One Roll With An Agfa Click!

I recently obtained an Agfa Click-I, a simple Bakelite-bodied camera that uses 120 film to take 12 square images per roll. While similar to a modern Holga in many respects, it is undeniably not a Holga. Manufactured in Germany from 1958-1970, the Agfa Click was designed to be a simple snapshot camera that anyone could use.  I owned of these nearly 20 years ago, but lent it out to someone, and never saw it again.  Therefore, this is the first roll of film that I've shot with a Click.  It's an altogether different camera from the Agfa Clack, which takes 8 6x9 cm images per roll of 120, much like the early Kodak Brownie cameras, although with better results and more control. I discussed that camera in a post in 2020. 

The Click is somewhat simpler than the Clack, in that it does not have a bulb mode, nor does it accept a cable release. It's definitely a "snapshot" style of camera. It's a fixed-focus camera - one shutter speed - probably 1/30 sec, and two apertures - about f/11 and f/16. There are contacts on the top deck of the camera to attach an Agfa bulb flash. The viewfinder is a simple Galilean type.  Aside from the two selectable apertures (sunny and cloudy), there is a yellow filter option at the maximum aperture. A red window on the back for showing the frame number, and a silver-gray plastic wind knob on the top.  The camera does feature a 1/4" thread tripod socket on the bottom.  The interesting bit to me is the attachment of the back to the body- a sliding metal clip on each side that looks just like the one found on a Holga!  The back cover has a slight curve to it so that the images are less distorted.  That sums up the features of this camera.  

Using the Click is like any simple snapshot camera - point and shoot.  Nothing to adjust other than the apertures, and winding the film on to the next frame.  There is no double-exposure prevention. The Click is an attractive camera, and ergonomically, it's perfect.  

I loaded the Click with a roll of the 100 ISO FPP X-Ray 120 film.  With a 1/30 sec shutter speed, ISO 100 is going to work best in sunny conditions, although Ilford Pan-F might be a better option for full sun.  For example, if it's a subject in full sun, 1/30 at f/16 is still about 2 stops overexposed for 100 ISO film, whereas for Pan-F (ISO 50) it's about perfect.  However, with simple cameras, you really never know quite how things are going to turn out.   In my roll of X-Ray film, a shot in full sun was definitely overexposed, whereas in a dappled sunlight situation, the images looked pretty good, as shown below.

A straight road in the Adirondacks! Overexposed, but still not bad. 

These two photos look perfectly exposed. Oswagatchie River in Harrisburg, NY

Of course, you could use an orange or red or ND filter taped over the front of the lens to reduce the amount of light for situations that call for it.  

Setting sun in Canton, NY, Grasse River. 

Is the Agfa Click as good as a Holga?  Well, with the Holga, you get a faster shutter speed, selectable zones of focus, and the ability to use B for long exposures.  I'd say that the Click may have a better meniscus lens than the Holga, but there does seem to be a "sweet spot" that is in focus about 15 feet away.  

In short, the Agfa Click is a well-built "toy camera" that under the right conditions, can produce reasonably good images.  I would not pay a lot for one, but if you see one for sale for less than $20, it's worth a try.  Make sure you use a low-ISO film for best results in strong daylight.