Argus Camera
Dusting Off The Antique Cameras
Technology is improving every day now, and no sooner is a new camera released there is a newer supposedly better model in the pipeline. There seems to be an obsession with megapixels and cramming in as much as possible into a small place, which is not always for the benefit of the camera but it seems to pull in the consumers; I guess that is all that matters!
Megapixels are the big sellers for the cameras of today, but fifty or sixty years ago, a megapixel was completely unheard of. Any mention of a megapixel and you would end up being displayed in the town square as the village idiot. Of course if you started talking about the Argus C3 or as it’s more affectionately known, ‘the Brick’. The brick was made from 1939 and was manufactured for around thirty years. In that time, it became very popular with the amateur photographer, mainly because of its simplicity in its design. The camera became known as the brick, well for obvious reasons as you can probably see for yourself in the image.
I happened upon mine at an antiques fair a few months back, a dealer had picked it out for me. I had not seen one in the flesh before then and I can remember the first thing I said to the dealer when I saw it; “Ooh it’s a Brick, it looks ridiculous doesn’t it”, the dealer replied, “Yes indeed it does look ridiculous. Would you like to buy it?” Of course, I was in awe of its plainness, the square edges and of course its undeniable beauty. It is different than other cameras, not only in its shape, but also in its design.
By design, I mean technical design. It is like something that was designed with bits left out of it at the beginning so they had to be added later. The focusing mechanism consists of a toothed thumbwheel, which is linked to the lens via another toothed wheel between the thumbwheel and the lens barrel. The thumbwheel allows you to focus the lens. The C3 is a rangefinder camera, and unfortunately, the rangefinder is tiny. A small window about five-millimeters in diameter makes it a little awkward to focus. It also has a separate viewfinder which can be used if the rangefinder was not accurate, which in my case it was.
The thing with the C3 is that in its design it allows the photographer to adjust the settings of the rangefinder by adjusting the thumbwheel positioning, by removing it and then replacing it where the correct focus range is obtained. I loaded a roll of monochrome negative film into the camera to try it out for this article and developed it in my darkroom.
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Argus Bean Carabiner 3.2 MP Digital Camera – Green $16.00 |
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VINTAGE ARGUS M3 MOVIE CAMERA-8MM-NEAR MINT-FILM,KODAK, $119.99 |
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Vintage Argus Range Finder Camera with Original Leather Case $29.95 |
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ARGUS AUTRONIC I CAMERA F 2.8 CINTAR LENS COMPUR T2222332828 $15.99 |
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Argus DC1512 Digital Camera – Silver $10.00 |
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Argus DC1512 Digital Camera – Silver $10.00 |
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ARGUS COATED SUPER EIGHT 23mm 1.5 CAMERA LENS $0.99 |
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Vintage Argus Seventy Five 75 mm Lens Bakelite Camera w/ Flash attachment $27.50 |
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3 VINTAGE CAMERA LENSES~ERNST LEITZ, ILEX TELETAR & ARGUS COATED CINTAR $10.49 |
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Lot Of (5) Olympus Minolta Canon argus Film Cameras Untested ASIS $22.99 |
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VINTAGE ARGUS AUTOMATIC 35mm FILM RANGEFINDER CAMERA 60′s RETRO DESIGN $25.00 |
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Vintage Mansfield Argus Holiday Electromatic 8 Movie Camera $19.99 |
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VINTAGE ARGUS M-4 ZOOM 8MM CAMERA $9.99 |
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Vintage Argus C3 35mm Rangefinder Film Camera w/ 50mm f/3.5 Coated Cintar Lens $9.99 |
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2 VINTAGE ARGUS C3 THE BRICK CAMERAS AND CASES $16.49 |
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Vison Tek Argus Quickclix 327dv 3.2Digital Video Camera $49.95 |
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ARGUS C4 35MM CAMERA — SHUTTER BUTTON DOESN’T WORK — HAS NICE FLASH UNIT $9.95 |
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Vintage Argus C3 camera with partial case untested sold as is $24.99 |
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Vintage Argus argoflex Seventy-five box camera. Made in USA $9.99 |
