Historic Hood River
Brownie
Notes
Grace’s museum artifact for today comes from our pile of abandoned cameras.
This camera is a Kodak No. 0 Brownie model A.The No. 0 Brownie was manufactured from 1914 to 1935 and was an upgraded and more compact version of the original Kodak Brownie and utilized a new and upgraded film format. The original Brownie camera had revolutionized the world of photography by making it much more accessible to the average person and casual photographers, initially priced at just $1. The No. 0 model is constructed from cardboard and wood and introduced two reflecting viewfinders, one for portrait and one for landscape-oriented images. It uses 127 medium format roll film, which was discontinued in the 1960s. The original market price of the Kodak No. 0 Brownie camera was $2.
It’s fascinating to think of all of the photos taken by Brownie cameras throughout history. I wonder how many images in the museum’s collection were taken by this specific model.
It can’t be understated how much these simple cameras changed the world. Not only were they cameras amateurs could buy, but by creating a camera for the masses roll film and processing became a consumer item. Semi-professionals like Alva Day or professionals like W. D. Rogers could afford to burn through film in their more expensive cameras because it was manufactured and processed in volume.
On a personal note, I was given a retired family camera much like this at a very young age. It sparked my interest in the physics, chemistry and mechanics of photography. This camera and an old clock were two of my favorite toys, which I suspect doesn’t surprise any of you.
Thorn
These cameras are also pivotal to the shift from subjects being straight-faced to smiling! Think about the impact of that! Between shorter exposure times, camera accessibility, improved dental hygiene and the beaming grins of Hollywood stars, portrait photographs went from appearing dully dignified to exuding joy and happiness! The phrase “Smile!” kicked in in the 1920’s. “Say cheese” came along in 1943….before that photographers said “Say prunes” to keep the mouth closed! These days, young people are so inundated with appearing in photos they literally and instinctively know dozens of different facial and bodily poses for different effects, to the point where they don’t even like being in photos yet can instantly choose a “look” when needed. And just think, in the future if not already, the young people now will be able to search for images of themselves and instantly see very photo and video they’ve ever been in, and AI will create documentaries of their entire lives. So, smile!
Roger Sheldrake
Seems like only yesterday I had to remember to take the lens cover off!