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The front view of the H16
shows the "D” shaped turret
and the excellent Octameter
viewfinder attached to the
film compartment door.

The finish on this 75mm lens
reflects the superb quality of
Kern- Paillard products. An
unusual pattern of orange dots
expands or contracts to
indicate depth of field.
The frame counter has two
scales 1 to 100 in single frames,
and 1 to 1000 in 50 frame
increments.

A new feature on the '54 model was a behind the lens filter
holder. A kit of 4 filter holders and a cutting template for
gelatin filters was supplied with each camera.

The camera body of course reflected the same numerous TV networks operating throughout
outstanding quality as the lenses and I felt that the world. So, I wrote to most of these offering
my now very depleted bank balance could be to supply TV news film coverage of
justified. preparations for the ’56 Games and items of
interest about Melbourne and the Games.
The Bolex H16 was an essential piece of There was total confusion about the TV rights
equipment for my new business venture - to film the actual staging of the Games and this
Solar Film & Photographic Productions. The was not resolved until just prior to the Games,
main aim of the venture was to provide a film much to the distress of the world’s media.
and photographic coverage of the building
preparations for the 1956 Olympic Games to But that’s another story. All I wanted was to
be held in Melbourne. By arrangement, the cover the preparations and I expected the
film and photographic coverage would be Bolex would soon be running hot, together
available, for a fee, to the Olympic building with its stable mates, my pre-war Rolleiflex
contractors as a record of their work and for with its uncoated 3.5 Tessar that could produce
the future promotion of their businesses. As a a needle sharp mural the size of a barn - a small
Photojournalist I had already been successful barn; the 5”x4” MPP Technical camera with
in this industrial field and was confident the its Voigtlander Apo Lanthar - another beaut
idea would work, using the right approach. lens; and the ubiquitous Praktica with 3 rather
less spectacular lenses. I was ready to go -
Television had not yet started in Australia but Lights, Darkroom, Camera. The only thing
was due to commence with the Olympic missing was the “Action”.
Games in 1956. However there were already

June 2020 REEL DEALS 7