My Agfa Billy Compur 6x9 Folding Camera
I love large negatives and I have been searching for a good performance and reasonably compact 6x9 camera.
I used a few medium format folding cameras before but their performance had been less than stellar. This is to be expected since Jurgen Kreckel of certo6.com (he restores and sells MF folding cameras) frequently warns his customers not to expect Hasselblad or Rolleiflex performance from a folder.
I had considered non-folding 6x9 like Fujica GL690/GW690, Kodak Medalist II, etc. Very well made rangefinders but they are heavy and not compact at all.
So my search continued till I came across this Agfa Billy Compur 6x9 with a Agfa Solinar lens for $30 on eBay, listed as For Parts or Repair. Why Not! I bought it, fixed it up and test shot a roll.
This is Frame #1 of my test roll, 2sec, f/16. Image file: 10500 x 7000
Here is a 200% crop of the image showing the railings inside the stadium.
The negative was scanned by a cheap flatbed scanner (Canon Canoscan 9000F). I scan my negatives at 9600spi in RAW and digital signal processed the file to 3200spi, spi = samples per inch.
I am surprisingly pleased with the results. This 6x9 folder has become my favorite camera to carry when I commute. It is light and compact. Now I have to download apps for a light meter and a rangefinder.













