|
Western Canada Photographic Historical
Association January
–
February 2008 |
|
JANUARY MEETING
NOTE THE DATE CHANGE As the first Tuesday is New
Year’s Day we have moved the meeting to Tuesday January 8th. We will have an informal New Year’s dinner
in the restaurant at 6:30, followed by a later start to the meeting with the
usual Buy and Sell and Show and Tell — bring an interesting camera. FEBRUARY MEETING
Back to the regular First Tuesday — February 5th.
Dinner at 6:30 for those who want. Buy and sell from 7:30 to 8:00 then a
presentation by Terry Cioni on Audio-Visual trends. ADVANCE NOTICE
The next Vancouver Camera Show will be at its
usually Cameron Recreation Centre venue on Sunday April 20th, 2008. One of
the biggest shows around with over 100 tables and one thousand attendees.
Book your table or volunteer to help — Siggi or Brigitte 604 941-0300. The
show coincides with the Nikon Convention — details in the next newsletter. PROGRAMME
We are trying to
have a presentation at least every second meeting. What do you have in your
collection that you could bring and talk about for thirty minutes or so? Let
our Program Coordinator know; Joe Vorlicek: jvorlicek@mcelhanney.com;
604 465-5346. NEWSLETTER
This is a
special four-page two-month edition of the newsletter that I have prepared to
give our editor Peter Knowlden a break as a special birthday present. The
next three pages are a long overdue chapter in the series on the lesser
German 35mm cameras — and one of my favourites — the Carl Zeiss Werra. We are
always looking for content, please hit your keyboard and email to Peter. A
list of member’s telephone and email is enclosed. For security reasons
addresses are not provided. Please send me any additions or corrections |
HAPPY EIGHTIETH BIRTHDAY TO OUR
EDITOR PETER KNOWLDEN Congratulations
Peter Thank
you for the Newsletter every month and for your faithful attendance driving
the long distance each month from Whonnock in your tiny Smart car. I only
hope I have your energy and enthusiasm if I am lucky enough to get to your
age. Here’s to many more interesting
127s in your collection.
LAST MONTHAperture Camera Show & Swap Meet on Dec 2nd
was small and hindered by a snowstorm with many tables packing up early in
the afternoon. Our Christmas dinner saw a record turnout with
the Alpine Club providing unusually speedy service. Thanks to Siggi for
making the arrangements. ALL THE BEST WISHES FOR CHRISTMAS AND THE NEW YEAR
TO EVERYONE |
WCPHA Newsletter
|
The Lesser German
35mm Cameras —Werra by Tom Parkinson |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Carl Zeiss Jena
VEB was the portion of the optical giant stranded in the Eastern (Russian)
sector of Germany, later the Deutsches Demokratisches Republik, (DDR). After
WWII the Soviets requisitioned much of the machinery that produced Contax
rangefinder cameras, along with staff to run and maintain it. These war
reparations were moved to Kiev and continued to produce the Kiev rangefinder
cameras for two decades. The Carl Zeiss factories in Jena concentrated on
optics, including supplying lenses for a variety of cameras produced in East
Germany. Note:The Contax
production line in the old ICA Dresden building had been badly damaged in
Allied raids. The Soviets required Zeiss to recreate destroyed drawings and
reestablish the line with new tooling produced in the undamaged Wünsche plant
located on the outskirts of Dresden. This line was established at the
Saalfeld works and produced 3000 – 4000 “Jena” Contax cameras (circa 1946) before
being moved to Kiev — coincidental with the name of the Soviet Contax
changing from the planned “Volga” to “Kiev.” Ref: Larry Gubas After
Dresden: the migration of the Contax to Jena and Kiev, Zeiss Historica,
2001. (The Soviets also requisitioned
designs and tooling for other cameras from the Eastern Sector.)
Zeiss Jena itself no longer made cameras after the Contax SLR
production was subsumed into the communist Dresden photographic kombinats —
until 1954 when purportedly the Soviets returned German personnel from Kiev
who were deployed by Carl Zeiss to develop a new 35mm camera. (several web
sites reference this but without sub stantiation). This team was not
located in Jena but at the Carl Zeiss factory in Eisfeld, still in Thüringer
land (province) but some 150 km away over the ThüringerWald—and a much longer
trip by railway twisting along the Saale river and over the mountains. The Ernst Abbe Werk Eisfeld produced military optics and later
binoculars and was located near the Werra River after which this new camera
was named. For its time the Werra was a revolutionary design, adopting clean
lines associated with the Germany Bauhaus design ethic. It evolved into three
distinct series that saw a total of over half a million cameras produced
between 1954 and 1966 when it was discontinued — attributed to the
assimilation of VEB Carl Zeiss Jena by VEB Pentacon in 1964 — which felt it
already had enough 35mm rangefinder cameras in its catalogue. The first series was a simple scale focus camera but displayed all
the main Werra features — the clean top with flush shutter release; a
reversible lens shade that made the camera self casing with an (often
missing) threaded cap, both initially with the same covering as the body —
later with molded, ridged black plastic (all cameras had strap lugs at each
end of the top plate but leather cases were available); and the annulus ring
around the lens that winds the film and tensions the shutter — a continuous
ring for the local shutters, notched for the Compur. Originally this ring was
machined aluminum, but soon was attractively covered with the body fabric.
