Brownie (camera)

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Brownie
2014-365-233 The Basic Brownie Camera (14809795240).jpg
Kodak Brownie No.2 Model F (1924)
Overview
MakerEastman Kodak
Typebox camera
ReleasedFebruary 1900
ProductionFeb. 1900-Oct. 1901
Intro price$1 (equivalent to $31 in 2020)
Lens
Lensmeniscus lens
Sensor/medium
Film format117 roll film.
Film size2 1/4-inch square
Shutter
ShutterIntegrated
General
Body featuresLeatherette covered cardboard
Made inRochester, NY
Chronology
SuccessorNo. 2 Brownie (1901)
References
Brownie (original model)

The Brownie was a series of cameras made by Eastman Kodak. Introduced in 1900,[1] it introduced the snapshot to the masses. It was a basic cardboard box camera with a simple meniscus lens that took 2 1/4-inch square pictures on 117 roll film. It was conceived and marketed for sales of Kodak roll films. Because of its simple controls and initial price of $1 (equivalent to $31 in 2020) along with the low price of Kodak roll film and processing, the Brownie camera surpassed its marketing goal.[2]

It was invented by Frank A. Brownell.[3] The name comes from the brownies (spirits in folklore) in Palmer Cox cartoons. Over 150,000 Brownie cameras were shipped in the first year of production.[4] An improved model, called No. 2 Brownie came in 1901, which produced larger 2-1/4 by 3-1/4 inch photos and cost $2 and was also a huge success.[2]

Brownies were extensively marketed to children, with Kodak using them to popularise photography. E They were also taken to war by soldiers. As they were ubiquitous, many iconic shots were taken on Brownies.[2]

Kodak Brownie advertisement

The cameras continued to be popular, and spawned many varieties, such as a Boy Scout edition in the 1930s. In 1940, Kodak released the Six-20 Flash Brownie,[4] Kodak's first internally synchronized flash camera, using General Electric bulbs. In 1957, Kodak produced the Brownie Starflash, Kodak's first camera with a built-in flash.[4]

The Brownie 127 was popular,[5] selling in the millions between 1952 and 1967. It was a bakelite camera with a simple meniscus lens and a curved film plane to compensate for the deficiencies of the lens.[citation needed] Another model was the Brownie Cresta sold between 1955 and 1958. It used 120 film and had a fixed-focus lens.[6][7]

Having written an article in the 1940s for amateur photographers suggesting an expensive camera was unnecessary for quality photography, Picture Post photographer Bert Hardy used a Brownie camera to stage a carefully posed snapshot of two young women sitting on railings above a breezy Blackpool promenade.[8]

The last official Brownie camera made was the Brownie II Camera, a 110 cartridge film model produced in Brazil for one year, 1986.[9]

The Kodak Brownie Number 2 is a box camera that was manufactured by the Eastman Kodak Company from 1901 to 1935.[4] There were five models, A through F, and it was the first camera to use 120 film. It also came with a viewfinder and a handle.[10] The Brownie Number 2 was made of a choice of three materials: cardboard, costing US$2.00, aluminum, costing US$2.75, and a color model which cost US$2.50. It was a very popular and affordable camera, and many are still in use by film photographers.[11]

Gallery[]

  • Brownie No. 2 (1901–35)

  • No. 2 Folding Autographic Brownie 1915–26)

  • Beau Brownie camera (1930–33)

  • Hawkeye Brownie Flash Model (1950–61)

  • Brownie Flash III (1957–60)

  • Young photographer using a Brownie 127

References[]

  1. ^ List of Brownie models at George Eastman House Archived April 2, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c Lothrop, Eaton S. “The Brownie Camera.” History of Photography 2, no. 1 (January 1978): 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1080/03087298.1978.10442948.
  3. ^ U.S. Patent 725,034
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Gustavson, Todd (2011). 500 Cameras 170 years of photographic innovation. Sterling Signature. ISBN 978-1-4027-8086-8.
  5. ^ "Brownie 127"
  6. ^ "Brownie Cresta". The Brownie Camera Page. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
  7. ^ "Brace Yerself– The Kodak Brownie Cresta II Review". Canny Cameras. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
  8. ^ Bert Hardy snapshot
  9. ^ "Brownie II (110 Cartridge) The Last Brownie Camera". The Brownie Camera Page. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
  10. ^ Gustavson, Todd (2009). Camera A history of photography from Daguerreotype to Digital. Sterling Signature. ISBN 978-1-4027-5656-6.
  11. ^ "No.2 Brownie". The Brownie Camera Page. Retrieved 9 May 2021.

Further reading[]

External links[]

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