What kind of cameras did they use for panoramic photos in the early 1900s?

I see some panoramic photos made with pieced together photos. Did they have a special camera for that as well as single shot panoramic photos?

Looks like train was moving, yet a pieced together pano.










Some of the pan photos had uneven exposure, like they were made with a swing lens camera. Although this is not the best example, it gives you an idea. Did they have swing lens cameras in the early 1900s?


What kind of cameras did they use for panoramic photos in the early 1900s?


Photos: LoC

<><><><>

Daniel D. Teoli Jr. Archival Collection
Daniel D. Teoli Jr. Small Gauge Film Archive
Daniel D. Teoli Jr. Advertising Archive
Daniel D. Teoli Jr. VHS Video Archive
Daniel D. Teoli Jr. Popular Culture Archive
Daniel D. Teoli Jr. Audio Archive
Daniel D. Teoli Jr. Social Documentary Photography

What Koraks said is correct. Cirkut cameras were amazing, but also the swing lens Kodak Panorams
You can see in the 3rd picture how they made group portraits, by placing the people in a semi-circle to minimize distorsions while the camera rotated. The building in the back is "flat" and it is, thus distorted

The Kodak Panoram was a swing lens type camera... Kodak Panoram

So they made a huge long negative, then cut it into pieces for printing?

loccdor said:

So they made a huge long negative, then cut it into pieces for printing?

Click to expand...

Probablty, I have seen several that are contact-printed in one large print
The ones you show can either be printed by parts or folded so many times that they break apart

Here are some links to owner's manuals and a video of a No. 10 Cirkut in use.

https://www.butkus.org/chinon/ free camera manual library from:

No. 5 Cirkut

https://www.butkus.org/chinon/ free camera manual library from:

No. 6 Cirkut

https://www.cameramanuals.org/kodak_pdf/kodak_cirkut_6.pdf

No. 8 Cirkut

https://www.pacificrimcamera.com/rl/00445/00445.pdf

No. 10 Cirkut

http://www.cirkut.org/cirkut/lit/10manual_s.pdf

Here’s a video of a No.10 Cirkut in action

https://www.google.com/search?q=kod...ate=ive&vld=cid:799e92d1,vid:EV5EQYtivA8,st:0

Banquet cameras were very common:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banquet_camera

Cirkut camera negatives are amazing to behold in real life.
The Vancouver Archives has a wonderful collection, and I was fortunate enough to be given a guided group tour of their extensive photographic collections, including the Cirkut negatives and cameras.
Here is a link: https://www.vancouverarchives.ca/2012/06/07/panoramic-photographs-the-number-8-cirkut-outfit/
Yes, they were normally contact printed.
The Vancouver Archives had worked up a scanning solution involving, IIRC, a converted flatbed scanner and a moving platen.

Here's a photo from Zermatt... Gornergrat Panorama...I bought in the late '90s for a few CHF in an antique store in Zermatt. These panoramas were printed & sold folded up in about 7 sections and then slid into a plastic sleeve. Needless to say the frame/mounting cost far more than the image.
The panorama is 150cm / 5 feet long.