Rochester Optical Company Folding Premier Camera, 1892

This is very scarce 1890s American amateur camera made by the Rochester Optical Company, NY. Like most of the popular 'self-casing' field cameras of the time, a red-leather bellows with a gorgeous polished wood and lacquered brass interior resides inside a fine black leather covered body.

Yet this 1892 Folding Premier has a rare feature not found on any other similar camera. Inside the lensboard is a surprisingly sophisticated clockwork shutter mechanism capable of firing multiple times.

Although interesting, this continuous shooting shutter may not have had much value in day-to-day use. While it can rapidly fire six times after a full winding, a photographer still had to change plates or wind film in the rollholder between exposures.