Skan Camera G-M Laboratories is a photographic exposure meter produced by G-M Laboratories, Inc., a Chicago-based manufacturer of photoelectric cells and scientific instruments. The Skan brand, introduced around 1946, was a post-war update of the company’s earlier “Standard” meter model, featuring a new name and a distinctive “man with the top hat” logo.[1]
Design and History
G-M Laboratories, Inc. was a Chicago manufacturer known for its Visitron photoelectric cells, which it claimed were the first photoelectric cells manufactured on a commercial scale starting in 1925.[2] By the mid-1930s, the company was located at 1731-35 Belmont Avenue in Chicago and had expanded into manufacturing electrical and mechanical specialties, including pin game machines.[3]
The Skan exposure meter appeared in 1946 as a post-war updating of G-M’s original “Standard” model. According to a contemporary account, the company introduced the new name and the “man with the top hat” logo for this model.[1] The meter was a simple selenium-cell device with a photocell and needle, and it was advertised in Popular Photography magazine in April and June 1946.[4][5]
A later model, the Skan de Luxe, was manufactured from approximately 1952 as the company’s high-end model.[6] The Skan brand was also used on other photographic accessories produced by G-M Laboratories.[7]
Meaning and Symbolism
The Skan logo depicted a man wearing a top hat, a whimsical figure that appeared on the meter’s faceplate. The exact origin or intended symbolism of this character is not documented in available sources, though it served as a memorable brand mark for the product line.[1]
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