Paulo J Moreira
Gallus Derlux
When speaking of cameras, France does not spring to mind as being the place of great cameras. However, some very interesting cameras cameras were made in the country of the Eiffel tower, especially after the second world war to cash on the temporary K.O. of the German photo industry. Let’s not forget that France is the birthplace of Angenieux, the legenday lens maker and some others like Berthiot.
All this to present the Gallus Derlux camera, that in spite of the gallic connotation started life in Germany by the name of Foth Derby. Apparently the company was of jewish origin and so they reached an agreement to to manufacture the camera in France with Gallus, away from Nazi Germany.
The most striking design feature is the absence of any sort of body covering, the camera was made in die-cast aluminum, polished to a super bright finish and then coated in a special varnish to preserve the gloss. The Foth Derby was originally designed in the early 30’s, so Art Deco was very much in fashion, this offspring is a striking example of Art Deco in Industrial design. It seems that the decision to go for a bare aluminum body was also determined by the shortage of raw materials during the war and post war, when aluminium was more plentiful than steel or iron.
Anyway, the Derlux is also very interesting from the technical point of view, featuring a folding lens and a focal plane shutter, not a leaf shutter. This feature was rarely seen in a compact camera, other than the Leica or some Zeiss Ikon products. The camera comes equipped with a horizontally running cloth shutter with speeds from 1/25 to 1/500th. The shutter still works flawlessly and the curtains are in excellent condition, 60 years after being made, take that Leica!
Despite the small size, the camera uses an unusual format, 3x4 cm and 127 fim. This film became popular because of the Kodak Brownie that was responsible for the film’s success and ultimate demise. Another unusual thing is the presence of the highly regarded Boyer Saphir lens, theoretically a Tessar clone, opened to f2,8 and with a perfectly round diaphragm, apparently a very rare lens in this camera. In the back there is the most complete depth of field chart that I have ever seen, finely engraved (not silkscreened) and the famous 4 windows to control the film advance, two red ones for panchromatic film, the green ones for orthochromatic film (black and white film only sensitive to blue and green).
Another quirk is the vertical viewfinder just like a half-frame camera, a technical option dictated by the film format. Also ahead of its time is the shutter button placed at the front of the camera. Needless to say that the story of Gallus did not end well, by 1952 or so it was game over for the little camera that escaped from nazi Germany to freedom in France.
Gallus Derlux
When speaking of cameras, France does not spring to mind as being the place of great cameras. However, some very interesting cameras cameras were made in the country of the Eiffel tower, especially after the second world war to cash on the temporary K.O. of the German photo industry. Let’s not forget that France is the birthplace of Angenieux, the legenday lens maker and some others like Berthiot.
All this to present the Gallus Derlux camera, that in spite of the gallic connotation started life in Germany by the name of Foth Derby. Apparently the company was of jewish origin and so they reached an agreement to to manufacture the camera in France with Gallus, away from Nazi Germany.
The most striking design feature is the absence of any sort of body covering, the camera was made in die-cast aluminum, polished to a super bright finish and then coated in a special varnish to preserve the gloss. The Foth Derby was originally designed in the early 30’s, so Art Deco was very much in fashion, this offspring is a striking example of Art Deco in Industrial design. It seems that the decision to go for a bare aluminum body was also determined by the shortage of raw materials during the war and post war, when aluminium was more plentiful than steel or iron.
Anyway, the Derlux is also very interesting from the technical point of view, featuring a folding lens and a focal plane shutter, not a leaf shutter. This feature was rarely seen in a compact camera, other than the Leica or some Zeiss Ikon products. The camera comes equipped with a horizontally running cloth shutter with speeds from 1/25 to 1/500th. The shutter still works flawlessly and the curtains are in excellent condition, 60 years after being made, take that Leica!
Despite the small size, the camera uses an unusual format, 3x4 cm and 127 fim. This film became popular because of the Kodak Brownie that was responsible for the film’s success and ultimate demise. Another unusual thing is the presence of the highly regarded Boyer Saphir lens, theoretically a Tessar clone, opened to f2,8 and with a perfectly round diaphragm, apparently a very rare lens in this camera. In the back there is the most complete depth of field chart that I have ever seen, finely engraved (not silkscreened) and the famous 4 windows to control the film advance, two red ones for panchromatic film, the green ones for orthochromatic film (black and white film only sensitive to blue and green).
Another quirk is the vertical viewfinder just like a half-frame camera, a technical option dictated by the film format. Also ahead of its time is the shutter button placed at the front of the camera. Needless to say that the story of Gallus did not end well, by 1952 or so it was game over for the little camera that escaped from nazi Germany to freedom in France.