1933 Voigtlander Bergheil - The rare GREEN Luxus version, Heliar lens & 6x9 120 roll-film back. CLA’d. Freshly serviced!

Cleaned, Lubricated & Adjusted. Ready for immediate use!

35mm SLR camera NOT inluded

(It's just there to indicate size.)

 This is a Voigtlander Bergheil camera in exceptionally fine condition. It was built in prewar Germany as a top quality, double extension camera. It was carefully constructed of metal and this particular camera was covered with an exclusive green leather. The double extension feature is a valuable feature since not only does it allow the camera to focus at very close distances with the standard lens, it also means that various longer lenses can be used as well. An interesting historical fact is that the Voigtlander Bergheil was Brassai’s favorite camera. This photographer used a Bergheil extensively to record images of Paris in the 1920’s and ‘30’s. If you’re not familiar with Brassai’s work, I recommend looking him up on the internet.

The serial number of the lens and shutter indicate that this camera was produced in circa 1933. It’s equipped with a rim set Compur shutter. This shutter has been carefully cleaned, lubricated and adjusted. All shutter speeds (T, B, 1 sec – 1/250th) work well and all speeds are appropriate. The slow speeds buzz along smoothly and the faster speeds are clean and snappy.

This model was produced with a quick release lever (just above the shutter) that allows the entire lens & shutter assembly to be quickly and easily removed. It functions in much the same way as removing a lens from an SLR, simply depress the lever and turn the lens a ¼ turn. The advantage is that the Heliar lens & shutter can be easily removed for use on another camera if desired.

This Bergheil was originally designed to use 6.5x 9cm photographic glass plates. Glass plate “film” is still available on the internet and can be purchased at http://www.pictoriographica.com/ (A friend of mine, has used these plates in his Bergheil and the results have been very encouraging! Hopefully we’ll post more of his photos in our Example Gallery soon.) https://www.petrakla.com/pages/gallery

Another way to use this camera, is to acquire a roll film back which uses 120 roll film and will allow you to produce 6x9 negatives. Film backs were produced by a variety of manufacturers over the years but “Rada” and "Rollex - Patent" are the most common and can regularly be found on eBay.”

This camera is the rare Luxus version which it is distinguished by its green leather covering with the unique cross hatch embossing and the green bellows. It comes complete with three used plate holders, a yellow filter and a Rada film back that allows you to use 120 film.

The lens on this camera is the famous Voigtlander Heliar 4.5/10,5cm (105mm) . The Heliar lens, a superb design with five elements in three groups, is well known, well loved and is recognized as a master piece of design. It was an absolute top quality lens of its day. For decades it was a benchmark of sharpness, but its greatness is not simply defined by high resolution. What photographers and artists love about this lens is the beautiful rendition in the fore and back ground. It’s something the Japanese refer to as bokeh. Simply said, this lens has a gorgeous bokeh. Open up the lens or narrow the depth of field by getting closer and the focus rolls on and off silky smooth… Soft out of focus foreground moves lovingly into sharp focus on your subject matter and then off again into gently blurred background. There are few lenses that do it as nicely as this. If you’ve seen it, you know what I mean. If you haven’t, well then you’re in for a treat….

The superb Heliar lens is exceptionally clean and looks virtually like new. There is no fungus, separated elements or other problems. There are no scratches, no cleaning marks and it’s capable of producing lovely photos with modern color & B&W film.

All in all, a fine classic camera with a very fine lens. The perfect companion for that perfect shot you’ve been looking for. You know the one... the one with the perfect Ansel Adams light breaking through the dark storm clouds that leaves you wishing that you had a classic medium format camera with you...