Bolsey B 22
Introduced by the Bolsey Corporation of America in 1953, the Bolsey B22 featured a Set-O-Matic that coupled the aperture to the flash distance. An innovative approach but not a very simple shooter.
The Bolsey Corporation was named for the founder Jacques Bolsey. Mr. Bolsey was born Yakob Bogopolsky, in Kiev in 1895. He worked as an engineer, camera designer, and inventor. He is credited with the Bolex movie camera and design work on the Swiss Alpa-Reflex camera. In the 1930s he emigrated to the US prior to WWII. In the US he worked on cameras developed for the military. After the war, he launched a company to sell consumer level 35mm cameras. The Bosey B, had several iterations. This one is the B22 Set-O-Matic.
My Take:
In the hand, the B22 is nice and compact but not the most intuitive camera. The Set-O-Matic feature is intended for bulb flash photography. Not so useful today. It is a nice compact size but not especially ergonomic to hold. The lens has a top speed of 1/200. I was shooting 100-speed film, mostly on a sunny day using sunny 16, but most of the shots felt a bit overexposed. The build quality was consumer grade 1950s. The film advance and rewind knobs were not that usable. Got the job done but made me work for it.
My verdict: quirky nostalgic camera with innovative features for the time but not a compelling shooter today. Looks great on the shelf still and you can take it for a spin just for fun.
Lens: Anastigmat Wollensak 44mm f3.2
Film: Illford Delta 100
