Plaubel Makina III
The 1949 Plaubel Makina III is the penultimate model in a long line of Makina cameras that stretches back to the 1911 "Baby Makina." Advertised in its day as the 'Rolls Royce of Cameras," the Makina is a high-end "strut-folding" medium format camera built by Plaubel in Germany. Unlike other folding cameras that use a drop-bed that the lens standard travels on, Makina cameras use two large metal struts to support a boxy front plate that houses the lens and shutter. A small focusing knob on the left-hand side of the front plate achieves focus by adjusting the angle of the two struts. The standard 10cm f2.9 Plaubel Anticomar lens is coupled to the built-in rangefinder, which is separate from a large, two piece folding viewfinder. Shutter speed is set on a large dial surrounding the lens, and unlike the Makina II, the shutter sits completely behind the lens mount. This allows for quick swaps with the other two common optics for this system: the 19cm f4.8 Tele-Makinar and 73mm f6.8 wide angle, both of which are not rangefinder coupled.
The Makina III has provision for a ground glass back and can accept 6x9 sheet film holders, but the often-mounted Plaubel roll film backs take better advantage of this miniature press camera's portability. Excellent design and build quality make these cameras great cameras to shoot with today.
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