Werra 1 (Olive
Green)
Later Werra base with
“worn” silk-screened information, combined back-lock, tripod socket and
rewind button, and the rewind crank. The “V, X, M” relate to the red shutter
tab below the lens. The base of the camera had the rewind knob, originally with a finger
indent, then with a ribbed wheel, later with a fold-out crank. A ¼ inch
tripod socket was centered under the lens and incorporated the back lock,
later a neat combined lock and rewind release. The other end initially housed
a rewind button and the frame counter with a central dot that made a complete
rotation as the film was wound. Around this adjustable central core the frame
numbers were engraved — changing early on to silk screened numbers — a significant
deficiency as these easily wore off on a camera designed-to-be-used without a
case. This basic scale focus camera was produced throughout the production
period gaining features from its peers as the product line evolved through
the Werra 1 to the 1E. (The A,B,C,D,E variants were not marked on the camera and
collectors have created other Werra designations such as PhotoSaga’s Type 1
through Type 15. Several references use Roman numerals but the cameras and
instruction books use Arabic numerals — which are used here). Early models were unmarked but then received a name label under the
viewfinder, later on the front plate glass.
The original camera had no accessory shoe except for extra-cost
removable ones in two designs one that fitted into the tripod socket the
other (on later models) onto the adjustable dioptre viewfinder eyepiece, also
improved with a thin black-line albada frame. This was remedied with a
permanent shoe on the top plate — somewhat marring the clean lines. The most
visible change occurred with the 1960-61 introduction of the Werra 5 and
Werramatic where a convex top plate was needed to accommodate the exposure
linkage — and allow an integral accessory shoe. This revised top also introduced
the front glass plate. The camera coverings varied from olive green or black
leatherette with a strong grain pattern to the black striated cloth common on
many communist cameras. The original Werra had a Novonar T f3.5/50mm triplet soon replaced by
the well-known Carl Zeiss Jena Tessar f2.8/50mm. Shutters evolved from the
bought-in Vebur 250 or Synchro Compur 500 to the Prestor RVS 750, specifically
developed by Zeiss in response to the DDR restrictions on hard currency
purchases around 1958. Mechanical leaf shutter have difficulty exceeding
1/200 without increased spring tension to push top speeds to 1/250, 1/300 and
later 1/500, the latter often more marketing prowess than actual. The Prestor RVS 750 achieved its true
faster speed, making it more competitive with focal plane shutters, by having
shutter blades that rotated in a single direction, a sequential opening and
closing set — dictating a second blanking shutter for the rewind/cocking
sequence. The second series of Werra cameras, the 2, 2B, 2E, Werramat and
Werramat E incorporated a selenium photocell, coupled only in the latter two.
This series shared most feature progression and variants of the 1 series with
the addition of differing hinged covers over the two-range meter. The coupled
Werramats had a single range meter and required the convex top plate. The
lens housing was redesigned to a conical shape bringing the aperture and
shutter scales outward, with numerals on a white background where they could
be viewed via two small mirrors incorporated in the lower right of the albada
frame viewfinder. The third series, models 3, 3C, 3E, 4, 4C, 5, Werramatic and
Werramatic E all incorporated a coupled rangefinder with interchangeable
lenses. The rangefinder used a 52mm base to display a narrow rectangular slit
in the centre of the viewfinder. This reflected image was not coloured but
almost opaque requiring lining up the image around the border—similar to a
focus wedge. The albada viewfinder had fine black lines for the three lenses
available and showed the aperture and shutter settings in those models with
coupled exposure meters. It also contained parallax marks. Automatic parallax
adjustment was a typically German omission in the Werras, while becoming common
in the Japanese competition of that era.
Werra 3 rangefinder isometric |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Werramatic viewfinder — note centered exposure meter needle at
bottom. The lenses for all series are shown below:
All lenses used polished aluminum with engraved numbers throughout.
Distance scales in both metres and feet are common as the Werras were aimed
at the export market to earn hard currencies. The interchangeable lenses used
a breech ring with a short twist to lock or release the lens and the aperture
coupling allowed a lens to be inserted at any setting. Both lenses used
covering matching the camera around their focus rings.
The Werra 3 did not have a meter, the 4 had an uncoupled meter while
the 5 and Werramatic had coupled meters and the associated convex, rounded
top with glass plate front. The Werra 3 did not have a meter, the 4 had an
uncoupled meter while the 5 and Werramatic had coupled meters and the associated
convex, rounded top with glass plate front. There was a microscope version made without a lens and there are
pictures on the web of an early prototype and a mock-up of an SLR version.
Apart from the usual accessory filters and cases there was a stereo adapter,
and (shown below right) a close up adapter and a unique double-coupler
that fitted two Werras base to base — allowing you to use two different
films. Settings, shutter releases and
ABOVE LEFT Werramatic with striated black covering showing white
scales on aperture and shutter rings for improved visibility through the
viewfinder. The Werra cameras can be approximately dated from the table below.
They were produced in large quantities so are not rare although the accessory
lenses and attachments are. In recent years they have developed something of
a cult among collectors and are holding their value. There are invariable a
dozen plus entries each week on eBay.
Watch for the worn silk-screening on the base of the camera, for
damaged treads on the reversible lens shade and for missing end caps for this
shade. Werras are particularly well-built, durable, aesthetic and functional
cameras, with the occasional sticking self-timer and slow speeds typical of
half century old leaf shutters— definitely not a “lesser” camera.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Acknowledgements
to KRG: http://pagesperso-orange.fr/krg/werra/werra.htm And
the Werra Group: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WerraGroup/ All
photos from sales brochures or by the author from his collection. ©
Tom Parkinson 2007 |
