Focusing on a folding camera

[Apre]

Hello everyone, I have recently found this old camera my grandfather gave me which I had put away for storage and had forgotten where it was. I have bought the correct film and everything and I am ready to shoot. I do lots of digital photography so shutter speed and aperture I understand but I don't understand the focusing; I get that I shorten the bellow to change focus and lengthen it to change in the opposite way but I don't know what this P and F stand for. I have searched everywhere but I can't find it. Please help.
Thanks
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[480sparky]

F looks like Ft, as in feet.

 

[compur]

Is that an Ernemann? If so the letters may represent German words.

 

[Tim Tucker 2]

I think that the two focusing scales refer to two focal lengths and the *P* is probably a reference to a *Portrait* attachment that you can use to modify the focal length of the original lens and so requires a different focus scale.

 

[smithdan]

If the camera has a removable back, then it was capable of using a plate back as well as rollfilm. Because of the difference in lens to film/plate distances, F setting would be for the film and P for the plate. My old Butcher Carbine has this feature on the focus scale. In your pix, the F is under the pointer. Judging by the numbers, the scale units are feet.

 

[IanG]

If the camera has a removable back, then it was capable of using a plate back as well as rollfilm. Because of the difference in lens to film/plate distances, F setting would be for the film and P for the plate. My old Butcher Carbine has this feature on the focus scale. In your pix, the F is under the pointer. Judging by the numbers, the scale units are feet.

I'm sure you're right. The fact the two scales are identical in their distance spacing means it's for the change in the register of the film/plate plane rather than for a slight change in Focal length with a filter.

Ian