GOERZ MINICORD
(1951) The Minicord was a really ground-breaking camera. Sure, there
were lots of submini cameras before the 1950's and some of them -- most notably
the Minox -- were quality cameras, as well. But the Minicord was completely
different from all the predecessors. First it was a vertically-styled
submini. The camera was the size and shape of a pack of cigarettes.
This is not a small deal. Apparently the designers felt that because
the camera was so small, it could be put into a vertical design and that
the vertical design was more desirable for the average photographer. After
all, the images were 10x10mm so the results are the same regardless of how
the camera is held. Goerz also opted for a twin-lens reflex design
(that's right, a TLR design) instead of a common viewfinder. Ffortunately,
the viewfinder produced a larger image for focusing. To top it off,
they added a super-fast (f2.0), super-quality (six element) 25mm lens. It
is rated as having one of the best submini
lenses ever made -- and focuses down to 12 inches. In 1951 it sounded
unbelievable. Shutter speeds of B, 1/10 -1/400. Various filters
were available. Double perforated film was loaded into special cassettes
and produced about 40 pictures. Built-in depth-of-field scale
on the side of the lens. The company also made an enlarger that used
the camera body and lens for enlarging. Various colors and coverings
were available, and a gold-plated version with red leather is known.
COPYRIGHT @ 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 by Joe McGloin. All Rights Reserved.