Help with identification - French camera

[Ian Grant]

By chance I found my 13x18cm French Chambre de Voyage in a 1909 Hermagis catalogue.

My French is poor and rusty, I think my camera is Model II, unfortunately the image is fairly poor quality.





I bought the camera of someone who had started to resrore it, it was totally stripped down with all the brass fittings in envelopes.

Any help translating would be appreciated.

Ian

 

[Nas]

Was the handle moved by the previous owner? It's strange not to be on the top as with other cameras and in the advert.

 

[Ian Grant]

Was the handle moved by the previous owner? It's strange not to be on the top as with other cameras and in the advert.

The back has key style fittings that slot into the base at different positions for different FL lenses, they are on one side as well as the base, you undo to rotate the back and bellows, which are attached to a round panel on the front standard that rotes.





Hermagis were a large French company, but didn't export, their 1909 catalogue is nearly 150 pages. They patented a focal plane shutter in 1902.

Ian

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[Ian Grant]

I found a website with much higher qualit images/scans.



On the next page there are Chambre Noire de Thornton Pickard, Hermagis were the distrurors in France and its colonies. There are some ICA cameras, as well as Le "Loyd" Cupid and an Ensignette. I think the Loyd is a Houghton made camera, it was also sold by ICA, along ith the ICA Tudor reflex cameras, actually Butcher Pressman reflex cameras.

Ian

 

[Nas]

Ok. I’ve got a Hermagis brass lens. It’s quite nice

 

[Ian Grant]

I think Hermagis starte oit as lens manufacturers, they were established by 1860, and exported their early lenses.

A few of their catalogues are here and a few other companies as well. A useful resource.

Ian

 

[Francis R]

Any help translating would be appreciated.

Ian

My English is not that advanced, especially for technical stuffs, but here is a tentative translation for the main text above the images:

Classical view camera, robust and lightweight, rounded corners ; bellows conical rotating ; (bandes d’accrochement anglaises ???) ; plate moving inwards ; rack with double sprocket for parallelism ; angle irons made of copper; double shift horizontal and vertical; frosted ground glass with hinges; 2 lens boards; spirit level spherical recessed; nut of Congrès; 3 double film holder.

 

[Francis R]

The text below the images:

Model I: well prepared, walnut half varnished, leather bellow:
With 3 double film holders ½ curtain…
With 3 double film holders full curtain…

Model II: meticulously crafted, leather bellow, double film holders
Walnut half varnished
Mahogany varnished

Additional film holders ½ curtain…
for models I and II full curtain…

(1) this view camera exists in 10x15 for the same price

Hermagis lenses and cameras can be delivered for trials

Hope this helps!