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Kodak 1A Rapid Rectilinear |
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I've got a particular soft spot for the Kodak 1A series of cameras. The 1A frame size (typical of 616/116 film) was the most panoramic of Kodak's cameras--very long frame relative to the film width. It's actually a challenge to fill the longish frame usefully. Around this format, Kodak produce an impressive stream of models and features for one of the longest lived of their popular formats besides the still-available 120 format.One of the early models was this one--the 1A Folding Pocket Kodak, RR Lens Type, Model D--distinguished by a thickish, leather-clad wood body, brass shutter casing, and a clear Rapid Rectilinear lens with a zone focuser.
Having on hand a reloaded spool with 70mm Efke film, I took this old lady out for her first foray in a long time--hard to say how long, as there are some internal touch-ups in her that indicate maintenance and therefore some history of careful use. I ran her past my usual haunts and tried some new scenes. One in particular was a new subject--the fishing bobber indicating a bad fishing day that someone had recently. All but the knothole photo are full-frame scans that illustrate the pan aspect of 1A frames--I cropped some light leak damage from one side of that one.
| Around the Round Rock |
 Round Rock's--um--round rock (local motif)
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| Kodak 1A oldies in NM ghost towns |
Same camera, again loaded up with Efke (Adox) 100 70mm film from JandC Photo. Processed in HC110-H for 11 minutes, these negatives came up lovely. The RR lens is not a flat field lens, and the subjective sharpness increases across the field as you stop down. These photos were the best of that roll, shot in the old mining towns of Chloride and Winston, New Mexico. Some of the images show fogging along the edge of the rolls--a common affliction of rerolled film. Miner's home, Chloride  Miner's home, Chloride (my favorite--this made a lovely 8x10 print on matte)  Solitude, Winston  |
