Lomography Belair X 6–12 Panoramic Camera (Part One)

In late 2012, a new camera from Lomography was announced. The Belair X 6–12 is all kinds of alternative. Sure, it takes analogue film — that’s standard for the Lomography folks, who say they embrace analogue as a lifestyle (not sure what that means other than all of their cameras take film.) But in Lomo-speak, analogue is normally synonymous with lo-fi. The toy cameras which fill Lomography’s stores and websites are intentionally unprofessional. They embrace unsharp lenses, dark vignetting in the corners, light leaks and flare. They challenge you to make pictures like a punk rock band makes music; with gusto and freed from worry about convention or the “right way” to make photos.

The Belair X 6–12 (Jetsetter model)

The Belair X 6–12 teasingly suggests a new approach for Lomography. Yes it’s built to a price, but low-fi problems are not its sole appeal. The Belair is handsome, quite well made, and has the potential to make technically good photos. The real interest in the Belair is its format (6 x 12 panoramic) and its throwback folding camera design. Consider these unique points:

The Belair is a folding camera.

This is a practical solution to make a portable camera that takes large photos. The height of popularity for folding cameras came to a close in the 1950′s as “miniature” formats like 35mm took over the camera market. The smaller formats, with their smaller lenses and shallower focal lengths removed the need to fold up a camera to make it portable. Interestingly, one of the only other recently introduced film cameras is also a folder — the Fuji 667 / Voigtlander Bessa III.

The Belair takes medium-format 120 film.

This is one of the oldest types of film ever created, and one of a handful of formats still being made (the others being 35mm, 127 roll film, and various sizes of cut sheet film.) 120 roll film is still called “Brownie” film in some markets, because it was the original roll film introduced with the ubiquitous Eastman Kodak Brownie camera. The size of 120 film (6 centimetres wide) is huge compared to 35mm film, allowing for grain-free enlargement and smooth gradations of light and dark. 120 film ruled as the default professional format until the digital revolution, and it is still capable of capturing impressive images.

The Belair is a panoramic camera.

OK, this is where the Belair moves from retro to downright interesting. Panoramic cameras are few and far between, and medium format panoramic cameras are pricey ($2000 is a reasonable starting point.) What is a panoramic camera? It’s a camera that captures a wider-than-normal image, which begins with an image twice as wide as it is tall. The Belair is a 6×12 camera, putting it right at 2:1. That’s wider than your widescreen TV (1.77:1) and not quite as wide as a CinemaScope movie (2.35:1.) Unlike the cropped “panoramic” mode that was popular on 35mm point-and-shoot cameras in the 1990′s, the Belair uses the whole 6cm x 12cm area of film to capture the wide image. That’s a huge piece of film promising grain-free enlargements and plenty of detail.

By way of example, here is a panoramic cityscape of New York that I shot on 35mm film. The Belair, with a huge 60mm x 120mm negative, should yield impressive tonality and detail — but results are always subject to the weakest link in the chain. Will that be the lenses of the Belair? (Photo copyright 2012, David W. Scott.)

The Belair has interchangeable lenses.

This is the item which made me pay attention to the Belair when it was announced. The Belair ships with two lenses already, a wider 58mm and a more normal 90mm. Interchangeable lenses are expected on some kinds of camera, but not on small medium format cameras, rarely on panoramic cameras, and never on a folding camera. Frankly, interchangeable lenses gave an escape plan from the lenses Lomography would be including. Anyone who has ever seen the photo from a Holga knows that lenses are the weak point (or appeal) on most Lomography cameras. But with an interchangeable lens, the camera-tinkerer starts to think… maybe I could adapt other, sharper, more interesting lenses to this camera. Maybe Lomography will introduce other lenses. Well, almost immediately Lomography answered the challenge and has already launched a pair of new lenses, featuring sharper glass, built by the Zenit camera works in Russia.

The Belair is an auto-exposure camera.

Unlike every other panoramic camera in the world, the Belair is autoexposure. It has a light meter and automatically adjusts the shutter speed, technically making it an aperture priority system. Set your film ISO anywhere from 50 to 1600, which covers any emulsion available today. But… there is a big caveat. Exposure control is not nearly as flexible as you might hope. More details to come in the next article.

The Belair launched with three finishes — the Jetsetter (metal and leather,) the Cityslicker (black plastic,) and the limited-edition Globe-trotter (metal and snakeskin.)

Needless to say, I fell for the Belair X 6–12, and ordered one the first day. Lomography worked hard to make the Belair feel like a special camera, and like they were taking a new direction — faithful to the Lomographic spirit but producing a camera that was less toylike and more an object of desire. Lomography launched the Belair in a trio of finishes, including a limited-edition model. They offered a substantial pre-order discount for the first batch of cameras. When the camera arrived, it was packaged well and met my expectations — the camera was sharp looking, and built more like an early-twentieth-century Kodak than like a dollar-store toy camera. Unboxing, and my full review, are up next.