Simon Wing  & Co.

 

New Gem Camera

 

  New Gem 5 x 7"

Print made from a glass plate exposed by and purchased with the camera

Date Introduced:  ; Years Manufactured:  c. 1889
Construction: fixed focus, no swing, shifting front provides multiple exposures on a single plate
Materials: mahogany body, brass hardware
Sizes Offered: 5x7
Notes:

     The very similar-looking Simon Wing & Co. New Gem Camera and Ajax Camera are not really field cameras, being usually used as dedicated multiple-exposure cameras, but they have tripod mounts, so could have been used in the field.  Both have the uniquely Wing shifting fronts, with brass strips that have stops to mark various positions on the 5x7 plate.  Both are approximately 10 ½" wide x 8 ½" high to comfortably handle a horizontal 5x7" plate.  These are both wooden boxes for which the only focus adjustment is made by sliding the lens in or out of the well fitting, felt-lined mounting hole in the lens mounting board.  The depth of the box, therefore has to be tailored to the lens being used, and therein lies the main difference between the New Gem Camera and the Ajax Camera:

      The New Gem Camera is made for a 1/9 plate lens, and therefore its depth is ~5 inches.

     The Ajax Camera is made for a 1/4 plate lens, and therefore its depth is ~7 inches. 

 

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