The Kodak Company was started  by George Eastman. Eastman, an American, was throughly fascinated with still photography and cameras. He always believed the still camera was an amazing invention, but thought that it did need to be improved. Eastman felt that the cameras of his day were too bulky, heavy, and not user friendly to the average person; so in 1879 he left the United States for London to start a company that would solve this problem and revolutionize the photography industry.

At the time, London was the “…center of the photographic and business world and so it was the perfect place to start a new business. Eastman received his first patent for the plate-coating machine in 1879. The plate-coating machine, a quicker more efficient way to get pictures on film in the camera, was just a stepping stone in creating cameras for everyday people.

In 1880, new inventions and patents by Eastman impressed a fellow photography businessman, Henry A. Strong. Strong was so impressed by Eastman, that he invested into Eastman’s company to form a partnership. The new partnership produced The Eastman Dry Plate Company. Because of this new partnership and responsibilities, Eastman decided to resign from his part-time job at Rochester(England) Savings Bank and put all of his concentration into improving cameras, film, and photo developing.

In 1895 The Pocket KODAK Camera was announced. It used roll film and incorporated a small window through which positioning numbers for exposures could be read. Pocket Kodaks were extremely small (2 and 3/16 x 3 x 4 inches) and lightweight (6 ounces), and took 1½ x 2 inch exposures on 102 size rollfilm, introduced just for this camera. They were first available in 1895 with either black or red leather covering.

Original Price was $5.00   Estimated Value  $ 300.00

The Daco is a Bakelight box camera made by Dacora in Germany. The original model dates from 1949, with an f/11 lens; the 1950 Daco II has an f/8 lens

There are controls on the front giving a choice of apertures, f11, f16, f22 (Daci) or f8 & f11 (Daci II), and focus ranges of 1.5-4m and 4m-∞. The camera uses 120 Film taking twelve 6x6cm images per roll• I use this camera for the fun of it and it’s unique view of the world.

The Argus C3 was a low-priced rangefinder camera mass-produced from 1939 to 1966 by Argus in Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA. The camera was the best-selling 35mm camera in the world for nearly three decades, and helped popularize the 35mm format. Due to its shape, size, and weight, it is commonly referred to as “The Brick” by photographers (in Japan its nickname translates as “The Lunchbox”). The series began in 1938, with the model C •The basic C3 model underwent only minor revisions from its introduction until it was discontinued in 1966.(reprinted From Wikipedia)

In 1954, the Argus C4 was listed in the Sears catalogue at $85.00

Current Value $15-25.00

Canon F-1 Circa 1971-76   •  Film  SLR  with FD 50mm f1.4  Lens • The F-1 was Canon’s first truly professional-grade SLR system, supporting a huge variety of accessories and interchangeable parts so it could be adapted for different uses and preferences.The Canon F-1 is a 35mm single-lens reflex camera produced by Canon of Japan from March 1971 until 1976′s introduction of the mildly updated F-1n, while in 1981 a New F-1 was launched.

Current Value: $200-$300.00

1/2 Plate Lancaster aluminum bound Instantograph- Less common than the brass bound models Circa 1900-1908 • Mahogany Body • Red Leather Bellow • Aluminum bound Lens.

Current Value : $400-$600.00