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EASTMAN KODAK - Vest Pocket Autographic (1915 - 1926)

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Folding cameras


The Vest Pocket camera appears in 1912 and will be evolving in different versions until 1935.
The model presented here is a Vest Pocket Autographic camera produced after 1921. It has the same characteristics than the regular model but with the Autographic feature.

It is equiped with a lens Anastigmat f=84 mm 1:7.7 and a shutter Kodak Ball Bearing. Other types of lens have been proposed : Achromatic meniscus or Rapid Rectilinear.

The camera body and its front face are covered with black leather. The Autographic pen is stored above the Autographic window located on the back of the camera.

The Vest Pocket camera is undeniably associated to the tragedy of the WW1. Its small body and the fact it used a rollfilm instead of a glass plate, explain why this little folding camera was such a success with the french soldiers : the « poilus ».

Because the newspapers were looking for pictures of battles to illustrate their articles, the war photograph takes its development.
The Photographic and film Section of the Army (SPCA) was the official source of photographic documents; but the censoring exercised by the Army command staff on the production of this agency was too important to satisfy the newspapers looking for more realistic snapshots...

The large diffusion of small cameras, such as the Vest Pocket, within the troops induced a parallel production of photos which was not impacted by the censure.
Starting from 1916, it became obvious that the war will be long.
The command staff was annoyed by all these war photos which were totally uncontrolled and showed the true horror of the battlefields. Then, orders were given to not allow cameras in the battle areas. Nothing's any goods ! The soldiers continued to defy the orders and they pursued the making of the most incredible repository of documents ever made about a war.

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