Argus Cameras and Photography, Past and Present

The Chronicle missed the opening on Friday, Sept. 12, of the Crappy Camera Club exhibit at the Argus Building. Called “Vintage Argus: Contemporary Images,” the exhibit features contemporary photographs made with Argus cameras, which until 1962 were manufactured right there in the Argus Building. But the exhibit runs through Oct. 12, and is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., so we headed over to check things out.

The exhibit is easy enough to find on the second floor of the building, with temporary signage clearly indicating where the pretty pictures can be found. There’s also clear signage indicating that the white barrels on both floors are containers for the Argus Building Food Drive for Food Gatherers. But if Chronicle readers throw their empty cupcake wrappers or other assorted litter into one of those barrels before noticing the signs, it’s good manners to fish that stuff out before heading up to the exhibit on the second floor.

It’s intimidating to document photographically a photography exhibit by a photography club nestled right into a museum exhibit dedicated to the very cameras that took the photographs. But we were undaunted.

Other than people who work in the Argus Building, The Chronicle had the exhibit to ourselves. Plenty of quiet time to contemplate the question: What kind of people bought these cameras? Almost any description of the Argus Building includes some mention of the fact that there was a time when Argus cameras were some of the best-selling American-made 35mm cameras.

That question was answered when Tim Seaver, owner of Tios, came up the stairs with a delivery off his menu of Mexican food to one of the Argus Building tenants. “I had one of these – it was a C-3!” he exclaimed when The Chronicle quizzed him about the exhibit. After making the delivery – hot food doesn’t stay hot if you take time for idle chat – Seaver explained that his dad had bought the C-3 Argus camera for him to use during winter 4-H. Summer 4-H was for raising sheep.

Seaver scanned through the glass display cases looking for the model he had owned, and was satisfied when he located it. He said that when his mom moved out of her house, they had found his old camera, complete with the advertisements and instruction manual. He concluded, “It took really good pictures without me!”

Note: We’re evolving The Chronicle’s commenting policy towards enabling threads on more of the stories. Comments on this one, however, we are consciously keeping closed … for now. If you have comments on the exhibit, there’s a guest book at the exhibit you can sign. We’d encourage you to go to the exhibit, soak it up, and leave your sentiments there. The Argus Building is located at 535 W. William St., on Ann Arbor’s Old West Side.