# Can anyone identify this triple lens contraption?



## aron adler (Feb 16, 2020)

I buy lots of old photography things, and while most is cameras, and enlargers and lighting, I find things that I have no clue about. This came in a very old type trunk that was foam lined. It has 3 lenses and a dial on the side retracts them and pulls them closer or extends them and spreads them. There is a plug on the bottom to attach to other pieces as well as power since there are switches, fuses and lights. It looks like a small tv screen in the recessed back window. Maybe the writing on top will help. The 2 sides almost seem to be reels of film but Im not sure. Any help would be appreciated, as someone will look at it and say Oh, I remember that


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## NGH (Feb 16, 2020)

Three lenses probably suggests a colour projector; one lens for each colour (RGB)


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## aron adler (Feb 17, 2020)

Its a camera, holds film though not sure if its plates or dual reels of film on each side. Theres messages all over the case "undeveloped film" do not xray.  The lenses are camera lenses, and one photo shows what they are. The outer ones have adjustable settings while the center is fixed. I was thinking some sort of 3D camera as older multi turret cameras i have had were for 3D pictures. Possibly for 3D movies as the 2 sides appear to be removable film cases holding reels and the counters on the back may be for that. This is a minimum of 40 years old and has been in storage since the 1980s. Im sure someone who was into the photography field decades ago will recognize this. I also have a decent amount of early polaroid folding land cameras and the best part, no corroded rollers and battery compartments not rotted out. One is powered by a wink light on top that houses a 45V large cube battery. Im making a replica with FIVE  9 volt batteries to get it to work as those batteries are obsolete. I found regular batteries for all the polaroids. Even found half a roll of film in one from the 60s... I sell them and people convert them to use photo plates.


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## petrochemist (Feb 17, 2020)

The outer lenses have aperture control but not the central one, which suggests their use is for balancing the signals from the three. The central one looks very much like a projector lens.


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## IanG (Feb 17, 2020)

I think the company still exists as Navitar, in Rochester.  It maybe some type of stereo camera with the central lens focussed on a screen in that aperture in the back. So no need of an aperture, there's a Russian Stereo camera with 3 lenses

D. O.Industries made Navitar lenses, they were also the US distributor of Fujinon LF lenses and I remember D.O.I. branded Teleconverters and Zoom lenses.  The company's main business was in applied photography fields and I think military uses.  Stereo camera have military uses and this has a military feel.

Ian


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