TECHNES Encyclopedia Database

With the Parvo Model L marketed in 1927, Debrie introduced a new feature which enabled operators to look through the lens to prepare their shot, but without having to open the camera and push aside the film, which would spoil if left more than a fraction of a second in the gate. This ingenious feature relied on a Y-shaped device installed between the lens and the viewing tube. One branch held the actual gate; the other a piece of ground glass. By flicking a switch, the operator could pull aside the gate and the negative and position the ground glass used for framing and focusing between the lens and the viewing tube.