ENSIGN, Kodak Folding bellows camera. Famous History Analogue camera
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Ensign Autorange folding bellows camera (1935) and two Kodak folding cameras from the 1930s, all in Good physical condition and untested functionally.
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Description from the seller
Ensign Autorange 1935 + Two Kodak Folding Cameras – Personal Provenance from Photographer Bill Zygmant
A fascinating group of three vintage folding cameras from the personal collection of British press and entertainment photographer Bill Zygmant, comprising a rare British Ensign Autorange from 1935 together with two 1930s Kodak folding cameras.
All three cameras were personally given to me by Bill Zygmant from his own collection of photographic equipment.
I can also provide photographs of myself with Bill Zygmant as supporting evidence of this personal provenance.
The provenance relates specifically to Bill’s personal collection of cameras. No claim is made that any particular camera in this lot was used for a specific photograph, assignment or celebrity.
1. Ensign Autorange – 1935 Model
The highlight of this lot is the 1935 model Ensign Autorange, a sophisticated British folding rangefinder camera manufactured by Ensign Ltd of London.
It is fitted with the highly regarded:
Ensar Anastigmat 100mm f/4.5 lens
Lens marked N° 55161
Prontor II shutter
Shutter speeds including 1/150 sec, together with B and T
Coupled rangefinder with double-image focusing
Direct-vision and frame viewfinders
Front-bed focusing arrangement
Rising and cross front movements
Folding leather bellows
6 × 9 cm format
120 roll film / E20 film specification
The identification as the 1935 Autorange model is particularly interesting. The 1935 version introduced the square-window rangefinder housing and direct-vision finder, distinguishing it from the earlier 1934 version and from the later Autorange-20 introduced in 1937.
This is therefore not an Autorange-20, but the earlier and considerably more distinctive 1935 model.
The camera is an excellent example of the sophisticated photographic equipment available to serious photographers during the pre-war period.
2. Kodak Junior Six-20 Series II
The second camera is a Kodak Junior Six-20 Series II, a classic 1930s folding medium-format camera.
Features include:
Kodak Junior Six-20 Series II
Kodak Anastigmat 100mm f/6.3 lens
620 roll film
6 × 9 cm negatives
Mechanical shutter
Shutter speeds including 1/25, 1/50 and 1/100 sec, together with B and T
Folding bellows construction
Folding viewfinder arrangement
The Junior Six-20 Series II was produced during the 1937–1940 period, making it a particularly good companion to the Ensign in this collection.
3. Kodak Junior 620
The third camera is an earlier-style Kodak Junior 620, fitted with the distinctive:
Kodak Anastigmat 10.5cm f/7.7 lens
620 roll-film format
6 × 9 cm image format
Mechanical shutter
B and T settings
Shutter speeds including 1/25 and 1/75 sec
Folding bellows construction
This is a classic 1930s German-made Kodak folding camera and provides an interesting contrast with both the more sophisticated Ensign rangefinder and the later Kodak Junior Six-20 Series II.
Personal Provenance – Bill Zygmant
What makes this group particularly interesting is not simply the cameras themselves, but their direct personal provenance.
All three cameras were personally given to me by Bill Zygmant, a British press and entertainment photographer whose career spans decades of music, celebrity and popular culture photography.
Bill photographed many of the most famous musicians and entertainers of the 1960s onwards, and his photographic archive includes major figures from the world of music and entertainment.
These cameras come directly from his personal collection of photographic equipment.
Photographs of myself with Bill can be supplied as supporting provenance for the purchaser.
This is an unusual opportunity to acquire a group of genuine vintage cameras with a direct connection to the working equipment collection of an established British photographer.
Condition
All three cameras show genuine signs of age and previous use, including wear to the leather coverings, chrome and metal surfaces, and other cosmetic marks consistent with their considerable age.
The Ensign in particular has substantial cosmetic wear which is clearly visible in the photographs.
The cameras are offered UNTESTED.
The shutters, film transport, focusing mechanisms, rangefinder, viewfinders, bellows light-tightness and optical performance have not been professionally tested.
No guarantee is therefore made regarding operational performance.
The cameras should be regarded as collector’s items and/or restoration projects unless the purchaser chooses to have them serviced.
Please study all photographs carefully, as they form an important part of the description and show the condition of the cameras in detail.
A Remarkable Vintage Photography Collection
Together, these three cameras provide a fascinating snapshot of photographic technology during the 1930s, from the sophisticated coupled-rangefinder Ensign Autorange to the more straightforward Kodak Junior folding cameras.
The 1935 Ensign Autorange is particularly noteworthy, being an early British coupled-rangefinder camera with a fast f/4.5 Ensar Anastigmat lens and Prontor II shutter.
Combined with the two Kodak cameras and the direct personal provenance from Bill Zygmant, this is an especially appealing lot for collectors of:
Vintage cameras
British photographic history
Kodak collecting
Ensign cameras
Pre-war photography
Press photography
Photographer memorabilia
Music and entertainment history
Included in the Lot
Three vintage folding cameras:
Ensign Autorange – 1935 model, Ensar Anastigmat 100mm f/4.5, Prontor II
Kodak Junior Six-20 Series II, Kodak Anastigmat 100mm f/6.3
Kodak Junior 620, Kodak Anastigmat 10.5cm f/7.7
All three cameras are offered untested and in the condition shown in the photographs.
A genuinely unusual collection with direct personal provenance from photographer Bill Zygmant.
