I'm not sure where you get that price from. Maybe a whole camera? The viewfinder is listed at 1820 euros, expensive as all new Linhof equipment is. But they come up on auction sites and used equipment dealers quite often. If you don't buy the newest one (and it is certainly not necessary), they can be more reasonably priced--in the $150-300 range.At only $3.5K this is a gadget every film photographer should have in their pocket.
LOL.
Good luck with that!
If you need help in determining the equivalences for your format and range of lenses, just ask here. One of us can give you the answers you seek, whether you choose to make a viewing card, multiple cards, or use an SLR. We’d need to know the format and the focal length of lenses you plan to use.
I had the same desire to make a viewing card last year, and made a little Excel file to calculate the size and viewing distance for different lenses.
I've modified that file and made it available here in the attachment. You enter the lens focal length and the film format dimensions. With that information, you can either create a new card based on a desired card viewing distance, or find the appropriate viewing distance for a card you already have.
An app similar to this is precisely how I had to determine the long frame dimension 24mm AOV on 135 format equivalence 4x5 format FL AOV
As an aside, I have long suspected the frame dimensions for 4x5 used by the app I used were suspect...and comparing my recent calculation (67mm) vs. your app calculations (79mm) reinforces my suspicions...I had long thought of 24mm on 135 is rather equivalent to 75mm on 4x5.
After using your linked app, I was able to determine that if you take the 135 format lens FL, and simply multiply it by the factor of 3.33x, one can directly compute the 4x5 lens FL that gives 'the same' long dimension of the frame AOV on 4x5 as contained within the 135 format long dimension of its frame!
- 24mm on 135 (74 degrees) is like 79mm on 4x5 long dimension
- 35mm on 135 (54 degrees) is like 117mm on 4x5 long dimension
- 50mm on 135 (40 degrees) is like 166mm on 4x5 long dimension
I've used actual-size cutouts (4x5") in mat board, the Zone VI viewing filter and a hole cut out of a 3x5 index card. My index card was folded in half and kept in a shirt pocket. Pull it out, unfold, view: EZPZ.
All the above work just about equally well for framing purposes. Personally, I like my Zone VI viewing filter. The Wratten #90 filter it has helps (a little) with judging tonal convergences since it removes much of the color from the scene.
OP,
I'd go for a smaller than 4x5" hole in a piece of mat board. All you need is the right aspect ratio and the ability to move the opening closer and farther from your eye. A small viewing frame on a lanyard that you can keep in a shirt pocket is quite handy. Figure out what distance corresponds to which focal length by simply comparing to the ground-glass image for your lenses and tie a knot or make a mark on the lanyard.
I rarely have to change lenses from the one I choose this way; maybe once or twice in 10 set-ups, and then only to the next longer or shorter lens I'm carrying.
Best,
Doremus
Per post #28
5” x 7” film holders mask the film to about 119 mm x 170 mm.
For a 207 mm lens, the angle of angle across the minor dimension and the equivalent 35 mm format lens that sees the same angle across its minor dimension are 32.1º, 41.7 mm.
Across the major dimension they are 44.6º, 43.8 mm
A viewing card for that lens and format requires an opening whose dimensions are in the ratio of 170/119. The viewing distance is
d = w/(2*tan(θ/2))
44.6
where w = the opening dimension (major or minor) and θ is the angle associated with that dimension.
If we use the major dimension of the format and its associated angle of view, then
d = 170 mm/(2*tan(43.8º/2)) = 211.3 mm viewing distance.
These give a viewing card of opening 170 mm x 119 mm with a viewing distance of 211.3 mm.
Per post #28
5” x 7” film holders mask the film to about 119 mm x 170 mm.
For a 207 mm lens, the angle of angle across the minor dimension and the equivalent 35 mm format lens that sees the same angle across its minor dimension are 32.1º, 41.7 mm.
Across the major dimension they are 44.6º, 43.8 mm
A viewing card for that lens and format requires an opening whose dimensions are in the ratio of 170/119. The viewing distance is
d = w/(2*tan(θ/2))
where w = the opening dimension (major or minor) and θ is the angle associated with that dimension.
If we use the major dimension of the format and its associated angle of view, then
d = 170 mm/(2*tan(43.8º/2)) = 211.3 mm viewing distance.
These give a viewing card of opening 170 mm x 119 mm with a viewing distance of 211.3 mm.
Typical price for US reseller, e.g. B&H wants $3575 with 2-4 week delivery. Compare with Linhof & Studio at £1650 and they have it in stock.I'm not sure where you get that price from. Maybe a whole camera? The viewfinder is listed at 1820 euros, expensive as all new Linhof equipment is. But they come up on auction sites and used equipment dealers quite often. If you don't buy the newest one (and it is certainly not necessary), they can be more reasonably priced--in the $150-300 range.
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