War photographers, equipment, and photographs.

[KerrKid]

Post whatever you have.

I'm interested in the men and women who took wartime photographs, the equipment they used, and their photographs. As old and new as you can find.

 

[MattKing]

Here is a bunch of material from the Canadian War museum:
https://www.warmuseum.ca/foreverchanged/

And one of the videos hosted there features Hugh McCaughey, a movie cameraman and the father of a friend of mine who is also a member here on Photrio.

 

[MattKing]

And you may want to repost here your question about WW1 photographers.

 

[KerrKid]

Here is a bunch of material from the Canadian War museum:
https://www.warmuseum.ca/foreverchanged/

And one of the videos hosted there features Hugh McCaughey, a movie cameraman and the father of a friend of mine who is also a member here on Photrio.

Wow. How cool is that! Thanks for the link and video.

 

[AgX]

A important change in cameras took place in WWII, concerning military photographers.

The US armed forces still employed a 4x5 field camera in their kit, whereas on german side the format was limited to MF, and to seemingly the majority of photographs were even made with 35mm cameras.

 

[Nitroplait]

Post whatever you have.

I'm interested in the men and women who took wartime photographs, the equipment they used, and their photographs. As old and new as you can find.

Are you thinking specifically of military employed photographers taking photos for tactical/strategic/documentation purposes - as opposed to photo journalist's war photography?

 

[AgX]

The thing is even more complicated.
As there were military photographers whose only task was to take journalistic photos.

And in the early times of photography there likely were fronts with no military photographers at all but civilian ones.

 

[John Salim]

There's an excellent website Army Film and Photographic Unit Living History Group dedicated to the AFPU cameramen ( UK ) here .... https://www.afpu44.co.uk/

There's a lot of information about this unit including equipment used, procedures etc... and great recreated images too.
Very well worth taking a look !

John S

 

[Nitroplait]

I can show you my Rolleiflex T.
The model was favoured by the British Ministry of Defence - to an extent where the T model was brought back into production in 1971 due to an order of several thousands cameras.
The deliveries continued up to 1976.
It was used by the Army and Royal Navy.
It was said to have replaced Hasselblad due to the latter requiring too much service.
The T was claimed to last up to 15 years of hard use before requiring service.
The T model is said to have been used actively by BMoD well into the 90's or longer, thus theoretically also during British engagement in armed conflict and war - such as the Falkland War.

 

[KerrKid]

Are you thinking specifically of military employed photographers taking photos for tactical/strategic/documentation purposes - as opposed to photo journalist's war photography?

I never thought of the t/s/d angle, but yes those areas would also be of great interest.

 

[AgX]

Automated photography aside (as with gun- or bombbay-cameras), military photography in the strict meaning comprised:

-) aerial photograpy for surveying (map-making)
-) aerial photography for reconnaissance
-) terestial photography of frontline/enemy position
-) documentation of fighting, of armament etc.
-) non-fighting related documentation

 

[tomkatf]

Taizo Ichinose... Vietnam War... Killed in Cambodia by Khmer Rouge on 29 Nov '73 at age 26.

 

[KerrKid]

Taizo Ichinose... Vietnam War... Killed in Cambodia by Khmer Rouge on 29 Nov '73 at age 26.

View attachment 308100View attachment 308101

Amazing photographs and photographer. Very moving.

 

[AgX]

https://pieterserrien.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/mensen-bij-uitgebrande-bus-amsab.jpg?w=768&h=1123

Parents having found remnants, clothings, of their little doughter. Victim of an allied bombing at noon in 1943 at the completely unprepared outskirts of Antwerp. A bombing that killed only civilians. Many hundred. Including many, many children inside several schools. But also many girls at Gevaert, converting rollfilms in the dark.
Military effect, likely none.

Photographer was Otto Kropf, Propagandakompanie resident in Belgium.

 

[Louis Nargi]

Thanks for the link

 

[KerrKid]

https://pieterserrien.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/mensen-bij-uitgebrande-bus-amsab.jpg?w=768&h=1123

Parents having found remnants, clothings, of their little doughter. Victim of an allied bombing at noon in 1943 at the completely unprepared outskirts of Antwerp. A bombing that killed only civilians. Many hundred. Including many, many children inside several schools. But also many girls at Gevaert, converting rollfilms in the dark.
Military effect, likely none.

Photographer was Otto Kropf, Propagandakompanie resident in Belgium.

Horrible. How difficult it must be to take a photograph like this. And I imagine the opportunities were frequent.

 

[flavio81]

I can show you my Rolleiflex T.
The model was favoured by the British Ministry of Defence - to an extent where the T model was brought back into production in 1971 due to an order of several thousands cameras.
The deliveries continued up to 1976.
It was used by the Army and Royal Navy.
It was said to have replaced Hasselblad due to the latter requiring too much service.
The T was claimed to last up to 15 years of hard use before requiring service.
The T model is said to have been used actively by BMoD well into the 90's or longer, thus theoretically also during British engagement in armed conflict and war - such as the Falkland War.

OMG

I had exactly the same model. Identical, same lens and everything. And mint.

Now you've made me regret selling it.

 

[flavio81]

https://pieterserrien.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/mensen-bij-uitgebrande-bus-amsab.jpg?w=768&h=1123

Parents having found remnants, clothings, of their little doughter. Victim of an allied bombing at noon in 1943 at the completely unprepared outskirts of Antwerp. A bombing that killed only civilians. Many hundred. Including many, many children inside several schools. But also many girls at Gevaert, converting rollfilms in the dark.
Military effect, likely none.

Photographer was Otto Kropf, Propagandakompanie resident in Belgium.

It's horrible that we can still find any war acceptable. The world should evolve.

 

[flavio81]

Post whatever you have.

I'm interested in the men and women who took wartime photographs, the equipment they used, and their photographs. As old and new as you can find.

I have read many times that the great Robert Capa used mostly a Contax pre-war rangefinder for most of his work including the famous Normandy landings.

Some cameras were intended from the get go for military use, like the Kodak Medalist and Kodak Signet 35.

 

[KerrKid]

I have read many times that the great Robert Capa used mostly a Contax pre-war rangefinder for most of his work including the famous Normandy landings.

Some cameras were intended from the get go for military use, like the Kodak Medalist and Kodak Signet 35.

Thanks for the name. I’ll do some research on him.

 

[jtk]

At end of our Vietnam invasion/occupation an enlisted photographer and helicopter rescue/door gunner sold me his (stolen) Graflex XL kit. Needed some cleaning but the 80 Planar was wonderful. I never found a use for the 70mm roll back.

 

[KerrKid]

At end of our Vietnam invasion/occupation an enlisted photographer and helicopter rescue/door gunner sold me his (stolen) Graflex XL kit. Needed some cleaning but the 80 Planar was wonderful. I never found a use for the 70mm roll back.

Helicopter rescue/door gunners had short life expectancies. Glad he could get a camera and pass it on to you. Wonder what pictures that camera took in the hands of the enemy?

 

[AgX]

With "stolen" likely is meant "stolen from the US armed forces". And the "enemy" did not use Graflexes as far as I know. I mean he would not even had apt film sizes to feed it.

 

[KerrKid]

With "stolen" likely is meant "stolen from the US armed forces". And the "enemy" did not use Graflexes as far as I know. I mean he would not even had apt film sizes to feed it.

That makes sense. I had assumed that it was booty from the enemy.

 

[KerrKid]

I took this picture for my blog today. It was one of several at Lucky’s of Texas, where I get my hair cut.

I didn’t know it may be the camera being referred to here.