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6 camera lot Petri 7S Canonet 1.9 Kodak 35 Signet 40 Signet 35 Argus c44 repair $14.50 |
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Lot of 4 Vintage Reflex Cameras Kodak Duaflex II & III +2 Argus 2 Flash Units $41.01 |
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Argus C3 Brick 35mm Rangefinder Camera, Vintage Tested Works $9.99 |
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ARGUS Flash for POLAROID SX-70 Land Camera Instant $99.00 |
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ARGUS Rangefinder Brick Camera f/3.5 50mm Vintage camera and case $12.99 |
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VINTAGE ARGUS SHOWMASTER 822 SUPER EIGHT MOVIE CAMERA CINTAGON ZOOM $19.99 |
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COLLECTOR VINTAGE “ARGUS C3″ CAMERA IN ORIGINAL ARGUS LEATHER CARRIER $24.99 |
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1957 Argus C-44 Color Slide Camera Vintage Print Ad $9.95 |
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ARGUS model FA Camera w/50mm f/4.5 coated ANASTIMAT lens and leather case $25.00 |
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ARGUS MODEL C-FORTY-4 CAMERA WITH RARE F3.5 100MM ZOOM LENS $19.99 |
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Vtg ARGUS C3 Brick 35mm Film CAMERA C-3 RANGEFINDER Flashbulb FLASH Leather CASE $11.50 |
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VNTG ARGUS RANGE FINDER CAMERA LEATHER CASE CINTAR LENS $42.95 |
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Vintage Argus Camera Model C-3 Illustrated Manual $4.99 |
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Argus 75 camera with Argus box $7.00 |
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Argus Camera and Roll Film Adapter $15.00 |
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Argus Autronic 35 w/flash gun – nice collectible vintage camera $125.22 |
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Argus C3 Matchmatic beautiful two-tone vintage camera complete w/clip-on Meter $228.29 |
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Argus Autronic 35 mm Camera F 3.5 Cintar $11.99 |
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Vintage Argus Flash Unit for Cameras w/ Original Box $4.99 |
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ARGUS DC 3550 Digital Camera 2.1 MP 3x Zoom $53.59 |
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VINTAGE ARGUS SHOWMASTER 822 SUPER EIGHT MOVIE CAMERA CINTAGON ZOOM $19.99 |
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VINTAGE ARGUS M3 MOVIE CAMERA $99.00 |
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ARGUS 3.2MP DIGITAL CAMERA & PHOTO SOFTWARE BRAND NEW! $89.95 |
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ARGUS – AMERICA’S FIRST TWIN LENS CAMERA VINTAGE AD 1948- $4.95 |
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Argus Argoflex Seventy-five 75 Camera With Case $0.99 |
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1952 THE ARGUS 35 mm Guide Modern CAMERA SERIES Book $25.00 |
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+++ ARGUS C3 CAMERA & CARRYING CASE AND STUFF +++ $29.99 |
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Argus C3 Film Camera $39.99 |
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Argus Automatic 8 Movie Camera w/Filter $15.00 |
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Argus instant load zoom movie camera model 806 $55.00 |
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Rare Vintage Argus Zoom Viewfinder for C33 and C44 Cameras $89.00 |
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Vintage Argus ~ Argoflex Seventy Five Camera With Flash Attachment $9.99 |
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NEW Argus G635D 35mm Camera w/built in Flash $9.99 |
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Argus a-four 35mm Film Camera with Argus Flash w/case and 35 25b flashbulbs $10.00 |
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ARGUS ARGOFLEX 75 CAMERA With View Finder and Leather Case. $7.00 |
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Argus V-100 ILOCA 35mm Rangefinder Camera – One Owner – Made in Germany 1959 $39.00 |
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VINTAGE Argus-Ilex-Precise f4.5 34mm Bakelite Art Deco camera Serial #64803 $25.00 |
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VINTAGE ARGUS SEVENTY FIVE FILM CAMERA WITH LEATHER CASE $25.00 |
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Vintage Argus Coated Cintar Camera $19.00 |
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1956 c lg ad argus slide camera $39.99 |
