Graflex was a manufacturer that gave its brand name to several camera models.
60-584: The company was founded as the Folmer and Schwing Manufacturing Company in New York City in 1887 by William F. Folmer and William E. Schwing as a metal working factory, manufacturing gas light fixtures, chandeliers, bicycles and eventually, cameras. In 1909, it was acquired by George Eastman , and the company was moved to 12 Caledonia Avenue (later renamed Clarissa Street) in Rochester, New York in 1928. It operated as
120-407: A focal plane shutter . To produce shutter speeds fast enough to appear to freeze rapid motion, early Graflex cameras employed a cloth shutter with a narrow slit that quickly moved across the film plane, exposing only one small strip at any given moment in its travel. To set the shutter speed, the photographer wound the shutter spring to one of a series of calculated tensions using a key, and selected
180-405: A Kodak Aero Ektar 178 mm f/2.5 lens can be fitted to Speed Graphic 4x5 cameras and used to take soft/sharp photographs with complete control of the depth of focus. The lightsaber prop used in the 1977 release of Star Wars was a modified 1940s Graflex 3-cell flashgun, which was designed to hold flash bulbs for vintage "Speed Graphic" cameras. The model of the flashgun used in the movie had
240-528: A dental care clinic for children opened in 1937 in Stockholm , Sweden. Marion Gleason, a close confidante of Eastman, later described his views on African Americans as "typical of his time – paternalistic, but strictly against social fraternization." Although he made generous donations to the Hampton Institute and Tuskegee Institute , becoming their largest donor in his era, he also upheld and reinforced
300-517: A direct appeal from president Walter White in 1929. From 1925 until his death, Eastman donated $ 10,000 per year to the American Eugenics Society (increasing the donation to $ 15,000 in 1932), a popular cause among many of the upper class when there were concerns about immigration and "race mixing". In his final two years, Eastman was in intense pain due to a disorder affecting his spine . He had trouble standing, and his walk became
360-584: A focal plane shutter allowed lenses to be mounted closer to the film plane, enabling the use of wider angle lenses on these models. Sources: (Graflex Century Studio portrait Cameras) Source: The company name changed several times over the years, as it was absorbed and released by the Kodak empire—finally becoming a division of the Singer Corporation . It dissolved in 1973. The Graflex plant in suburban Pittsford, New York still stands at 3750 Monroe Avenue, and
420-542: A focal plane shutter, but omitted the SLR swinging mirror and through-the lens viewing, replacing it by an external viewfinder, while retaining a view camera 's traditional ground glass for static subjects. This allowed the camera to be considerably lighter, and fold into a rugged boxy shape. These cameras could also be used with "between-the-lens" shutters mounted to the front lens board as more typically seen on large format cameras . The Speed Graphic became even more popular than
480-691: A major role in planning and financing the campaign for a new global calendar, and also headed the National Committee on Calendar Simplification, in the United States, which was created at the behest of the League of Nations . Eastman supported Cotsworth's campaign until his death. Eastman wrote several articles to promote the 13-month system, including "Problems of Calendar Improvement" in Scientific American and "The Importance of Calendar Reform to
540-645: A note which read, "To my friends: my work is done. Why wait?" Eastman is regarded as one of the most influential and well-known residents of Rochester, New York . He has been commemorated on several college campuses and the Hollywood Walk of Fame , and the George Eastman Museum has been designated a National Historic Landmark . Eastman was born in Waterville, New York , as the youngest child of George Washington Eastman and Maria Eastman (née Kilbourn), at
600-541: A passion for playing the piano. The loss of his mother, Maria, was particularly crushing to George. Almost pathologically concerned with decorum, he found himself, for the first time, unable to control his emotions in the presence of his friends. "When my mother died I cried all day", he said later. "I could not have stopped to save my life." Due to his mother's reluctance to accept his gifts, Eastman could never do enough for his mother during her lifetime. He continued to honor her after her death. On September 4, 1922, he opened
660-450: A profit-sharing program for all employees in 1912. Eastman never married. He was close to his mother and to his sister Ellen Maria and her family. He had a long platonic relationship with Josephine Dickman, a trained singer and the wife of business associate George Dickman. He became especially close to Dickman after the death of his mother, Maria Eastman, in 1907. He was also an avid traveler, enjoyed music and social gatherings, and had
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#1732869935341720-518: A rate of 10,000 frames/second. Fastax cameras were used for recording projectiles and explosions, including nuclear explosions. The cameras, with the rotating prism removed, were used for "streak" and "smear" photography . Wollensak made only one still camera model, the "Stereo 10" 35 mm 3D camera . They formed a partnership with the Revere Camera Company that led to them offering some movie cameras (mostly 8 mm) under their name in
