At the time I am
writing this review, this book is the latest volume of the
“Camera On”
series, which started back in 2017. For me, as a German WW2
military vehicle enthusiast and modeler, this series was the
best surprise of the last few years. It delivers high
quality books containing all new unpublished material and
backed by expert information. This information not only
covers the subject matter, but also the specific
circumstances of each photograph.
The book starts with
over three and a half pages of text providing a thorough
examination of the three different types of vehicles covered
within: the Horch Typ 108, the Steyr 1500 and the Mercedes
Benz L 1500. The introduction also
provides details on the many official Kfz designations of
the vehicles. For instance, Kfz. 31 was the ambulance
version (Krankenwagen) and Kfz. 81 the light anti-aircraft
version (Leichter Flakkraftwagen). The introduction also
covers the different production runs of the Horch Typ 108,
built by manufacturers Horch and Ford Germany. A
presentation of the various Steyr production versions is
next and is followed by an appraisal of the Mercedes 1500 A
and S types.
But, as with other
volumes in this series, this book is primarily a
photographic collection. What is interesting is that the
photos are very well chosen and exclusively provided in this
volume. I have a keen interest in the vehicles covered in
this book, so I own many references on the subject and have
collected thousands of pics from the Internet.
Yet, I had never seen any of the photographs
published before! In addition, the quality of the photos is
mostly very good. However, the author
acknowledges (as always) that the quality of the book photos
is dependent on that of the original pictures.
These were often printed very small as was the norm
at the time. Also, these photos were
usually taken by the common soldiers, amateur photographers.
This means that whilst most photos in the book look great
(even in full page), a few appear slightly washed out and
not as sharp as could be. But all in all, given the source
material, an excellent job has been done.
The photos are
presented in three (3) main chapters covering the Horch Typ
108, the Steyr 1500 and the Mercedes Benz L 1500,
respectively. The Horch Typ 108 is covered from page 7 to
page 64, which is the bulk of the volume. Vehicles are shown
in various theaters of war (Germany, Austria, France, Italy,
North Africa, Eastern Front, etc...) and
in various conditions (from new to mine damaged). It is a
fantastic collection of photos! I personally think that the
many pics provided of the ambulances seen in Germany and
Libya, alone warrants the purchase of this book!
The Mercedes-Benz 1500A
follows, from pages 65 to 71. Photos of this vehicle are
rather rare so it's still a nice collection, despite the
small number of pages. Of interest are several pics of a
doctor's vehicle, showing a white bonnet and adorned with a
red cross. This photo should inspire many
a model project I am sure. The Steyr 1500 ends the volume,
covering pages 72 to 80. Again, the
photos provided are really interesting and most welcome. But
being a big fan of the vehicle type, I would have loved to
see more. Also on the plus side, many
great photos of the command version (Kommandeurwagen) are
provided. One of note shows a unique field-built
anti-aircraft car (more on that one later).
As always with this
series, the captions are very thorough, containing detailed
background information. Although the caption information is
usually based on solid evidence, sometimes, the author must
offer his opinion on some occasions.
Usually, his judgement is as accurate as can be expected,
considering the circumstances. On a small few, I do have
some doubts. For instance, I was puzzled
looking at some vehicles with dates in 1941 and 1942 as they
look too light to be colored dark grey.
However, dust, film processing and light conditions can
change the appearance so much, I am willing to trust the
authors judgement. Besides that, I only found one error in
the entire book. It concerns the photo
showing the Anti-Aircraft gun equipped Steyr at the bottom
of page 72. I believe that it does not
have a 37mm Breda 37/54 gun mounted as mentioned. The gun
barrel is much too thin (probably 20mm) and the general
features do not match my references. I must say I have
difficulty identifying the gun myself as it looks a lot like
an Italian 20mm Breda 20/65 mod.35. AA gun, yet significant
characteristics differ. With all this being said, one slight
caption error for 132 photos is really trivial and I’m
very pleased with the book.
Conclusion
For modellers, this
is a fantastic reference as I’m
sure many of the photos will prompt building projects or
dioramas. Thankfully, the book vehicles are well covered in
scale model form, specifically in 1/35. For instance, the
Horch Typ 108 is represented by Tamiya's legendary kit from
the 1970s, and the most recent ones by ICM. In
1/48 there is also a Tamiya Horch model. The Japanese brand
again covers the Steyrs in 1/35 and 1/48, while ICM and
Miniart take care of the Mercedes 1500s in 1/35. Many kits
also exist in 1/72 as well. Military vehicle enthusiasts
will also definitely want to add this reference to their
library, simply due to the excellent photos, all of which
are published nowhere else. Finally, I want to add that
considering the excellent information and photographic
content provided for the price, this book is an excellent
value for the money; as with the other volumes in the
“Camera On”series.
A Must Have.
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