1896 Kodak Bullseye
When George Eastman resigned from his banking job in 1881 and decided to pursue photography, his family must have been disappointed. He was a rising star in the bank; and to give that up to become involved in the nascent camera industry must have seemed rather foolish. History shows that it was actually an excellent decision.
His first cameras featured dry plate backs which, although more convenient than wet plate photography, still required considerable effort to transport and process. But Eastman saw the future lay in roll film and in 1888 he launched the first Kodak camera.
For $25, you would receive the camera loaded with 100 shots on a roll film, and when you were done, you sent the camera back to Kodak for processing and loading of another film; and you paid $10 for that service.
In spite of the high price, sales were brisk, and Kodak released a number of different models in the next few years.
Meanwhile, over in Boston, the imaginatively named Boston Camera Company produced the Bulls-Eye camera. This was the first camera in the world to use a paper backing on the film, on which was written the exposure numbers; and owners could read off the shot number through a little red window in the back of the camera.
Eastman saw that this was a feature that should be incorporated in all cameras, so he bought the Boston company and in 1896 Kodak announced its own Bulls-Eye camera. The 1896 model had a wooden frame and brass fittings and cost $8.
Over the years there were variations on the camera, the brass fittings were replaced with something that wasn’t brass; and an extremely basic version featuring the extensive use of cardboard was released in 1900 as The Brownie (price:$1), and sold a staggering 150,000 in the first year. Photography as a hobby for everyone (and Ansel Adams) had begun.
So you could say that the 1896 Kodak Bulls-Eye was the beginning of popular photography, and I would certainly say that because I have one. Fifty pounds on eBay bought me a reasonable example; which scrubbed up pretty well after some treatment with saddle soap and black boot polish.
These early Kodak cameras wore their outer cases like a burqa; for remove the outer cover and there is much beauty to be found inside.
They don’t make them like that any more….
There are two shutter speeds. Bulb mode is where you hold down the shutter button to open the shutter and then release the button when you get bored and want to stop taking the picture. The other mode uses a single shutter speed which is regulated by a piece of bent wire. Perhaps wisely, Kodak didn’t bother to suggest what speed that might be.
The speed is selected by moving a rod on top of the camera.
The camera offered three apertures; big, medium and small, and these are selected by moving the second rod on top of the camera.
The few controls on the camera are working, but I have yet to find a way to put a film through it. The camera includes a wooden spool which is designed to take Kodak 101 film, which has not been made for more than fifty years. As you can see, it is somewhat larger than currently available film.
Never mind, it’s a lovely thing to own, and a reminder of how popular photography started.