Week 21 2024

Kodak Brownie Cresta

In 1891 Kodak’s first factory located outside the United States was opened in Harrow, England. Kodak has since become such a household name in Britain that we tend to forget its American origins. Over the years Kodak has produced a great many cameras for the British market but it was the introduction of the Brownie cameras that really took photography to the amateur market.

The Brownie Cresta (as pictured) was made in the UK between 1955 and 1958. It was made of black moulded plastic and took 6x6cm images on 120 film. The “Kodet” lens had a slider for either a yellow filter or “close-ups” of 4-7ft. This was the first of three models and originals had the horizontal ribbing on the body. The following Cresta models 2 and 3 continued to be popular well into the 1960’s