, designing museum displays which capture the attention of as wide an audience as possible.<br /><br />Hazel - As fascinating as the captions on the Barron's Farm and Old Bill are, I think it's also opened up Pandora's Box to some extent. The tantalising glimpse of life hinted at by the caption raises so many more questions, as I'm sure Kristin will testify to.Brett Paynehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07706734864792449845noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-79112397299834105042013-03-25T07:16:16.619+13:002013-03-25T07:16:16.619+13:00Cropping Even Happened Then!Which is a shame as th...<i>Cropping</i> Even Happened Then!Which is a shame as the autographic feature gave the photographer a <i>voice</i> of sorts.tonyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03746435400444226665noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-47261858278741474562013-03-25T01:05:16.582+13:002013-03-25T01:05:16.582+13:00A fascinating lesson in the development of photogr...A fascinating lesson in the development of photography. ScotSuehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01412874349376253984noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-85241533222150479652013-03-24T15:19:19.095+13:002013-03-24T15:19:19.095+13:00A fascinating post. I'd never heard of an auto...A fascinating post. I'd never heard of an autographic feature.Boobookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01395043246338753023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-2851530556584496802013-03-24T14:55:57.749+13:002013-03-24T14:55:57.749+13:00Oh my gosh, did you get any sleep this week too? W...Oh my gosh, did you get any sleep this week too? What a fact filled post of some really great devices too, even though we sure have come a really long way, so much more improved, still back then these were all something very special to own I'm sure! Bravo on your hard work here.21 Witshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00071361755673253230noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-72181585545031142002013-03-24T08:03:23.049+13:002013-03-24T08:03:23.049+13:00This is so interesting. My father-in-law, Troy, m...This is so interesting. My father-in-law, Troy, must have had one of these cameras when he was stationed in Guam during WWII. I thought that he wrote on the photos after they were developed, but now I don't think so.<br /><br />What an article, Brett. Thank you for your hard work on this.<br /><br />Kathy M.Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07171271956883698673noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-74333829556639306002013-03-24T02:48:39.656+13:002013-03-24T02:48:39.656+13:00What a big market emotions are. Kodak certainly us...What a big market emotions are. Kodak certainly used the knowledge well. Love the photo of Barron's Farm, Old Bill and the negative looks very interesting.Hazelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07866700983578714993noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-16335597704592001122013-03-23T21:47:24.452+13:002013-03-23T21:47:24.452+13:00Fascinating, I have always had a passing interest ...Fascinating, I have always had a passing interest in old cameras and have occasionally been tempted into buying one, not for use but just for the look of them as objects. The National Media Museum is just down the road and they have a massive collection of old cameras, but I have to say that they do not seem to make the most of them in terms of displays.Alan Burnetthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01015127443616786425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-42076318055029269402013-03-23T17:28:01.753+13:002013-03-23T17:28:01.753+13:00My mother used a 1930 Kodak nearly all her life. A...My mother used a 1930 Kodak nearly all her life. A lot of interesting information; With their success they became "blase".Lavender and Vanilla Friends of the Gardenshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05403418150146893599noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-86207484297422657002013-03-23T14:41:12.755+13:002013-03-23T14:41:12.755+13:00A fascinating post, Brett, with lots of useful inf...A fascinating post, Brett, with lots of useful information. I've been interested in which cameras were used for different photo forms, in part for the potential clues that knowledge of the camera might offer. I suspect that the lack of good examples of the Autographic photos are like the multitude of unused features on digital cameras. Who could remember to have a sharp pencil ready? And what should you write? Wait, do we write before or after we snap the shutter? Oh Gee, I've advanced the film again, can I rewind it? What's this button do? Where's the instruction manual?Mike Brubakerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13065245846262417519noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-17303950178902425092013-03-23T10:29:33.637+13:002013-03-23T10:29:33.637+13:00How interesting, I've never seen one and yet t...How interesting, I've never seen one and yet that opening looks vaguely familiar so maybe I have and not known what it was. Its curious how it never caught on, guess people lost the pencil quite soon. Of course as a result of this post all Sepians will be now on the look out for the photos, I know I will. Joyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00253875352864018195noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-89285905346575472842013-03-23T08:10:25.444+13:002013-03-23T08:10:25.444+13:00As soon as I read your very interesting post I ran...As soon as I read your very interesting post I ran down to the junk room to look for an autographic camera in my vast collection of stuff. And sure enough I had one. It's the No. 3 A. There's the opening on the back, and a space for a pencil (which is missing). I bought this camera some time in the 60s and someone told me that you could still get film for it. So I bought some film and took some pictures and much to my disappointment the photos looked current, not sepia at all. I really expected them to look old!!<br />But I never noticed the autographic opening on the back. Now I'm going to look for autographed photos. It's such a great idea but I can see that people thought it was too much trouble to stop and write a note after each snap. <br />Nancy North County Film Clubhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13683794164957833415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599702957095945938.post-82536088526969373722013-03-23T06:18:04.040+13:002013-03-23T06:18:04.040+13:00I agree with Bob; it's what I clearly needed a...I agree with Bob; it's what I clearly needed as I failed to record, even by scribbling on the back, what, who or when, and am often left wildly (or intelligently) guessing.Little Nellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11862657943846727987noreply@blogger.com