Zeiss Ikon Ideal 225
Camera #60553

The glamorous old lady
more than 80 years and still fit and beautiful.

 

Zeiss Ikon Ideal 225 with interchangeable lens/shutter. These cameras were made out of the finest quality metal parts, very reliable Compur shutters and perfect Zeiss Tessar 1: 4,5 lenses. Further more equipped with double extension tracks made out of first class heavy chromed metal, mounted on a black shiny drop bed. The double extension track offers  space to more than 10 inch of fine leather bellows. All these beautiful, breathtaking and fine designed components are handy boxed in a light metal leathered body with a total weight of less than 1,5 kilo...Comparing to its American competitors it was light and easy to handle.  

  

  

Production of Zeiss Ideal 225 started in 1920 and was discontinued in the late thirties. The camera became a very good reputation as a precision camera. Not only because of facilities, such as drop bed, interchangeable objectives and its light metal housing, but also because of its light tight easy to handle sheet film cassettes. Thanks to the ingenious "drop in"-"snap on"  was changing the film or plate holders even in extreme cold conditions no problem. The camera was available in 6,5 x 9:  9x12: 10x 15 and 13 x 18 cm. 

Camera number on lens standard 60553  
Original 1925 invoice found on a flea market.
The Franz drugstore Kesselsdorferstrasse 30  in Dresden still existed in 2017

Google street view 2017

 

For long focusing. Double extension track. U shaped front standard with horizontal and vertical movements are of assistance in centering the image on the film without tilting the camera. These movements can be done by turning the curled knob on top of the standard for vertical movements and the knob on the bottom side of the standard for horizontal movements. The Zeiss Ica Ideal 225 was a successor of previous marketed cameras like the Maximar, Tronar and the Ica Ideal 111.  On the right photo an invoice of the Ica company addressed to Wilhelm Franz, Kesselsdorferstrasse 36, in Dresden, just a few blocks away from the ICA factory plant. In those days (1925) an Ideal 111 camera cost 152 Marks. However the  retailers cost price was 99.82 M. Unfortunately for the retailers nowadays, these fancy profits are no more usual.

 

    

 Instead of  sliding holders, Zeiss Ica Ideal was equipped with profile shaped holders. ICA Holder number 726/6. The holder can be placed against the camera back. Just a slight  pressure is needed to click the holder tight against the back of the camera body. Unlike some other photo plate holders, this one can be equipped with a sheath or septum for sheet film. (Photo left). If you do not have such a septum you may use a home made plastic sheet as a sort of a underlay for your sheet film. It sure works very fine. Photo on the right shows the holder with an original photo- glass plate, which also can be used as an underlay for sheet film.  


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