I really need some help, but...

[Stephanie Brim]

Doesn't look too bad. I'd say it's got front rise/fall and shift, geared rear tilt, rear swing, focus on the rear, and the front is stationary. It will collapse on the front, and the rear extension will flip up. It also should have a reversible back. I'd say it's at its maximum extension, so this is a double extension camera, designed for field use with a wide to medium longish lens. The lens is coated, and is probably much newer than the camera.

Ask what that plate on the rear says--should be the manufacturer. If they can't really test the bellows, that's always going to be a gamble with this kind of camera, but it shouldn't sell for too much. It's not that fancy, but should be a good servicable camera.

Should be fine for a newborn with the lens included. Good luck!

What do you mean by reversible back? And why am I excited about that?

 

[epatsellis]

I definately won't bid either Stephanie, I've been married long enough to know never to come between a pregnant woman and something she wants.

erie

 

[Nick Zentena]

What do you mean by reversible back? And why am I excited about that?

He means it can be switched from landscape to portrait by just taking the back off and putting it back on .

 

[jeroldharter]

Stephanie,

Do you have a 4x5?

 

[Stephanie Brim]

I do not.

I thought about that as well and I'm open to that format, but I think 5x7 will give me the best results for contact printing.

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

Go for it. My first LF camera was 8x10". I tried a friends 4x5" first, but 8x10" had a much more immediate, intuitive appeal for me in the beginning.

 

[papagene]

Hey... someone mentioned my name!!
From David's description it doesn't appear to be a 2D (Whitey is correct in that I do have a 5x7 2D and it is fun to use). I think I remember seeing this on e*ay the other night and it looked good.
I'd say, if you can get it for a good price... go for it. I think you'll have a lot of fun with it.
Good luck Steph.

gene

 

[Stephanie Brim]

Grundlach, not Kodak 2D. Similar, but different.

 

[JCT]

I do not.

I thought about that as well and I'm open to that format, but I think 5x7 will give me the best results for contact printing.

Stephanie,

I started with a 4x5 Shen-Hao and really enjoy it (actually one of the guys on the Rangefinder forum suggested the Shen-Hao). I was in the process of teaching my teenager to contact print and do cyanotypes using the 4x5 negatives and that started me thinking... about how nice a 5x7 would be as a portrait setup.

So I bought a B&J 5x7 and a Wollensak 12" Velostigmat Series II -- waiting for the latter to arrive. I think in retrospect, I wish I had started with a 5x7 maybe with a 4x5 back, so I think 5x7 is a great starting place.

I'm actually half kicking myself for not going up to 8x10 with a 5x7 back since my lens will cover it -- luckily the B&J was only $100 so I guess if I stumbled on the right 8x10... , Like many of the guys who posted before me, my better half would not be amused.

Oh, and regarding the tripod block that JLP mentioned -- call Jim at Midwest (www.mpex.com) and ask him if he has one-- he just might. They have tons of stuff not listed on the web site. Also might have some holders for you. I was able to find some on the auction site -- they seem to come up in bunches.

Congrats on the little one and enjoy LF-- it's a blast.

JT

 

[luvmydogs]

Stephanie - haven't you heard that you shouldn't make major decisions while pregnant?

Hope you realize I'm joking. I'm 27 weeks along myself and on the verge of making a relatively huge camera investment myself.

Hope you win!

 

[Terence]

If you don't get it, let me know. I have a 5x7 Korona, contemporary to what I'm guessing is the one you're looking at, that I'd be willing to loan on a long-term basis. The bellows is patched, but works fine with a dark-cloth draped over it. I have a few holders I could loan out too.

The only trick will be finding it. I should learn NEVER to clean my apartment, as I only "lose" things.

 

[Stephanie Brim]

Terence...I may be talking to you more about that. Perhaps getting the feel of the camera first and then buying one would be the best idea.

 

[John Kasaian]

Nothing wrong with 5x7! You can often put a 4x5 back on it and shoot color (its cheaper) slip a polaroid back in and shoot type 55 p/n (wonderful!!) replace the 5x7 back and make contact prints or explore alternative processes. They're very universal, those old wooden 5x7s! Make sure it is in good condition and has the bellows length that will allow you to use the focal length lens you want.

