A folding Instantograph field camera.
Lancaster and Sons
Category
Photographic technology
Date
1894 - 1898
Materials
Wood, Mahogany, Brass, Leather, Glass
Measurements
250 x 220 x 550 mm
Place of origin
Birmingham
Order this imageCollection
Fox Talbot Museum, Wiltshire
NT 1524776
Summary
A folding Instantograph field camera. The body is wooden covered in black leather and the bellows is black leather. The baseboard and lens panel are mahogany and running rails and fittings are brass. The shutter is also brass and is stamped 'Lancaster Patent See Saw Shutter'. It is in front of the lens and has three speeds 1/10, 1/20 and 1/30 sec. There is a rising facility on the lens mount and the panel has an enamel label 'Folding Instantograph Patent'. A further enamel label on the top of the body says ' J.Lancaster & Son Birmingham'. The base has a tripod socket as does the hinged rear cover. There is a ground glass focussing screen mounted in mahogany and hinged to allow plate access. The hinges are each stamped ' Lancaster Patent'. The format size is half plate. There is a leather carrying handle on the top.
Provenance
Part of The Fenton Collection. A gift from British Film Institute in 2017. From 1986-1999, part of BFI collection for the Museum of the Moving Image. BFI purchased collection in 1986 from James Fenton's Museum of Photography, Port Erin, Isle of Man 1976-1986
Makers and roles
Lancaster and Sons, manufacturer