Mamiya Press wide angle viewfinders

[Vaidotas]

A question to owners - is distortion present in additional viewfinders for Mamiya 75, 65 and 50 mm lenses?
If so how prominent it is?
Can you keep verticals straight by using these viewfinders?
Or it’s more convenient to use any kind of lever?
Shooting handheld and straight verticals are on consideration.
Thanks

 

[Besk]

I have a 50 and 65mm viewfinders and maybe a 75mm somewhere. There is noticeable barrel distortion with the 65mm and the older 50 viewfinder at the edges. My older 50mm viewfinder is marked Cambo and I use it on my Cambo Wide 650 by carefully leveling the camera and using rise as necessary.

If I was doing this handheld I would use the edge of the finder's view to make sure the verticals were straight.

 

[Paul Howell]

Along with Besk I have the 50 and 65, some distortion, nothing that I cant live with.

 

[John Wiegerink]

I believe, but could be wrong, that the 75mm was made for the Polaroid 600. At least that is what came with my Polaroid 600. It will work on your camera and is a really fine lens.

 

[xya]

I have them all and made a page about it https://www.oddcameras.com/mamiya/mamiya_universal.htm, there is a lens page which shows the finders. They have distortion indeed, but not the lenses.

As you should use the camera's big finder for focussing, you can control the lines there and only frame with the additional finders.

 

[halfaman]

I had 50 and 75 mm viewfinders. Both have huge distorsion and I was not able to level my shot with them at all.