 

[removed account4]

hi stephanie

5x7 is my favorite format!
everything looks good in that rectangle <g>

good luck!

 

[David H. Bebbington]

Can't comment in detail on what I can't see, but be aware that most wooden 5x7" cameras will only just focus a 5" lens at infinity and that no camera movements will be available at this focus. I never saw a wooden 5x7" that had less than double-extension bellows (16"/400 mm), some have an additional pull-out focusing rack at the rear. With older cameras, achievable bellows extension will be less than theoretical maximum due to stiffness of the bellows material.

5x7" cameras are considerably bulkier than 4x5", which is why I'm currently e-baying a 5x7" Linhof I bought 2 years ago and never used due to the horrendous weight - wooden models vary in stability from very good to "jelly on a plate". Slides are hard to find - I bought what seemed to be the very last of new stocks of Fidelity 2 years ago, these are also currently up for grabs, since I have resolved that if I do any big stuff, it's going to be 8x10" -the cameras seem to me to be little bigger than 5x7", while the contact prints are appreciably larger!

Regards,

David

 

[Ole]

Both my woden 5x7" cameras can focus a 90mm at infinity with movements; one can even do the same with a 65mm. Both of them can also focus a 500mm (non-tele) at infinity.

And none of them are "considerably bulkier" than 4x5" cameras - there are some camera manufacturers whose 4x5" model is a 5x7" with a 4x5" back!

I also feel that the step from 5x7" to 8x10" is much bigger in terms of bulk and weight than from 4x5" to 5x7".

5x7" is a great size to start with. If it's too big, go to 4x5". If it's not big enough, go to 8x10" - or get a 5x7" enlarger...

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

I don't think of 5x7" as much bulkier in most cases than 4x5" either. The Deardorff 4x5" Special is one of those cameras that's really a 5x7" with a 4x5" back.

 

[David H. Bebbington]

Both my woden 5x7" cameras can focus a 90mm at infinity with movements; one can even do the same with a 65mm. Both of them can also focus a 500mm (non-tele) at infinity.

And none of them are "considerably bulkier" than 4x5" cameras - there are some camera manufacturers whose 4x5" model is a 5x7" with a 4x5" back!

I also feel that the step from 5x7" to 8x10" is much bigger in terms of bulk and weight than from 4x5" to 5x7".

5x7" is a great size to start with. If it's too big, go to 4x5". If it's not big enough, go to 8x10" - or get a 5x7" enlarger...

It would be interesting to know what wooden 5x7s you have - my remarks were based on 2 Agfa Anscos, one with non-folding baseboard, one with, which I would certainly regard as twice as bulky as a Speed Graphic or even my Iston 4x5 tapered bellows folder, which is probably the most compact 4x5" I own. Similarly, I regard a 4x5 Linhof Technika as comfortable to hand-hold, whereas the 5x7 I'm selling feels as if it weighs about as much as a cooking stove. There are of course 4x5s which are really 5x7s with a reducing back, the Gandolfi Variant comes to mind, there are others I'm sure - but these are so bulky I'd never buy one!

As regards 5x7 versus 8x10, the comparison I was making in my mind was between an Agfa Ansco 5x7 and a Sinar Norma 8x10" - subjectively, the Sinar seems about 25% bigger and heavier. All a matter of taste, I guess!

Regards,

David

 

[Nick Zentena]

I guess it depends on your use and what you are comparing to.

Compare my Ansco post WWII 5x7 with my Shen Hao 5x7. The Ansco isn't much heavier but the Shen is heavy for a newish camera.

The Ansco with a flat board won't go to maybe 120mm? Not much wider if at all. The Shen can focus a 75mm on a flat board if you were willing to do all the tricks [tilt the standards. Squeeze the bellows no movements]

The Shen doesn't make a tiny package but it's a smaller folded then the Ansco.

