One of our next pieces up for service is this Auricon Super 1200 camera, a favorite for news-gathering, documentary, and industrial films beginning in the 1950s. Auricon cameras were designed and built by the Berndt-Maurer Corporation (later Bach-Auricon), founded in 1935 by Eric M. Berndt and John A. Maurer. Previously, Berndt and Maurer had both […]
Auricon Super 1200 Camera Read More »
Today I wanted to share a very interesting restoration project I completed shortly before we moved. This is a Technicolor camera, serial #7, and is from the 2-strip era of the Technicolor process. Briefly, the 2-strip process shoots 2 simultaneous images, 1 above the other, on a single strip of black and white film, through
Restoring Technicolor no. 7 Read More »
Among the crate of tripods we acquired last month, we were delighted to discover this original Eclair Camerette aluminum tripod and friction head. This was exciting because we could finally pair one of the Camerettes from our collection with its intended tripod. The Eclair Camerette and this unique tripod were introduced to the US market
Eclair CM3 camera on Eclair tripod Read More »
We had so many interesting comments on last week’s trip down memory lane, I thought I would show another interesting solution to a problem we ran into while shooting space ships. Budget always being a problem, I had to devise a way to get close enough to the miniatures to give the illusion of the
Mitchell Underslung Magazine Adapter Read More »
A trip down memory lane . . . The movie industry always calls for unique solutions to unique problems. Many of us without the budget to build a Dykstraflex needed a device that would allow our cameras to be focused by computer control and hold the camera at nodal point. To solve this problem, I
Mitchell Follow Focus L-base Read More »
I have seen and used a number of Mitchell chronograph cameras over the years without really knowing much about them. A few months back I shared an interesting camera I had recently acquired that featured a shutter mounted on the main shaft of the camera movement. Not knowing exactly what this was used for, Erin
Mitchell Type A and Type B Chronograph Cameras Read More »
Believe it or not, there are still things to be unpacked a year after being settled into our new facility. I have been going through box after box of rare and unusual lenses over the last few weeks, cleaning and repairing them as I go. To my amazement, I came across this Astro-Gesellschaft Berlin 150mm
Astro Berlin Lens for Mitchell FC camera Read More »
Last week we shared with you a snippet of the sales card for Bell & Howell 2709 #58, a camera that we are currently researching. In further examining the sales cards from the same time period, we see the line item “Doz. Mag Spools” several times. The “D” at the beginning of “Doz.” strongly resembles
Continuing Our Research on Bell & Howell 2709 sn. 58 Read More »
The next Bell & Howell camera on our restoration schedule is this early model 2709, serial #58. In beginning our research into the camera’s history, we started with the sales card which shows us the purchaser and sales date. The handwriting on this particular card is a bit difficult to decipher, but we think that
Bell and Howell 2709 sn. 58 Read More »
This Mitchell NCR began its life as a Mitchell NC when it was sold to Associated Filmakers Inc. on May 28, 1946. Mitchell introduced their NC model in 1932 as an improvement on the earlier Standard model. Later on in its life, NC 345 was converted for reflex viewfinding and rebranded as an NCR. The
Mitchell NCR sn. 345 Read More »
