Folding cameras work by utilizing a collapsible design for portability, featuring a lens and shutter mounted on a lens board connected to the camera body via a light-tight folding bellows.
Here's a breakdown of the mechanism:
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Compact Design: The defining feature of a folding camera is its ability to collapse into a smaller, more easily transportable form.
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Key Components:
- Lens and Shutter: These are mounted on a rigid lens board, responsible for focusing light onto the film and controlling exposure time.
- Bellows: The flexible, light-tight bellows connect the lens board to the camera body. This allows for focusing by adjusting the distance between the lens and the film plane. When not in use, the bellows collapses to allow the camera to fold up.
- Camera Body: The rigid structure that houses the film, provides support, and contains mechanisms for film advance and shutter release.
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Focusing Mechanism: The bellows extends and retracts, allowing the photographer to adjust the distance between the lens and the film plane. This is how the camera focuses on subjects at varying distances.
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Operation:
- The camera is unfolded, extending the bellows and locking the lens board into position.
- The subject is viewed through a viewfinder (which may be a simple optical viewfinder or a more complex rangefinder).
- The bellows is adjusted to achieve focus.
- The shutter is released, exposing the film to light.
- The film is advanced to the next frame.
- When not in use, the camera can be folded up, protecting the lens and bellows.
In essence, folding cameras trade off some rigidity and ease of use for increased portability compared to cameras with fixed lenses and bodies. The bellows is the critical component that enables this compact and rugged design.