I'm sure many 4x5s are more reasonable in weight and size then either my 5x7 cameras.

If you wanted to use a extreme wide 4x5 lenses I'd expect most real 4x5s to be better then either my cameras. OTOH wide 5x7 lenses aren't too much of a challenge.

 

[DBP]

Comparing like to like, my 5x7 Century 46 is not a lot bulkier than my Speed Graphic, and may be little bit lighter. Both are large format cameras intended for handheld use, the Century at waist level. It I were willing to abuse it the way I do the press cameras I would carry it by the strap and throw a few film holders in a bag (just don't want to risk something that pretty). But it is significantly lighter and easier to manage than the 5x7 in question.

 

[Soeren]

Just some links to show the difference in weight and bulk between 4X5 and 5X7

http://www.viewcamera.com/images/vc_1k/vc_viewcamera_1K_2.jpg

http://www.viewcamera.com/pdf/VC91-Thalmann-web.pdf
Kind regards Søren

 

[David H. Bebbington]

Both my woden 5x7" cameras can focus a 90mm at infinity with movements; one can even do the same with a 65mm. Both of them can also focus a 500mm (non-tele) at infinity.

And none of them are "considerably bulkier" than 4x5" cameras - there are some camera manufacturers whose 4x5" model is a 5x7" with a 4x5" back!

I also feel that the step from 5x7" to 8x10" is much bigger in terms of bulk and weight than from 4x5" to 5x7".

5x7" is a great size to start with. If it's too big, go to 4x5". If it's not big enough, go to 8x10" - or get a 5x7" enlarger...

Out of idle curiosity ...

... I weighed 3 cameras, in each case complete but with no lens panel or lens:

Crown Graphic 4x5 2265 g
Agfa Ansco 5x7 wooden
with "full house" movements
including center tilt 4800 g
Sinar Norma 8x10" with
12" rail 5000 g

Of course the 8x10" has a much larger back and takes much larger slides, more than twice as big as 5x7", otherwise the Sinar is about 2" longer front to back and 2" taller (front standard versus front standard). Appearances can be deceptive!

Regards,

David

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

Well, if you want an example of light weight 5x7, I have a Canham 5x7 field camera, which weighs about 6 lbs (<3kg). It fits in the same backpack bag that my Shen-Hao 4x5 fits in, with the same compliment of lenses. In counterpoint, I also have a Zone VI Ultralight 8x10 (9.8 lbs, <4.5kg). This is very light for an 8x10, but if I were to put it in that same backpack, it would fill the entire backpack, and I would have to carry my lenses separately. I transport it plus eight or ten film holders in a soft-sided cooler bag, and my lenses for it in a separate smaller cooler bag, on top of a folding luggage dolly. There's no comparison in size, weight or bulk between 5x7 and 8x10. I also have an older Seneca whole-plate (6.5x8.5) field camera, and while it is larger than my 5x7, it is still not much more than half the size of an 8x10. Given that it is all wood, it may well weigh the same as or even less than my Canham, but I haven't put them on scales to see. The problem with the bigger formats isn't so much the camera weight itself, but the accessories like lenses and film holders. The peripheral stuff starts increasing exponentially the bigger your format goes. 5x7 makes a really nice portable format, and makes for some really nice contact prints. 4x5 contacts feel a little too small to me. Oddly enough, though, I like 6x9cm contacts a lot, and they're half the 4x5 size.

 

[Ole]

I have compared a Gandolfi Traditional with another Gandolfi Traditional - one 5x7", one 8x10". And both with a ca. 1900 German 13x18cm plate camera. The 5x7" Gandolfi weighs 2.5 kilo, the 8x10" 4 kg. The plate camera just sneaks under 3 kg.

In other words the 5x7" Gandolfi is lighter than my 4x5" Anniversary Speed Graphic, and not much bulkier. The 4x5" Carbon Infinity which is my only "full movements camera" is heavier than either 5x7", but on the other hand...

 

[Jim Bradley]

Check this out

This was just posted over on the LF forum:

http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/search.php?searchid=1133051

Usual disclaimers apply.

JGB