The Mandel-ette has been patented by Louis
Mandel on the 14th of April 1914.
This camera was producing
direct-positive postcards.
Instead of a back door, a light-tight sleeve allowed the
photographer to place a hand inside the camera body. Doing this, he was
able to install an unexposed postcard for
exposure.
After the portrait was shooted, the photographer
introduced again his hand in the sleeve in order to remove the exposed
postcard and drop it
through a slot located at the bottom of the camera.
Then, the exposed postcard
was falling into a tank attached under the
camera and contained the development solution. After some seconds of
treatment, the postcard was removed from the tank back into the camera
chamber. Finally, the picture was withdrawn through the sleeve and
dried.
The prints made with such process
were dull and with an important
contrast. Despite this poor quality, the interest for
this type of camera was real. Several
other camera makers reused the same concept (Cf.
Speed -O-Matic) with more or
less efficiency.
The arrival of the Polaroid film in 1947
conducted to the obsolescence of this camera process.