1. I had this random idea...

Out of the blue I decided to buy a vintage camera, learn how to use it and to develop film. It’s difficult to explain what brought about this slightly odd decision, as I thoroughly enjoy using my Nikon DSLR and have recently upgraded the lenses. I’m not even that knowledgeable about cameras, I just like taking photographs.

Two weeks later, I’m the proud owner of a No.1A Autographic Kodak folding camera for £30, which I discover after some research and a few false leads (mainly caused by it being wrongly described by the seller) was made between 1916-1924. I notice that it feels pretty heavy, so I weigh it to compare with my Nikon and iPhone.

I find an old advert online which promotes it as a folding pocket camera. Wow, they had big, strong pockets back then! My vintage camera is not in great condition, if I’m honest, but that doesn’t dampen my enthusiasm for comparing its controls with my Nikon to work out what they do.

There aren’t many.

There is what turns out to be a rudimentary shutter speed with a ‘T’ and ‘B’ (I assume T for Time but not quite sure about B at this stage).There is an even more basic focus, which consists of moving the whole front of the camera backwards and forwards on runners to align with a small scale from 6 – 100 feet. How fabulous is that?

The best bit is the aperture, which is a small dial marked ‘dull’, ‘gray’, ‘clear’ and ‘brilliant’, a sort of 'weather app' before its time. When I slide it from side to side, it shows the required shutter speed for each of these conditions and I can (just) see the aperture itself opening and closing like the top of an intricate music box. I’m going to have to look at that in more detail later. All this excitement is missing on my Nikon.

I can only just see the aperture because the lens looks really cloudy. It looks like it should unscrew… oh that’s handy, it does! Careful cleaning with some glasses wipes soon has it all sparkly again.

I’m trying to work out how to use the viewfinder, which sits above the lens. When I put my eye to it I can see pretty much nothing. More cleaning. Now it all looks nice and shiny but I still can’t see anything through it. It’s time for an internet search, which brings up, of all things, the manual for No.1A Autographic Kodak.

On page 22 all becomes clear.

I’m so used to putting my eye right up to the viewfinder (or looking on screen), but this camera requires looking down from above, nowhere near the viewfinder.

Ah, I see!

And suddenly, I can.

Looking at the back of the camera there is a small metal hole in a window slit which looks as if you should put something in it. It’s not obvious what this might be for, but it could be to do with the tiny metal stylus I’ve found in a slot at the front of the camera. I’m sure someone is desperate to tell me, but I’d rather investigate and work it out!

With the back of the camera open I hold it up to the light to look through the concertina and notice that there are a couple of tiny pinholes of light which will need sealing in some way. The only thing I can think of at this stage is black electrical tape on the inside (I don’t want repairs to show). Or maybe some kind of flexible black glue/sealant? It needs to withstand the concertina being opened and closed.

There are two tiny levers on the front of the camera which must operate the shutter, but why two? I quickly discover that one ‘sets’ the shutter, the other releases it, so there must have once been a cable release as well. By playing with the shutter speed dial (1/10, 1/25, 1/50 and 1/100) I can see and hear the difference. On setting ‘T’ the second lever has to be pressed twice, once to open the shutter and once to close it – you set the time by counting seconds or maybe with your pocket watch. The ‘B’ setting still eludes me but I’ll get there, no spoilers just yet.

There is a small winding mechanism on the front left which tilts the lens up and down slightly, and another winder of some sort on the front bed which doesn’t currently wind, so its purpose is tricky to guess. That must be my cue to wind this up for now.

Well, that was most certainly a random idea, but hopefully this will be an exciting voyage of discovery!