Is that a Box Brownie?

[Eddie Vaughan]

Have other members shared the experience I have had when out in public with a Rolleiflex? "Is that a Box Brownie?" people often ask, pointing at my Rollei. This has happened so many times that it makes me think that the Box Brownie survives in public sub-consciousness like an ancient race or tribal memory, evoked even by young people who have never seen one in reality.

I have occasionally carried a Box Brownie. Okay, it was a long time ago, but I am pretty sure nobody ever pointed at it and asked me, "Is that a Rolleiflex?" In that respect, I must concede, a Rolleiflex is no match for a Box Brownie.

Eddie Vaughan

[DPurdy]

I always use a prism and I have been asked a couple of times if it was a movie camera. My Grandmother started with a Brownie, so did Ansel Adams.

[Digbyhp]

When my sister first saw my FX a couple of years ago, she said 'Oh, it's a Box Brownie !', which was a momentarily deflating remark. However, the name has stuck and has never been referred to as the Rolleiflex.

[Eddie Vaughan]

I like that solution. I am wondering now if it might be a good idea to put an advertisement in the local paper offering good money (say, five dollars) for "your unwanted old Box Brownie". I could pick up some nice Rolleis very cheaply -- but then again, I reflect, I could end up broke and with a garage full of old Box Brownies. Maybe it is not such a good idea.

Eddie Vaughan