The only available twin lens reflex camera - and all those commonly found second-hand - takes 120 film. They are basically two cameras, one on top of each other. The upper camera simply forms a viewing image, its lens is coupled to the lower lens of the taking camera to allow both to be focussed together. The most famous camera of this type, the Rollei , remains in production; there is a normal Rolleiflex model with a standard 80mm lens and a wide-angle model with a 50mm lens, both giving 6x6 cm images.
It seems unlikely that a digital version of this camera type will be made, other than as a novelty item - a miniature 2Mp version of the Rolleiflex has already sold well in Japan.
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Field camera
These are large metal or wood cameras with some camera movements, made for use either with large sheet film or using a roll film adaptor, although 6x9 cameras of this type have been produced. They allow viewing of the image on a ground glass screen using a dark cloth or other device to shield the back from light. Field cameras unfold from a box to give a camera on a solid base.
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Monorail camera
A second large format design, monorail cameras have a front standard which holds the lens and a rear standard with the ground glass and film holder. Joined by a bellows to exclude light, both standards incorporate extensive movements and are fixed to a solid metal rail or girder along which they can be moved for focussing.
At least one 35mm monorail camera was produced for a short time long ago, and some have also been produced for the 6x9 format.
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Panoramic camera
Panoramic cameras use various sizes of film and expose an area with an aspect ration of 2.5:1 or more rather than the familiar 1.5:1. There are two main types, those simply using a wide-angle lens, such as the Hasselblad X-Pan , and those in which the lens rotates to project an image on a cylindrically curved film, such as the Noblex and Horizon. Some 35mm compact cameras can shoot in panoramic format simply by masking off the top and bottom of the normal frame; you can achieve the same effect (with more flexibility) by cropping a normal image.
There are no true panoramic digital cameras available (except for some very expensive and rather bulky equipment.) but some compact cameras have a panoramic mode which makes it easier to take images to be stitched together later. This approach is not useful for panoramas involving moving subjects.
There are other types of panoramic camera, including those in which the film moves past a slit shutter as the camera rotates. Some complex and expensive digital cameras similar to this have been built.
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Pinhole camera
Pinhole cameras are usually homemade, though some can be bought commercially and feature useful holders for roll or sheet film. Although you cannot buy a digital pinhole camera, you can easily adapt interchangeable lens SLRs by using a pinhole incorporated into a body cap. Although simple and generally limited to very small apertures, pinhole images have some unique characteristics that can make them interesting and occasionally useful.
