Restarting routine
After a pause, how do you go back to what you used to do–and why?
Articles Tagged with Rolleiflex
Fixing old things
Users and collectors
Looking at and looking through
The tools of a professional
A ladder is often essential
What a photographer needs to do the job is sometimes far from obvious.
Tools shape the artist
A choice of camera is unexpectedly important
Our photographic consultant finds that the camera he uses can have an unsubtle effect on the pictures he takes.
Live long and prosper
What makes a device last for decades?
Our photographer routinely handles cameras from many different eras, using them to take pictures rather than keeping them for display. Those that work best are neither the youngest ones nor the most expensive. What design features make for a long life?
The Fashionable Twin
Our photography correspondent writes:
This time I’m singling out a type of camera that, while instantly recognizable and quite common in the days of film, was never ubiquitous. Most people preferred other kinds. But those who used them were very firmly attached to them and had definitely chosen them over whatever else might be on the market. This type found a particular home, among professional photographers, with those who specialized in portraits and fashion shoots.
This design is called the twin-lens reflex (TLR if you’re advertising to sell or buy one in the cost-per-word section of the photo magazine). “Reflex,” when used about cameras, means that there’s a mirror involved somewhere. “Twin lens” is obviously appropriate. But why twin lenses? It’s not a stereo or a panorama camera, a kind that takes two pictures at once. Well, the short answer is you need one lens to keep an eye on what the other is doing.