Panoramas

The Cirkut Camera

The panoramic photographs below were made with a 1921 No. 10 Cirkut camera. The camera uses film up to 10 inches wide and can make panoramic photos up to 12 feet in length. This type of camera was used to make many of the “yard-long” photographs made in the early 20th century of school groups, reunions, military units, and more. The Cirkut has a wind-up clockwork motor that simultaneously rotates the camera and pulls the film past the lens to make one continuous panoramic exposure. I enjoy printing these images as Vandkyke Brown Prints and Kallitypes. The brushstrokes around the edges come from hand-coating the paper with the light-sensitive mixtures used for these historic printing processes. See the FAQ below for more information about this fascinating camera and my process.

FAQs

How old is that camera?

The No. 10 Cirkut camera that I use was made by the Folmer Schwing Division of Kodak in 1921. Cirkut cameras were manufactured from approximately 1904 until about 1940. Kodak continued to offer its remaining inventory of these cameras until about 1949.

How long does it take to develop a panoramic picture?

Once I have the negative from the camera in my darkroom, developing takes about half an hour, from pre-rinse and mixing the developer to fixing the negative and pulling it out of the final rinse. I develop one negative at a time. Preparing and processing a Vandkye Brown or Kallitype print takes about an hour.

How many Cirkut cameras were made?

In a series of articles bout Cirkut cameras published by the late photographer and historian Bill McBride, he estimated only about 1,500 No. 10 Cirkut cameras were manufactured. Several hundred others were also manufactured in 5, 6, and 8-inch sizes. A little more than a hundred were made in a massive 16-inch size. Only a handful of those larger Cirkuts are still known to exist, let alone be functional 100 years on. Most Cirkut cameras were made before 1931, with the last few dozen No. 10 Cirkuts made before 1940.

Of this small number, my Cirkut camera is a rarity in that it was a working camera that was well-maintained and still dialed-in for production use. It was the previous owner’s workhorse for commercial photography from the early 1980s until almost 2020. The Cirkut cameras remaining today are now pushing 100 years old or more and often in rough shape or missing key components. This one dates from 1921 and is a joy to use.

Where do you get film for a Cirkut camera?

Kodak stopped producing Cirkut film about 15 years ago. However, once a year, Ilford offers 8-inch and 10-inch Cirkut film in its annual Ultra Large Format film sale each spring. The pricing is pretty precious, so more often I spool my own rolls of film from expired black-and-white aerial film, which comes in 9.5-inch by 250-foot rolls. I cut that film down to 5- or 6-foot lengths. This has to be done in complete darkness. On a tip from other photographers, I've found a pair of toy infrared night vision goggles that help me see what I'm doing.

How big of an image can you make?

The No. 10 Cirkut takes film that is up to 10 inches wide and can make photographs that are up to 12 feet long when shooting a 360° image with a 24-inch lens. Most of my images are typically between 3 and 6 feet in length. I use film that comes in widths of 8, 9.5, and 10 inches. My prints are contact-printed from these negatives, resulting in prints that are up to 10 inches by 6 feet.

Where did you get your camera?

When I was living and working in Pocahontas County, I became acquainted with Doug Chadwick, a long-time professional panoramic photographer who also lived there. Doug had started out as a photojournalist like I did. However, he eventually discovered the work of Rufus "Red" Ribble, who made iconic photos of West Virginia coal miners and coalfield communities in the early 1900s with a Cirkut camera. Inspired in large part by Ribble's work, Doug picked up his first Cirkut camera in the 1980s and became an accomplished and respected panoramic photographer who traveled the country making official portraits for state legislatures from Florida to California, as well as sports car clubs, congressional committees, and political conventions, but also family reunions in and around Pocahontas County.

Doug was familiar with my work, my patience for working with finicky cameras and processes, and the fact that I had traveled for my tintype work. Around 2016, after I had moved to the Mid-Ohio Valley, Doug reached out to me about taking on his traveling panoramic jobs. I even shadowed him on a trip to photograph the Ohio Senate and visited him to get some insight into how he processed his panoramic photographs. However, the timing wasn't right. My kids were young, and I had just started a new job. I couldn't see how I could make that much travel work at the time.

Doug passed away in January of 2023, and that spring, a longtime friend of his and fellow panoramic photographer tracked me down to see if I would be interested in Doug's camera. I was kind of floored, but also honored to be entrusted with a unique camera that had captured so much. Today, I enjoy carrying on that legacy of panoramic photography.