780-401: A slow shuffle. Today, it might be diagnosed as a form of degenerative disease such as disc herniations from trauma or age causing either painful nerve root compressions, or perhaps a type of lumbar spinal stenosis , a narrowing of the spinal canal caused by calcification in the vertebrae . Since his mother suffered the final two years of her life in a wheelchair, she also may have had
840-455: A spine condition but that is uncertain. Only her uterine cancer and successful surgery are documented in her health history. As a result of his pain, Eastman suffered from depression . On March 14, 1932, Eastman died by suicide with a single gunshot through the heart. His suicide note read, "To my friends, my work is done – Why wait? GE." Raymond Granger, an insurance salesman in Rochester,
900-585: A variety of formats ranging from 35mm to 5 by 7 inches (130 mm × 180 mm). The Rochester Folmer plant also manufactured the Century Studio Camera , which was marketed under both the Kodak and Graflex nameplates. However, because Graflex printed separate catalogs for its studio and portable offerings, many erroneously believe the Century Studios to have been manufactured elsewhere. The first of
960-480: Is displayed at the Genesee Country Village and Museum . Wollensak Wollensak Optical was an American manufacturer of audio-visual products located in Rochester, New York . At the height of their popularity in the 1950s and 1960s, many brands of movie cameras came with a Wollensak Velostigmat lens. Wollensak reel-to-reel tape recorders were prized for their robust construction and value. In
1020-565: The Charles River , and Tuskegee University and Hampton University , two historically black universities in the South . With interests in improving health, he provided funds for clinics in London and other European cities to serve low-income residents. In his final two years, Eastman was in intense pain caused by a disorder affecting his spine. On March 14, 1932, he shot himself in the heart, leaving
1080-463: The Eastman Kodak Company and helped to bring the photographic use of roll film into the mainstream. After a decade of experiments in photography, he patented and sold a roll film camera, making amateur photography accessible to the general public for the first time. Working as the treasurer and later president of Kodak, he oversaw the expansion of the company and the film industry. Eastman
1140-587: The Eastman Theatre in Rochester, which included a chamber-music hall, Kilbourn Theater, dedicated to his mother's memory. At the Eastman House he maintained a rose bush, using a cutting from her childhood home. Eastman was a presidential elector in 1900 and 1916 . In 1915, Eastman founded the Bureau of Municipal Research in Rochester to gather information and make government policy recommendations. The agency
1200-568: The Motion Picture Patents Company in 1908, Eastman negotiated for Kodak to be sole supplier of film to the industry. His monopolistic actions attracted the attention of the federal government, which began an anti-trust investigation into Kodak in 1911 for exclusive contracts, acquisitions of competitors, and price-fixing. This resulted in a lawsuit against Kodak in 1913 and a final judgement in 1921, ordering Kodak to stop fixing prices and sell many of its interests. Kodak's growth
1260-565: The 10-acre (4.0 ha) farm which his parents had bought in 1849. He had two older sisters, Ellen Maria and Katie. He was largely self-educated, although he attended a private school in Rochester after the age of eight. In the early 1840s his father had started a business school, the Eastman Commercial College in Rochester, New York . The city became one of the first "boomtowns" in the United States, based on its rapid industrialization. As his father's health started deteriorating,
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#17328699353411320-421: The 1920s, Eastman was involved in calendar reform and supported the 13-month per year International Fixed Calendar developed by Moses B. Cotsworth . On January 17, 1925, Eastman invited Cotsworth to his home; he had been introduced to Cotsworth's calendar by a mutual friend and was interested in the system. He secretly funded Cotsworth for a year and then openly supported him and the 13-month plan. Eastman took
1380-465: The 1950s and early 1960s. 3M also used the Wollensak brand name on audio tape recorders for many years; the Wollensak recorders were solidly built with all-metal construction. They were among the first manufacturers of cassette decks, as well as 8-track decks for home use. This electronics-related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This photography-related article
1440-546: The 1960s, Wollensak was the choice tape recorder for amateur home, school, and office uses. They were produced in both stereo and mono designs. The firm was founded in 1899 by Andrew Wollensak to produce camera shutters. At its peak in the 1950s, it employed over 1000 people. The company had several owners, including Revere Camera Company and 3M Company. Wollensak ceased operation in 1972. Wollensak began making camera lenses in 1902. The company also produced camera shutters for large format cameras. They made shutters such as
