Rolleiflex leather case folded felt

[hiroh]

What's the folded felt inside the case (particularly 2.8f model)? Looks like some kind of hidden pocket? What's the purpose of this?

 

[choiliefan]

That pocket is for the optional optical glass film plane.
Third item down:

Manual Rollei Rolleiflex 3.5F (page 30 of 38) (English)

View and download the Manual of Rollei Rolleiflex 3.5F Photocamera (page 30 of 38) (English). Also support or get the manual by email.

www.libble.eu

 

[hiroh]

Thanks! I didn't know such a thing exists. Does it require a special back? Anyone here using it? Does it really helps? I didn't noticed I have a problem with the film flatness, but would love to compare two shots with and without a glass.

 

[JPD]

Thanks! I didn't know such a thing exists. Does it require a special back? Anyone here using it? Does it really helps? I didn't noticed I have a problem with the film flatness, but would love to compare two shots with and without a glass.

Yes, it needs a special back. Those who have used the flat glass found that it might make a tiny difference at full aperture, but that it's almost impossible to keep the glass dust free, and the dust specks will show up on the prints. It's pretty much an unnecessary accessory and more for collectors than users these days.

Then there's the plate back that comes with a ground glass cassette that lets you focus on it directly with the taking lens, and use 6,5x9 cm glass plates or sheet film. Sheet film has a thicker film base, perfectly flat in the camera.

 

[hiroh]

Sounds like unnecessary for the type of the work I do, but good to know such a thing exists.

 

[choiliefan]

The book "The Rollei Way" is a great addition to one's library.
"Newer" editions cover all the cameras and accessories in very good detail.
I'm the lucky owner of the 1st and 10th editions, both of which are plentiful and cheap.

 

[JPD]

Another impractical accessory (No pun intended, but there is the booklet "Rolleiflex Practical Accessories") is the Rolleiphot iris attachment for the viewing lens, made in the 1930's. With it you could preview the depth of field on the ground glass. But it got so dark that you needed to use the accessory leather focusing hood. And it certainly didn't help that the Rolleiphot has a built-in grey filter that made the gg even darker. The reason for the grey filter was that you could use the Rolleiphot as an extinction light meter...

The Rolleiphot would have been more useful decades later, when the cameras got brighter screens. Perhaps for product photography in a well lit studio.

 

[choiliefan]

Just drop in the Rolleigrid fresnel screen to brighten things up...

 

[JPD]

Just drop in the Rolleigrid fresnel screen to brighten things up...

The Rolleiphot I had was for the Rolleiflex Standard and early Rolleicords without bayonets, and they can't really be used with the Rolleigrid. The late version of the Rolleiphot has bayonet mount and didn't have the grey filter. It was only made for a short time, from 1939 I believe, and the production stopped sometime during the war.