# Bantam?



## Dany (Apr 25, 2021)

Not being an expert in Kodak cameras, I have a question related to the origin of a name given by Kodak to many of his cameras
Why the name BANTAM?
I took my French/English dictionary and discovered that Bantam is a name given to a “small poultry bird” .......
Is it a matter of dimensions ?
I have some Bantam in my collection ( photos hereafter) and I would be happy to know why they are called Bantam.

Bantam f 5.6






Bantam original f:6.3




Flash Bantam





Bantam Special


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## jcdeboever (Apr 25, 2021)

I think it has to do with size as some of it's counterparts where much larger. I would look into some of the marketing material to confirm. Brilliant design and looks. A quick look into it, it commonly refers to the Bantam line of cameras as "miniture", "fits in the palm of the hand".


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## compur (Apr 25, 2021)

The Bantam cameras used 828 film, which is the same width as 35mm but the image area was larger. So, the cameras made images larger than you'd expect from their small size -- hence "Bantam" (a small but scrappy chicken).


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## webestang64 (Apr 25, 2021)

Love those little guys.
Just had a client find their fathers Bantam. I processed the roll that was in the camera and it had a few negs that we could scan and print.


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## jcdeboever (Apr 25, 2021)

compur said:


> The Bantam cameras used 828 film, which is the same width as 35mm but the image area was larger. So, the cameras made images larger than you'd expect from their small size -- hence "Bantam" (a small but scrappy chicken).


Interesting


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## Mitica100 (Apr 26, 2021)

Bantam 3 lenses were known to have Thorium Oxide in their composition and could be slightly radioactive. Bantam cameras sported quite good quality glass though, more so the Special.


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## Dany (Apr 26, 2021)

compur said:


> The Bantam cameras used 828 film, which is the same width as 35mm but the image area was larger. So, the cameras made images larger than you'd expect from their small size -- hence "Bantam" (a small but scrappy chicken).



Exact ! Bantam cameras produced 28 x40 mm negatives (greater than 24x36 mm)


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## IanG (Apr 26, 2021)

compur said:


> The Bantam cameras used 828 film, which is the same width as 35mm but the image area was larger. So, the cameras made images larger than you'd expect from their small size -- hence "Bantam" (a small but scrappy chicken).



The Bantam 828 film uses a single perforation per frame, the roll film replaced the earlier 35 roll film essentially unperforated 35mm roll film.  The size was revamped with a different perforation and a square format in 126 cassettes.

Th major disadvantge with 35, 828 and 126 was film flatness.

Ian


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