1500-678: The American Ambassador to the UK. The clinic was incorporated into the Royal Free Hospital and was committed to providing dental care for disadvantaged children from central London. It is now a part of University College London . In 1929 he founded the George Eastman Visiting Professorship at Oxford , to be held each year by a different American scholar of the highest distinction. Eastman also funded Eastmaninstitutet ,
1560-581: The Betax, Alphax, Optimo and, for the Graflex Corporation, Rapax. The Betax shutters were patented in 1912 and remain popular for large format photographers. Betax shutters are made in sizes from #0 to the huge size #5. These shutters are very reliable and relatively easy to repair. Wollensak purchased the Fastax high speed rotating-prism camera developed by Bell Labs from Western Electric , and improved it to
1620-735: The Business World" in Nation's Business . By 1928, the Kodak Company implemented the calendar in its business bookkeeping, and continued to use it until 1989. He was chairman of the National Committee on Calendar Simplification. Although a conference was held at the League of Nations in 1931, with his death and the looming tensions of World War II , this calendar was dropped from consideration. In 1925 Eastman gave up his daily management of Kodak and officially retired as president. He remained associated with
1680-669: The Folmer & Schwing Division of the Eastman Kodak Company . In 1926, Kodak was forced to divest itself of the division, which was spun off forming a new company, the Folmer Graflex Corporation, which changed its name to Graflex Inc. in 1946. In 1956, it became a Division of the General Instrument Precision Company, and moved its offices to Pittsford, New York outside Rochester. In 1968, the company
1740-517: The Graflex Reflex as a press and sports camera, so much so that to this type of classic press camera features in the masthead of the New York Daily News . The top-to-bottom motion of the focal plane shutter exposed the upper portion of the film first (i.e., the bottom of the inverted image as seen at the focal plane), so many photographs of automobile racing taken with Speed Graphics depicted
1800-520: The Graflex Reflex. Speed Graphics are still widely used by modern fine art photographers because of their unique image creation capabilities and simple, easily serviced mechanical design. The Crown Graphic models of this same period were similar in overall design to the Speed Graphics, but omitted their focal plane shutter, allowing Crown Graphic models to be about one inch (2.5 cm) smaller and 1 pound lighter (.5 kg) Furthermore, their lack of
1860-730: The Graflex cameras in their professional equipment manufacturing plant on Clarrisa street in Rochester NY. In 1926, as a result of violations of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act (Comp. St. § 8820 et seq.) Kodak was forced to divest itself of its professional equipment division, which became Graflex Inc. This company existed under independent ownership until 1958, when the company was bought by the General Precision Equipment , which operated it as an independent division until 1968, when it
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1920-468: The Graflex-branded cameras, released in 1898, was the Graflex camera, also known as the Graflex Reflex, or Graflex single lens reflex (SLR). This camera used the same swinging-mirror, through-the-lens viewing mechanism as modern single lens reflex cameras , introduced many decades later, and quickly became popular for sports and press photography in the early 20th century due largely to its use of
1980-619: The River Campus of the University of Rochester is named for Eastman. The Rochester Institute of Technology has a building dedicated to him, in recognition of his support and substantial donations. MIT installed a plaque of Eastman on one of the buildings he funded. (Students rub the nose of Eastman's image on the plaque for good luck.) Eastman had built a mansion at 900 East Avenue in Rochester. Here he entertained friends to dinner and held private music concerts. The University of Rochester used
2040-578: The alias "Mr. Smith". In 1918, he endowed the establishment of the Eastman School of Music at the University of Rochester, and in 1921 a school of medicine and dentistry there. In 1922, he founded the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra , hiring its first music director Albert Coates . Figured for its value in 1932, the year of Eastman's death, $ 100 million is equivalent to more than $ 2 billion in 2022. In 1915, Eastman provided funds for
2100-701: The camera was immediately popular with the public. By August 1888, Eastman was struggling to meet orders, and he and his employees soon had several other cameras in development. The rapidly-growing Eastman Dry Plate Company was reorganized as the Eastman Company In 1889, and then incorporated as Eastman Kodak in 1892. Eastman recognized that most of his revenue would come from the sale of additional film rolls, rather than camera sales, and focused on film production. By providing quality and affordable film to every camera manufacturer, Kodak managed to turn competitors into de facto business partners. In 1889 he patented
2160-542: The company expanded into other areas including bicycles and photographic equipment, leading to the release of the first Graflex camera in 1899. As the company's success grew, it chose to focus on photography and dropped its other manufacturing lines, and in 1905 was acquired by George Eastman , in 1907 becoming the Folmer Graflex Division of Eastman Kodak . After a succession of name changes, it finally became simply "Graflex, Inc." in 1945. Eastman Kodak made all of