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2 Vintage ARGUS C3 35mm Film Cameras Brick Rangefinder + Weston Light Meter $22.00 |
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ARGUS C3 (pre-war) CAMERA ..Serial # 646834 $24.95 |
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ARGUS C-3 “BRICK” CAMERA #996 $79.99 |
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Vintage ARGUS Camera $20.00 |
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Vintage ARGUS camera $19.00 |
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Vintage Argus Super Seventy Five 120 Film Camera Flash Bulbs Leather Case $100.00 |
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Vintage Kodak Pony 135 Camera, Leather Case, Flash Holder, Argus L3 Light Meter $10.00 |
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Beautiful Vintage ARGUS Seventy-Five Camera & Leather Case, Excellent Condition $19.99 |
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Argus C3 35mm Rangefinder Film Camera $29.00 |
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1955 Argus C-4 A-4 C-3 Camera Slide Projector Print Ad $8.79 |
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Argus Camera Viewfinder in excellent condition $119.00 |
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ARGUS 1 Thermal Imaging Camera – ex Fire & Rescue Service $161.23 |
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Argus Camera Filters – Model C Camera – Green and Red – Rare! $3.00 |
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Argus C3 Brick 35mm Camera Matchmatic $20.00 |
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1961 Argus Autronic 35 Camera Ad $4.00 |
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Argus Range Finder Camera with f=3.5 50mm Argus lens And Argus C-3 Flash $10.00 |
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LOT OF 3 VINTAGE ARGUS CAMERA HELP HOW TO FOLDERS 1955 $12.49 |
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LOT OF 4 ARGUS CAMERA INSTRUCTION BOOKLETS 35MM & ROLL $18.75 |
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Vintage Argus C3 Matchmatic Camera with Cell Meter, Case & 50mm Lens $24.99 |
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Argus Autronic 35 Camera with f3.5 Cintar Compur Lens Strap Flash $34.99 |
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Vintage Argus C3 35mm Rangefinder Film Camera Black & Tan “Brick” Harry Potter $29.99 |
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Argus Argoflex 75mm Camera with Case $9.99 |
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1945 Argus cameras & optical instruments vintage ad $9.99 |
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Vintage Argus Autronic II Camera Original Owner’s Users Manual $7.99 |
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Sunset Flash 35mm Film Camera Flash, No Corrosion for ARGUS AUTRONIC II $9.99 |
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ARGUS C-44 VINTAGE 35mm RANGEFINDER CAMERA w/ 50mm LENS & ARGUS CAMERA BOOK $39.99 |
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Vintage Argus STL 1000 35mm Black Body Camera w/case $20.00 |
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ARGUS 3.5 CAMERA $15.00 |
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Argus 9148 DC camera flash $5.99 |
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1958 Argus C-44 w Telephoto lens vintage camera ad $9.99 |
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Argus C44 instruction book vintage original for 35mm rangefinder camera C-44 $10.00 |
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Argus Model A – Model A2 Original Instruction Book for vintage 35mm camera $10.00 |
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Argus 818E Super 8 Movie Camera 8mm w/ Case 818 e $27.00 |
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Argus CR-1 35mm Film Camera & 2 Lens Auto Cintar 55mm & Auto Sears 55mm $9.95 |
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VINTAGE ARGUS MODEL C-3 CAMERA WITH THE LEATHER CASE + INSTRUCTIONS NICE CONDIT. $9.95 |
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Vintage Argus Seventy Five 75 mm Lens Bakelite Camera w/ Flash attachment $20.00 |
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ARGUS COSINA STL 1000 VINTAGE 35mm FILM CAMERA F=1.8 f=50 COSINON LENS 738840 $129.99 |
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VINTAGE ARGUS 40 CAMERA with FLASH $24.00 |
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Argus QuickClix 3270dv Digital Camera MPEG 4 Silver $14.99 |
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1940′s Argus c-3 7 speed dial camera $100.00 |
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Flash for Argus camera. Argus Model 215 $1.00 |
