The Royal Photographic Society
South East Region
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Classic Camera Day Bewl Water Conference Centre
In 1839 Henry Fox-Talbot announced to the world that he had invented photography – OK I’m paraphrasing a bit.
Ivor Matanle, Bob White and Michael Pritchard joined us at Bewl Water in Kent for a day of pure history, each clearly bringing their own enthusiasm for photographic equipment of times past.
Bob White, again the author of several authoritative books, gave a presentation entitled From Fox-Talbot to Autofocus. Through his presentation Bob showed us the evolution of features and designs, many of which can still be found on today’s cameras, and reminded us of the rich heritage of European camera manufacture that existed, particularly in the UK and France, in the first half of the 20th Century. Bob also talked about collecting cameras for historical interest. Not content with talking about classic cameras, both Ivor and Bob brought a variety of cameras from the last hundred years or so – most in sound working order. Michael Pritchard, has also authored several books, but for the day job is the camera specialist at world famous auctioneers, Christie’s. Michael described the services that Christie’s offer, including free valuations, and the growth of interest in camera and other photographic equipment over the last 25 years. Of particular interest were the differences in value of similar items that arise because of their ‘collectibility’. The floor was then opened for a photographic Antiques Roadshow. Among the items that were brought along were examples of early SLRs and rangefinder cameras and a portable darkroom. Whilst many of the items were valued at just a few tens of pounds, making classic camera collecting an affordable hobby, several items were thought to be likely to fetch between £800 and £1000 at auction, which certainly seemed to bring a smile to the owner’s faces! Diana Balfour also came to the meeting to publicise the activities of the Photographic Collectors Club of Great Britain (PCCGB) and, in particular, mentioned the regular auctions arranged by the Club that are another source of collectable cameras. We were privileged to have speakers that clearly had a passion for classic cameras - a passion that was infectious - and regardless of one’s particular interests, there was something to appeal to everyone’s tastes during the day.
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Today,
as digital cameras are becoming all the rage, it’s difficult to
imagine what being a photographer in its early days must have been
like. Nonetheless, photography rapidly became both big business and an
amateur pursuit (albeit one for the relatively wealthy). In little
more than ten years The Photographic Society (later to become the
Royal Photographic Society) was established and in 2003 celebrates its
150th anniversary. What better excuse could there be to bring some of
the UK’s experts on the history of cameras together for the RPS South
East Region’s Classic Camera Day (in April 2003).
Ivor
Matanle, is the author of several reference books for camera
collectors but perhaps is best known for his regular contributions to
Amateur Photography. Ivor described himself as an accumulator of
cameras rather than a collector and puts his ‘collection’, dating from
around the 1930s, to practical use. Just to make the point that many
vintage cameras are capable of producing pictures that can compete
with today’s equipment, Ivor brought a selection of prints that could
easily have been the product of modern equipment.South East Regional Organiser
Fenton House, 122 Wells Road, Bath BA2 3AH, England
Telephone +44 (0)1225 462841 - Fax +44 (0)1225 448688
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Contact the South East Region Web manager. Page last updated 23 January 2005.