Originally Posted by
ShannonM
This thing is so far beyond the range of my grokking that, if I tried to use it, not only would I not have a prayer of getting a useable image out of it, but I'd probably manage to set it on fire.
Like, what's it even for?
--Shannon
The Speed Graphic was a favorite of newspaper photographers. The wire frame just above the logo would pull up to be a coarse viewfinder for quick shots, like for sports. You set the shutter speed and aperture, cocked the shutter, focused for the distance where you thought the action would be and waited for the shot. The film was in sheets carried inside dark slides, so a second shot was not a quick affair. BITD, photos were contact printed, so the size of the negative was the size of the photo. The large film format allowed for some cropping if the subject was off center.
The flash was an external unit that used D cell batteries and had a large reflector. The flash bulbs were similar in size to a 60 watt bulb. A Speed Graphic flash handle was the basis for Luke's light sabre.