C41
Kodak Portra 400
Kodak Portra 400 is a professional C-41 color negative film known for flexible exposure latitude, natural skin tones, and fine grain.
View profile →slr-35mm
The Bolsey C22, introduced in 1953, was an unusual design from Bolsey Corporation of America that combined two focusing aids in one body: a coincident-image coupled rangefinder for fast shooting and a ground-glass reflex viewing screen for precise composition. The dual-finder arrangement - rare in any camera of the period, and essentially unique in an American camera at this price point - allowed the photographer to switch between the two systems depending on the subject and conditions. Like the Bolsey B before it, the C22 used a Wollensak Anastigmat lens (likely the same 44mm f/3.2 formula) and a Wollensak Synchro leaf shutter. The body is die-cast aluminum and the camera requires no battery for any function.
Reference
Recommended film stocks for the 35mm format your camera takes.
C41
Kodak Portra 400 is a professional C-41 color negative film known for flexible exposure latitude, natural skin tones, and fine grain.
View profile →BW
Kodak Tri-X 400 is a classic black-and-white film known for strong tonality, visible grain, and documentary character.
View profile →C41
Kodak Gold 200 is a daylight-balanced C-41 color negative film with warm color, moderate grain, and a classic consumer-film look.
Develop 35mm film
Labs in our directory that process 35mm film.
Before you buy used
About this camera
A 1953 American 35mm camera with both a coupled rangefinder and a ground-glass reflex viewing screen in a single compact body.
| Field | Value |
|---|
| Format | 35mm (24x36mm) |
| Lens | Wollensak Anastigmat ~44mm f/3.2 (fixed) |
| Years | ~1953 onward |
| Shutter | Wollensak Synchro leaf, ~1/10s - ~1/200s + B |
| Flash sync | Synchromatic |
| Meter | None |
| Focus | Coupled coincident-image rangefinder + reflex viewing screen |
| Battery | None |
| Body | Die-cast aluminum |
Jacques Bolsey's design philosophy consistently aimed at bringing professional-camera features to mass-market price points. The B had demonstrated that a coupled rangefinder could be sold affordably. The C22 pushed further: it addressed the criticism that rangefinders, however accurately coupled, did not show the photographer the actual image the lens would record. Reflex viewing provided that confirmation, at the cost of added mechanical complexity.
The C22 achieved the dual-finder arrangement not through a pentaprism SLR design (which would have required a mirror lockup and shutter re-cocking mechanism) but through a simpler supplementary reflex screen system alongside the rangefinder optics. The exact mechanical implementation distinguished it from both true SLRs and conventional rangefinders.
Production history and discontinuation date are not well-documented; the camera appears to have been produced in smaller numbers than the B, and Bolsey Corporation's activity declined through the late 1950s as Japanese manufacturers consolidated the US market.
The C22 occupies an unusual position in American camera history: it is simultaneously a product of genuine engineering ambition and a commercial footnote. No other American camera of the period offered both a coupled rangefinder and reflex viewing in a compact fixed-lens body, and the combination would not become common in any market until the dual-format cameras of the 1960s.
Jacques Bolsey's career - from the Bolex movie camera in Switzerland to the B and C22 in New York - represents one of the more technically creative trajectories in mid-century camera design. The C22 is the most complex expression of the Bolsey system and the least commercially successful; it is accordingly rarer and more interesting to collectors than the B.
For photographers, the C22 is an impractical choice today: parts and service are difficult to source, and the dual-finder arrangement offers less practical advantage than it once did given modern focusing screens and digital confirmation aids. As a historical object, it is worth examining.
BW
Ilford HP5 Plus is a flexible ISO 400 black-and-white film with classic grain and strong push-processing tolerance.
View profile →C41
Kodak Ektar 100 is a fine-grain C-41 color negative film with saturated color and high sharpness.
View profile →Bolsey C22
Image coming soon