2220-437: The company experienced rapid growth. By 1896, Kodak was the leading supplier of film stock internationally, and by 1915, the company was the largest employer in Rochester, with over 8,000 employees and annual earnings of $ 15.7 Million. In 1934, shortly after Eastman's death, Kodak employed 23,000. One of the largest markets for film became the emerging motion picture industry . When Thomas Edison and other film producers formed
2280-586: The company in a business executive capacity, as the chairman of the board, until his death. During his lifetime, Eastman donated $ 100 million to various organizations, becoming one of the major philanthropists in the United States during his lifetime. His largest donations went to the University of Rochester and to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to build their programs and facilities. Preferring to remain anonymous, he made donations under
2340-609: The de facto segregation which existed in Rochester. Kodak hired virtually no black employees during Eastman's lifetime, and a 1939 commission of the New York State Legislature on living conditions of African Americans found that Kodak had only a single black employee. The Eastman Dental Dispensary also rejected black applicants, and the Eastman Theater restricted black patrons to its balcony. Eastman rejected several requests to meet with NAACP representatives, including
2400-772: The establishment of the Eastman Dental Dispensary in Rochester. He donated £200,000 in 1926 to fund a dental clinic in London after being approached by the chairman of the Royal Free Hospital , George Riddell, 1st Baron Riddell . Donations of £50,000 each had been made by Lord Riddell and the Royal Free honorary treasurer. On November 20, 1931, the UCL Eastman Dental Institute opened in a ceremony attended by Neville Chamberlain , then Minister of Health, and
2460-483: The family gave up the farm and moved to Rochester in 1860. His father died of a brain disorder on April 27, 1862. To survive and afford George's schooling, his mother took in boarders. The second daughter, Katie, had contracted polio when young and died in late 1870 when George was 15 years old. The young George left school early and started working to help support the family. As Eastman began to have success with his photography business, he vowed to repay his mother for
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2520-425: The first marketed integral tripack film. During World War I , Eastman established a photographic school in Rochester to train pilots for aerial reconnaissance . In an era of growing trade union activities, Eastman sought to counter the union movement by anticipating worker demands. To this end, he implemented a number of worker benefit programs, including a welfare fund to provide workmen's compensation in 1910 and
2580-520: The hardships she had endured in raising him. While working as a bank clerk in the 1870s, Eastman became interested in photography. After receiving lessons from George Monroe and George Selden , he developed a machine for coating dry plates in 1879. In 1881, he founded the Eastman Dry Plate Company with Henry Strong to sell plates, with Strong as company president and Eastman as treasurer, where he handled most executive functions. Around
2640-487: The mansion for various purposes for decades after his death. In 1949, it re-opened after having been adapted for use as the George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film. It has been designated a National Historic Landmark , and is now known as the George Eastman Museum . Eastman's boyhood home was saved from destruction. It was restored to its state during his childhood and
2700-531: The patent #2310165 stamped onto the bottom. A stylized logo of a Speed Graphic camera appears on the flag of the New York Daily News Graflex, Inc., a company in Jupiter, Fla. manufactures precision optical, electronic, and mechanical devices, mostly for the military. George Eastman George Eastman (July 12, 1854 – March 14, 1932) was an American entrepreneur who founded
2760-471: The photographer mailed the camera back to the Eastman company in Rochester, along with $ 10. The company would process the film, make a print of each exposure, load another roll of film into the camera, and send the camera and the prints to the photographer. The separation of photo-taking from the difficult process of film development was novel and made photography more accessible to amateurs than ever before, and
2820-440: The processes for the first nitrocellulose film along with chemist Henry Reichenbach. A number of patent infringement lawsuits would preoccupy Eastman and his lawyers in subsequent years, including one from Reichenbach after he was fired in 1892. The largest lawsuit would come from rival film producer Ansco . Inventor Hannibal Goodwin had filed a patent for nitrocellulose film in 1887, prior to Eastman and Reichenbach's, but it
2880-400: The same time, he began experiments to create a flexible film roll that could replace plates altogether. In 1885, he received a patent for a film roll, and then focused on creating a camera to use the rolls. In 1888, he patented and released the Kodak camera ("Kodak" being a word Eastman created). It was sold loaded with enough roll film for 100 exposures. When all the exposures had been made,
