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Le Rapide (c.1900)

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No mark for this detective "Le Rapide", but just an address in Paris. Unfortunately, that's always the same issue with this kind of cameras. Most of them have been produced by craftsmen, in very small series, all copied each other.

Thus, determining the origin of these micro-productions is very difficult. Anyway, this detective has been assembled in Paris, 8 Saint Joseph street, probably circa 1900.

The camera body is made with wood covered with black leather. All the parts (knobs, viewer frames, screws, etc...) are nickel-plated.

This camera is equiped with a guillotine shutter and a linear lens which can be adjusted back and forth according to the focusing distance. This is possible using the distance knob located on the right side.
When totally back into the body camera, the lens can be protected by a retractable galvanized iron shelter.

This camera contains 12 plates format 9 x 12 cm which had to be preloaded prior to the shooting seance.

A the lever on the upper right of the camera moves the shooted plate in the bottom of the black chamber. This kind of camera was also named "casse-plaques" (literally "plates-killer")...
This 100 years old camera is in a true pristine shape. I found it at the annual vintage cameras' market of Blangy-Tronville (France) in March 2006.

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