Half-frame camera

Half-frame cameras, also called single-frame or split-frame cameras, are analog cameras compatible with 35mm film types. These cameras capture congruent shots that take up half of each individual frame in the roll of film. They can be still frame or motion picture cameras and are the standard format of 35mm movie cameras. This is commonly expressed, more technically, as 18×24 mm using 18×24 mm of a regular 135 film. It is closer to the normal frame size of a 35 mm motion film. This leaves half frame cameras to derive their film plate size from the aspect ratio, and frame size that was first designated by Thomas Edison (24.89 by 18.67 millimetres or 0.980 by 0.735 inches) at the dawn of the motion picture industry. Traditionally, the additional film width on motion picture film is used for audio in later film standards, although the original patent for sound on film is derived from the 1880s. For still cameras using 35 mm film, the usual format of 35mm film size is 24×36 mm, however, half-frame cameras take 18×24 mm only, so, while a roll of 36 photos with 35mm size film for a normal camera can take 36 images; a half-frame camera, can take 72 images, since it only takes half size for each frame (18×24 mm only). Therefore it is called "half-frame" as it exposes half of the film plate size of 35mm stills cameras, despite its similarity in width to 35 mm film when used in motion picture cameras. Half frame came into vogue as a shooting experience as a cheaper option to full frame cameras in the 1960s. This trend developed mostly out of Japan. The half frame trend began its origins with cameras such as the Olympus Pen models. Half frame cameras allowed for more compact cameras to exist alongside full frame cameras, particularly in rangefinder styled cameras, due to the lack of a traditional mirror, instead using a much smaller, "rangefinder" styled mirror, along with the smaller frame size and therefore smaller lenses required. The smaller lenses could cover the smaller . This resulted in far smaller cameras such as the Olympus Pen cameras.