Page 6 - RD_2021-06a

and external fittings kept The 2709 showing the four lens turret with
the camera abreast of matte box. The turret lock/release button is be-
technical progress in the low the magazine.
industry for the next half To use the system, the
century. taking lens is swung on
the turret 180 degrees
Together with their from the film aperture to
innovative designs, the Bell the viewing aperture. A
& Howell Company led dovetail block on the
the field with their fine bottom of the camera
precision engineering fits into a dovetail
skills, a combination that channel on the pan and
was to make the tilt tripod head. This
Company a world leader in slot enables the camera
the production of Motion to be moved sideway exactly
Picture equipment. the same distance the lens has
moved from film optical axis to
The word "standard" on the viewing optical axis-thus putting
their range of Motion Picture the viewing screen exactly where the film
equipment was very will be when the camera is racked back to
appropriate because Bell & the taking position. After lining up and
Howell did indeed set the focusing the procedure is then reversed,
standard for the Industry throughout the world taking care not to forget to swing the lens back
(e.g. the Bell & Howell standard negative to its original position, before taking the shot.
sprocket hole, still in use today). All a bit slow for modern production methods
but the extreme accuracy of the procedure was
So what were the features that put Design No. always a feature of the camera.
2709 so far ahead of its competitors in 1912.
• The single (twin compartment) 400 ft.
• It was the first all metal camera body, cast in magazine was another first, setting a standard
high quality aluminium alloy with all drive The inside works, with the 'Unit-1' type
shafts ball race mounted.
Intermittent shuttle (left) and feed sprocket with
the sound recording optical assembly lower
• The magnificent four lens turret was another right. The inverted motor is attached above the
first, enabling the cameraman to swing from a optical assembly.
"normal" 50 mm lens to a wide
angle, a long focus or telephoto
lens by simply pulling a small
knob and rotating the turret to
position the desired lens over the
picture aperture (effective zoom
lenses were still 40 years away).

• A unique camera rack-over
system enabled parallax free
viewing and critical focusing on a
magnified superfine ground glass
screen. Provision was also made
for the accurate placing of mattes
for use in special-effects shots.

6 REEL DEALS June 2021