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Video: Meet Calypso, the predecessor to Nikon’s iconic underwater Nikonos cameras

Video: Meet Calypso, the predecessor to Nikon's iconic underwater Nikonos cameras

A customer at Camera West in California recently traded in an interesting piece of photographic history, the Calypso underwater camera. The 35mm film camera was the first of its kind that didn’t need housing to be used underwater. The Calypso was the brainchild of legendary explorer Jacques Cousteau and Belgian engineer Jean de Wouters. The Calypso was released in 1961 as the first 35mm underwater camera which could be used without housing. Cousteau wanted a small, simple camera you could use on land and underwater without any fuss. When the Calypso launched, there were a trio of available lenses. Two of the lenses were manufactured by SOM Berthiot, 28mm and 35mm prime lenses. A third lens, a 45mm prime, was manufactured by Angenieux. In the video below, the Calypso is shown with the SOM Berthiot 35mm F3.5 lens. The knob on the left side of the lens barrel is […]

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