The Balda camera - history

Balda cameras and photo accessories were first manufactured in Germany by Balda-Werk of Dresden, a company founded by Max Baldeweg in 1908.

The firm began producing glass negative plate and roll-film cameras in the 1920s. The Nr.1 Balda-Kamera of 1925 was a folding bellows camera for 9X12cm format. It was followed by a model for 10X15cm and two more 9X12cm models with rack and pinion focus and double extension bellows. In the 1930s, Balda also produced a wide range of small format folding cameras with names like Jubilette, Lisette and Super Baldina.

After World War II, the Dresden factory business was absorbed into VEB Pentacon and Balda Kamera-Werk moved production to Bunde in West Germany where, in the 1950s, it began to market the well known range of 35mm and 120 film format folding bellows cameras such as the Baldalette with Carl Zeiss Tessar lens and Compur Rapid shutter.

Balda cameras are well made and many are collectible. The 120 medium format 6X6cm roll film Super Baldax of the 1950s, is however, still a very usable model for film photography enthusiasts when it can be found for sale in good condition. This camera was made between 1954 and 1957 and features a coupled rangefinder and semi-automatic film wind and shutter arming mechanism. Models with different lenses such as the Schneider Radionar f/2.8, 80mm , the Balda Baldanar f/3.5, 80mm and Enna Ennit f/2.8, 80mm were produced. When used with modern films such as Kodak Ektar 100, the Super Baldax cameras produce good quality images.