Graflex Century Cameras — 1959 |
My father's camera from when I was growing up; the serious camera in the house (as opposed to my collection of Brownie box cameras). It's the one in the middle of the page, the Century 35 with the ƒ/3.5 lens. Small, dense as lead, had a tiny little view- rangefinder thatI always struggled with. It used Series V filters which were impossible to find in the pre-eBay 70s. Took great pictures, though. My dad ran a gazillion rolls of film through it and never once had it in the shop. These were the last of the mainstream era for Graflex. These Japanese-made Kowas (Graflex imported them under its own name) couldn't compete. Graflex fell back on their commercial press cameras; introduced the Super Speed Graphic, failed, and disappeared by the end of the 60s. A sad end to a very storied company. |