Ensign Autorange 1935 + Two Kodak Folding Cameras – Personal Provenance from Photographer Bill Zygmant
A fascinating group of three vintage folding cameras from the personal collection of British press and entertainment photographer Bill Zygmant, comprising a rare British Ensign Autorange from 1935 together with two 1930s Kodak folding cameras.
All three cameras were personally given to me by Bill Zygmant from his own collection of photographic equipment.
I can also provide photographs of myself with Bill Zygmant as supporting evidence of this personal provenance.
The provenance relates specifically to Bill’s personal collection of cameras. No claim is made that any particular camera in this lot was used for a specific photograph, assignment or celebrity.
1. Ensign Autorange – 1935 Model
The highlight of this lot is the 1935 model Ensign Autorange, a sophisticated British folding rangefinder camera manufactured by Ensign Ltd of London.
It is fitted with the highly regarded:
Ensar Anastigmat 100mm f/4.5 lens
Lens marked N° 55161
Prontor II shutter
Shutter speeds including 1/150 sec, together with B and T
Coupled rangefinder with double-image focusing
Direct-vision and frame viewfinders
Front-bed focusing arrangement
Rising and cross front movements
Folding leather bellows
6 × 9 cm format
120 roll film / E20 film specification
The identification as the 1935 Autorange model is particularly interesting. The 1935 version introduced the square-window rangefinder housing and direct-vision finder, distinguishing it from the earlier 1934 version and from the later Autorange-20 introduced in 1937.
This is therefore not an Autorange-20, but the earlier and considerably more distinctive 1935 model.
The camera is an excellent example of the sophisticated photographic equipment available to serious photographers during the pre-war period.
2. Kodak Junior Six-20 Series II
The second camera is a Kodak Junior Six-20 Series II, a classic 1930s folding medium-format camera.
Features include:
Kodak Junior Six-20 Series II
Kodak Anastigmat 100mm f/6.3 lens
620 roll film
6 × 9 cm negatives
Mechanical shutter
Shutter speeds including 1/25, 1/50 and 1/100 sec, together with B and T
Folding bellows construction
Folding viewfinder arrangement
The Junior Six-20 Series II was produced during the 1937–1940 period, making it a particularly good companion to the Ensign in this collection.
3. Kodak Junior 620
The third camera is an earlier-style Kodak Junior 620, fitted with the distinctive:
Kodak Anastigmat 10.5cm f/7.7 lens
620 roll-film format
6 × 9 cm image format
Mechanical shutter
B and T settings
Shutter speeds including 1/25 and 1/75 sec
Folding bellows construction
This is a classic 1930s German-made Kodak folding camera and provides an interesting contrast with both the more sophisticated Ensign rangefinder and the later Kodak Junior Six-20 Series II.
Personal Provenance – Bill Zygmant
What makes this group particularly interesting is not simply the cameras themselves, but their direct personal provenance.
All three cameras were personally given to me by Bill Zygmant, a British press and entertainment photographer whose career spans decades of music, celebrity and popular culture photography.
Bill photographed many of the most famous musicians and entertainers of the 1960s onwards, and his photographic archive includes major figures from the world of music and entertainment.
These cameras come directly from his personal collection of photographic equipment.
Photographs of myself with Bill can be supplied as supporting provenance for the purchaser.
This is an unusual opportunity to acquire a group of genuine vintage cameras with a direct connection to the working equipment collection of an established British photographer.
Condition
All three cameras show genuine signs of age and previous use, including wear to the leather coverings, chrome and metal surfaces, and other cosmetic marks consistent with their considerable age.
The Ensign in particular has substantial cosmetic wear which is clearly visible in the photographs.
The cameras are offered UNTESTED.
The shutters, film transport, focusing mechanisms, rangefinder, viewfinders, bellows light-tightness and optical performance have not been professionally tested.
No guarantee is therefore made regarding operational performance.
The cameras should be regarded as collector’s items and/or restoration projects unless the purchaser chooses to have them serviced.
Please study all photographs carefully, as they form an important part of the description and show the condition of the cameras in detail.
A Remarkable Vintage Photography Collection
Together, these three cameras provide a fascinating snapshot of photographic technology during the 1930s, from the sophisticated coupled-rangefinder Ensign Autorange to the more straightforward Kodak Junior folding cameras.
The 1935 Ensign Autorange is particularly noteworthy, being an early British coupled-rangefinder camera with a fast f/4.5 Ensar Anastigmat lens and Prontor II shutter.
Combined with the two Kodak cameras and the direct personal provenance from Bill Zygmant, this is an especially appealing lot for collectors of:
Vintage cameras
British photographic history
Kodak collecting
Ensign cameras
Pre-war photography
Press photography
Photographer memorabilia
Music and entertainment history
Included in the Lot
Three vintage folding cameras:
Ensign Autorange – 1935 model, Ensar Anastigmat 100mm f/4.5, Prontor II
Kodak Junior Six-20 Series II, Kodak Anastigmat 100mm f/6.3
Kodak Junior 620, Kodak Anastigmat 10.5cm f/7.7
All three cameras are offered untested and in the condition shown in the photographs.
A genuinely unusual collection with direct personal provenance from photographer Bill Zygmant.
Details
Era
1900-2000
Brand
ENSIGN, Kodak
Model/type nr
Folding bellows camera. Famous History
Physical condition
Good
Functional condition
Not tested
Film type
120 / 220
Estimated period
1920-1930
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