2940-441: The slit width with another control. A table on the side of the box gave the shutter speed for each combination. The Graflex Reflex was also popular among early 20th Century fine art photographers, leading several lens manufacturers to design special soft-focus lenses, including the famous Wollensak 's Verito, to support the camera's creative potential. Graflex Speed Graphic folding cameras, produced from 1912 to 1973 also employed
3000-439: The wheels of cars in an oval shape leaning forward. This feature was so ubiquitous in racing photography that it came to be a conventional graphical indication for speed, influencing many cartoonists who drew wheels in this same style to indicate fast motion. Speed Graphics have also been used with success by many fine art photographers, as they work quite well with special un-shuttered lenses that were manufactured originally for
3060-493: Was a major philanthropist, establishing the Eastman School of Music , Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra , and schools of dentistry and medicine at the University of Rochester and Eastman Dental Hospital at University College London , and making large contributions to the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), the construction of several buildings at the second campus of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) on
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#17328699353413120-509: Was buried in the grounds of the company he founded, at what is now known as Eastman Business Park . The Security Trust Company of Rochester was the executor of Eastman's estate. His entire estate was bequeathed to the University of Rochester. Eastman disdained public notoriety and sought to tightly control his image. He was reluctant to share information in interviews, and on multiple occasions both Eastman and Kodak blocked biographers from full access to his records. A definitive biography
3180-471: Was finally published in 1996. Eastman is the only person represented by two stars in the Film category in the Hollywood Walk of Fame , one on the north side of the 6800 block of Hollywood Boulevard and the other one on the west side of the 1700 block of Vine Street . Both recognize the same achievement, that he developed bromide paper , which became a standard of the film industry. The Eastman Quadrangle of
3240-518: Was later renamed the Center for Governmental Research and continues to carry out that mission. In 1924, Eastman and the Bureau supported a referendum to change Rochester's government to a city manager system, which passed. In 1920, Eastman established the Eastman Savings and Loan to provide financial services to Kodak employees. The institution was later rechartered as ESL Federal Credit Union . In
3300-434: Was not granted until 1898. Ansco purchased the patent in 1900 and sued Kodak for infringement. Kodak ultimately lost the suit, which lasted over a decade and cost the company $ 5 Million. Eastman paid close attention to Kodak's advertisements. He coined the slogan, “ You press the button, we do the rest ”, which became ubiquitous in the general public. As Kodak pursued a monopoly on film through patents and acquisitions,
3360-524: Was sold to the Singer Corporation , who also operated it as a division until 1973, when it was finally wrapped up and its tooling sold to the Toyo Corporation. From 1912 to 1973 Graflex produced large format and medium format press cameras in film formats from 2 + 1 ⁄ 4 by 3 + 1 ⁄ 4 inches (57 mm × 83 mm) to 4 by 5 inches (100 mm × 130 mm) . They also produced rangefinder , SLR and TLR cameras in
3420-524: Was sold to the Singer Corporation . Graflex was known for the quintessential press camera, the Speed Graphic which was manufactured for over 60 years, and was used by most of the photojournalists in the first half of the 20th century. William F. Folmer, an inventor, co-owned the Folmer and Schwing Manufacturing Company, founded in New York City as a gas lamp company. As the gas lamp market declined,
3480-480: Was sustained during the 20th century by new innovations in film and cameras, including the Brownie camera, which was marketed to children. Eastman took interest in color photography in 1904, and funded experiments in color film production for the next decade. The resulting product, created by John Capstaff, was a two-color process named Kodachrome. Later, in 1935, Kodak would release the more famous second Kodachrome ,
3540-685: Was the corporate headquarters of Veramark Technologies from 1997 to 2010. Because the Speed Graphic had its historical origins as the quintessential press camera prior to the advent of 35mm and digital photography for use by press photographers, some still consider the use of a Graflex obsolete. However, both the Speed Graphic and the Graflex SLR have focal plane shutters that allow use of large un-shuttered barrel lenses. These cameras are now being used by fine art photographers to make images that excel in depth of field control and image detail. As an example,
3600-433: Was visiting to collect insurance payments from several members of the staff. He arrived at the scene to find the workforce shocked and upset. At least one chronicler said that Eastman's fear of senility or other debilitating diseases of old age was a contributing factor to his action. Eastman's funeral was held at St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Rochester; his coffin was carried out to Charles Gounod 's "Marche Romaine". It
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