Rochester Optical Co., Rochester, NY

 

The Ideal Camera Variation 2.0

 

Rochester Optical Co. Catalog, 1895, pp. 10-11; Two styles of front to back swing movement: 1) Swing from the bottom of the rear standard (left hand engraving); 2) Swing from the center of the rear standard (right hand engraving).

 

 

 

 

4 ½ x 6 ½, Style 1) Swing from the bottom



 

 

 

 

 

5 x 8, Style 1) Swing from the bottom
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536.rochester.optical-ideal.var.2-5x8b-750.jpg536.rochester.optical-ideal.var.2-5x8c-750.jpg
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Label, celluloid, lower part of front standard: "Ideal - Manufactured by - Rochester Optical Co. - Rochester, N.Y."
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6 ½ x 8 ½, Style 1) Swing from the bottom
rocideal6x8a131.jpg (66700 bytes)

 

 

 

 

 

8 x 10, Style 2) Swing from the center





Label on the bottom of the front standard: "Rochester Optical Co.  The Ideal"

 

 


 

Date Introduced: - Years Manufactured: c. 1890-1899
Construction: front focus via rack and pinion (two gear tracks on top of base rails); single or double swing; three-piece lens board; reversed by removable back; single swing is illustrated in both the engraving (1895 reference  below) and the photos
Materials: mahogany body; cherry base; black fabric bellows; brass hardware
Sizes Offered:3 ½x4 ½; 4x5; 4 ½x6 ½; 5x7; 5x8; 6 ½-8 ½; 8x10; 11x14; 14x17; 17x20; 18x22; 20x24
Notes:

The Ideal Variation 1.0:  has an s-shaped tilt mechanism, two top cam buttons to release the removable back, and two back cam buttons to release the hinged ground glass frame.

The Ideal Variation 1.5:  has one of two types of tilt mechanisms: either a center pivot (as above) or a plate-type bottom pivot, two top cam buttons to release the removable back, and two back cam buttons to release the hinged ground glass frame.

The Ideal Variation 1.7:  has an s-shaped tilt mechanism, two top cam buttons to release the removable back, and a spring-type ground glass frame.

The Ideal Variation 2.0:  has one of two types of tilt mechanisms: either a center pivot (as above) or a plate-type bottom pivot, two top clips to release the removable back, and a spring-type ground glass frame.

     It appears that any of the above variations may have front standard supports of varying style: e.g., three screws and a short top tab, three screws and a long top tab, or five screws and a short top tab.  

     The camera below has a metal label, rather than the usual celluloid label shown above.

     Note from the two engravings for Variation 2 that Rochester produced variations in the device that holds the bed rigid.  The right-hand engraving has a single thumbscrew for the hinged bed and double thumbscrews for the detachable bed, whereas the left-hand engraving has Rochester's lever device for the hinged bed and a single thumbscrew for the detachable bed.  The double thumbscrews were a function of camera size - they appear on cameras about 11x14" and larger; smaller format cameras had single thumbscrews for their detachable bed (e.g., the 6½x8½" camera below).

References:
Illustrated Catalogue of Photographic Apparatus, Rochester Optical Co. (Rochester, NY), June 1890, pp. 4-5 (one engraving is Variation 1 while a second engraving is Variation 2)
Illustrated Catalogue of Photographic Apparatus,
Rochester Optical Co. (Rochester, NY), May 1891, pp. 4-5
1892 Illustrated Catalogue of Photographic Apparatus, Rochester Optical Co. (Rochester, NY), 1892, pp. 4-5
1893 Catalogue of Photographic Apparatus, Rochester Optical Co. (Rochester, NY), 1893, pp. 6-7
American Annual of Photography and Photographic Times Almanac for 1893, The Scovill & Adams Co. (New York, NY), 1892, p. 104
1894 Catalogue of Photographic Apparatus, Rochester Optical Co. (Rochester, NY), 1894, pp. 6-7
1895 Catalogue of Photographic Apparatus, Rochester Optical Co. (Rochester, NY), 1895, pp. 10-11
1896 Catalogue of Photographic Apparatus, Rochester Optical Co. (Rochester, NY), 1896, pp. 10-11
Catalogue of Photographic Apparatus, Rochester Optical Co. (Rochester, NY), May 1897, pp. 10-11
Dept. 5: Photographic Lenses, Supplies, etc. 2nd ed.; Andrew J. Lloyd & Co. (Boston, MA) catalog, 1897, p. 45
Department 5, Photographic Supplies, Lenses, etc.
, Andrew J. Lloyd & Co. (Boston, MA), undated c.1898, p.48
Photography has Made the Sun an Artist, Andrew J. Lloyd (Boston, MA) catalog, 1899, p.78

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


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