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Analog Tales 8: The Rolleicord Va
This Rolleicord Va from the late 1950s was originally a Christmas present years ago for my Aunt Mary Elizabeth in Berlin, who sadly passed away in 2023. We only used the camera once and it remained stored in a cupboard drawer in Berlin for a long time. When we we decided to take it for a spin again two years ago, the shutter was jammed. I temporarily took it home to get it fixed, but it took a long time and several tries to get the shutter moving again, but in 2026 I was finally successful. A roll of film shot in Mülheim’s historic inner city turned out great, it was probably the first time since the 1960s that someone of our family took medium format photos again. It’s a camera for very special occasions and not for casual shooting, but until I take it back to Berlin on Christmas I will probably take some more photos with it in Mülheim
The Rolleicord was the budget version of the more expensive Rolleiflex and lacked an exposure meter, had a film transport knob instead of the “hand crank” and a simpler shutter release but was still one of the best 6×6 TLR cameras of its time. They were built in different incarnations from 1933 until 1977, but ours is from 1957 or 1958 with the Schneider-Kreuznach Xenar 75mm f/3.5 lens. My aunt originally owned one when she was younger but lost it when she moved to Germany in the 1970s, so she was very happy to receive one as a present. We will keep the gifted Rolleicord in her honour in our family.
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